Falling in love with cables

Remember back last winter when I knit those green thumb gloves and complained about the cables? I found the whole process so fiddly and annoying - juggling the cable needle along with everything else, keeping track of whether it went in back or in front, how much punishment I felt like the yarn itself was taking…

Now… I LOVE IT.

Forgive my elderly grandmother posture

I'm lapping myself here… this is actually the second of two cabled sweater projects I knit this summer, but I don't have pictures of the other one yet. That other sweater was knit with fingering yarn on size 4s, and by the time I was done with it I had decided I was going to take a break from knitting for a bit to focus on other pursuits (writing a book, say). Then I got my first whiff of autumn. NOPE.

The pattern is the Marylebone Sweater from Bristol Ivy. I forget, I'm sorry to say, where I first came across it, though I regularly troll Brooklyn Tweed patterns on Ravelry. I've had several chunky cardigans lined up for a while, but after finishing my other sweater I was raring for cables, and this pattern delivered!

CABLES

I wish I could have used Brooklyn Tweed yarn (I'm dying to use it for something!) but my local yarn store doesn't carry the Loft line. And, frankly, I shouldn't be spending that kind of money anyway! I went to what's becoming my standard (Knitwit is their flagship store, after all!) - Quince & Co. It's nice wool, fairly affordable and available in many colors. This is the Osprey (aran weight) in Sage. I tried to branch out - I came really, really close to going with a bold chartreuse - but in the end I folded and stayed in my dedicated colorway. I don't think I CAN own enough garments in dusty blue.

Of course, my hair is covering the cool construction

I LOVED this pattern. I've gotten confident enough in my knitting that when trying something new, I feel like with a little poking I'll be able to sort it out. This sweater was no different. It's a totally new-to-me construction (uh, I say this, but this is the first cardigan I've ever made). It's all knit in one - the shoulders are turned like sock heels and then the sleeves are knit flat from the shoulder, so the only seaming on the whole sweater is to sew up the sleeves! This lets the cable pattern flow up the back, across the shoulders and down the arms without breaking. Sometimes I worry about the mental state of the people who write these patterns. Just - HOW. I had a couple of WTF moments around the shoulder area, but a bit of frogging and contemplation sorted everything out.  It fits a bit differently than I expected, in that it fits PERFECTLY when I expected it to be slouchy. I can't complain about perfection, though!

This sweater has quickly become the most-worn handknit I've ever made. These pictures are from last weekend, when my husband and I made an impromptu trip to my alma mater in Vermont, my first time back since I graduated nine years ago. This is pretty much the most perfect time of year to go to southern Vermont! The tree covered Green Mountains on our drive up Rt. 9 looked like giant orange-gold cauliflower.

My pockets are a bit slapdash. But the buttons are spruce!

I'm a knitter-while-watching-tv, and have a longstanding belief that what I knit is imbued with the power of what I've watched. For example, I binged the entirety of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine while making my sister an afghan that turned out AMAZING. This sweater was knit to a combo of Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries, Stranger Things, and… presidential debates. The jury's out on its spiritual provenance! I'm pretty sure, though, that I'll be knitting a few more of these. Maybe in daring chartreuse?
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Leslie Crusher Sweater: A Wesley Redux

Oops, what a break I took there! I truly didn't mean to be so long, but life intervened… for one thing, I got a job! Yes, like the responsible 31-year-old I am, I now work part-time in a Whole Foods bakery. It's actually one of the most stress-free, fun jobs I've had, and I get to be around delicious treats all the time! Tomorrow, for example, I'm going to spend 4 hours learning how to frost cupcakes!

The downside of my job is that I have to wear a white chef's coat, sneakers, and (UGH) a baseball cap at all times. Any clothing/accessory creativity goes out the window! So on my days off, I've taken to dressing a little more colorfully than normal.

The good news about my long break is that I have a serious backlog of finished objects to report! It's been a very knitty summer - knitting, after all, being the best way to procrastinate from doing important things (like, oh, writing a book). And finally, as it's mid-October, we've had what seems to be our cold snap. The past few days have definitely been jacket weather and while the summer was glorious, I am SO READY. Bring on the snow!!!

But first:


Back in the early days of the year, Will and I splurged spectacularly on three-day passes to the 50th anniversary Star Trek convention in New York. We're both huge fans (my engagement ring is a sterling silver Enterprise!) and I'd never been to a convention. We assembled costumes - for my birthday Will gave me a reproduction of Saavik's away team coat from The Wrath of Khan, a garment I have always coveted! I figured with some heavy makeup I could do a passable Kirstie Alley (though, unpopular opinion time, I much prefer Robin Curtis. I WILL FIGHT YOU).

Then, about two weeks before the convention, I came across this vintage knitting pattern:



The stripes spoke to me. They whispered gently, madly into my ear: "This would make a great Wesley sweater…"

I've made a Wesley sweater before. Years ago, for our second Christmas together, I improvised Will a sweater from a simple raglan pattern combined with a shoulder-pattern chart that some other blessed nerd had uploaded to the internets. The sweater is awesome, but of course, Will never wears it. I had forgotten, in my maker lust, that he's one of those nerds to whom screen-accuracy is golden. Luckily, I am not of a bitter temperament, and I've gotten plenty of use out of the sweater myself! (In fact, I got engaged in it!)

In 2014, on my way (unknowingly) to get engaged!

The fact remains, though, that it's a men's sweater, and I've always meant to make myself one to my own measurements. I'd never planned to do a retro twist on the concept, but once the idea was lodged in my brain, I couldn't let it go.

The update: 2016

As I said, I had this idea about two weeks before we left, and I feverishly cast on. I ended up staying up late to knit after work and waking up early to do more of the same. I took my needles to work and knitted during my lunch break! I ended up bringing the WIP to the convention with me and knitted as we walked around! Yes, if you were at the convention on that Saturday, you may have seen a fully-costumed Saavik draped in yarn. Jonathan Frakes did - we had a lovely conversation about it. His wife is a knitter! He clearly thought I was insane. In that moment, frankly, I was.

Knitting cleverly concealed in tote bag! But you can't hide the glint of insanity.

Anyway, that's all to say that as Will got dressed on Sunday morning for the last day of the convention, I wove in all my ends and put on the finished product! Due to the vintage and femme nature of the sweater, I went for a 30s look, and dubbed this the "Leslie Crusher sweater." For those not obsessed with Star Trek lore, Gene Roddenberry originally imagined the precocious teen on the Enterprise as a girl named Leslie. He later changed the character to our beloved Wesley, patterned on himself as a teen.




I got tons of compliments on the sweater, all from women about my age. It was great fun to make and then wear something that so perfectly melded all my interests, in the one place where people would actually get it!



The pattern is the vintage Bertha Sweater, uploaded for free by the wonderful Subversive Femme. I used Quince & Co. because I was trying to stay budget-conscious, but it worked wonderfully! I did have to stitch the Bertha yoke down to the bodice, and it still rolls up a bit, but it was such a rush job that I think it would be easy to perfect it.

The next time I wear this, I'll make one update: I want to alter my Starfleet comm badge into a vintage-style brooch, with plenty of rhinestones!
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