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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Trash Doilies

Now for something a bit unconventional:



One of my prevailing interests is incorporating non-art objects or subjects into art. In this case, we're talking craft and trash! I am an inveterate doily-maker; 99 Little Doilies is my bible, but at this point I'm just riffing.

I wouldn't call myself a hoarder by any stretch, but it's hard to deny when I reveal that I've had several boxes of these teabag packets knocking around for years, the tea long since drunk. This shade of blue is my absolute favorite color, and I've kept these around mainly as color swatches, though I thought they might get a second life sometime.

The idea here, I think, is that eventually I'll have enough of these doilies crocheted up that I can connect them into one big wall hanging. It's a meditation on color and material. Sorry, that's my art school education shining through - one must find the meaning! I do believe that, actually, but I think it's important to recognize the ridiculous in art theory!

Pictured: my 1.4 mm needle and my sad fingernails.

If this comes together, I have a second one in mind - I've been collecting my husband's Big Red bottle caps for a few years now...

Green Thumb Mittens

I'm a plant killer. I should get that right out of the way, because these mittens are a lie! I can't even keep a spider plant alive. Anyway… mittens!



Now that I live in the cold north, I'm having so much fun knitting things that I'll actually get a chance to use! The other day I got very covetous of the mittens I saw on Wool & Wheel's blog. Since I'm trying not to spend money right now, I scoured Ravelry for a similar, but free, pattern. I came up with Eugenia's Mittens. (Though I'm saving Grove in my pattern folder for when I have the funds!)



The pattern's a little wackily written, but I found it easy enough to follow as a novice mittener (and a fairly new cabler). I still don't like cables, but they're not the worst thing in the world. And once again, I was amazed at how quickly a project knits up when you're using size 7 needles! The world of socks has really warped my mind. I shortened the cuffs a bit because I was afraid of running out of yarn - and as a matter of fact, that's exactly what happened!

I'm still working through stash yarn, but luckily I had this beautiful dried-lavender Brooklyn Tweed. It's the first time I've knitted with this brand - I've been lusting after it for MONTHS, and so I bought a skein of Shelter (colorway Blanket Fort - what a great name!) before the holidays without a project in mind just to see how it knit up. Oh, I love it! It's got a bit of scratch to it - I wouldn't use it for a cowl - but it's incredibly light and squishy, and of course the color variation is to die for. There was quite a bit of vegetable matter, but I kind of like that! It felt like what I would like to spin, if I ever get good enough. 



Of course, my skein didn't go quite far enough, so I had to improvise on the thumbs. Since I didn't have anything remotely matchy color-wise, I decided to have fun with it. I had a bit of green Quince & Co. Owl left over from a hat I made my sister, and texture-wise, it's almost identical! (a little softer.) I can't decide if the end result is ugly or awesome, but I'm pleased with it!

I have a few more fibery things in the works - I took a drop spindle class last week, which was amazing (I'll write about it soon) and it finally got me in the mood to sort out my Country Craftsman wheel, which I've never been able to get working! As of a few days ago, it's spinning like a slightly rickety charm - so more on that soon as well! In the meantime, I'm off to pick up the newest member of my family - A CAT.

SLIPPER SOCKS! MEDIUM!

I hope you've all seen that classic scene from one of the greatest Christmas movies of all time? If you haven't, go seek it out. 

Our house is uncarpeted and 100+ years old, and all the warmth seems to seep out of my feet every morning when I come downstairs. I was in desperate need of some slipper socks!



I'm taking a small break from buying yarn, so I dug through my stash and found this nice bulky-ish 100% wool by the Sheep Shop Yarn Company. I have NO idea where I got it, but I have two skeins - one in blues, and the other in these nice gardeny pinks. It's wonderfully soft singles, made in Uruguay. Certainly not appropriate for socks - it's far too soft and fuzzy - but these will never see the outdoors or the inside of a shoe.



I scanned through slipper sock patterns on Ravelry and liked the looks of this one. I made a few alterations - I sized up to a size 8 needle to make gauge, I lengthened the cuff to 2", and I did an anatomical toe because my feet are quite wedge-shaped! I read a few comments complaining about the overly pointy toe, so I stopped when I had 12 stitches left and kitchenered. I'm quite happy with the result! They aren't sock-like, really - they wouldn't stand up to much of a beating - but they kept my feet warm as I surfed the internet this morning, and as I wrote this post. And they were incredibly quick knits - I cast on yesterday morning and wove in the ends as I watched tv that evening!

I might go back to a size 7 needle if I make a second pair - they could be a little tighter without issue - and I also might make the cuff a bit taller, just to keep my ankles warm.



We left D.C. just in time to miss all the fun, it seems. We didn't get any snow this weekend, but we still have quite a bit on the ground from our last storm. For now, that will have to do - but I can't wait to get really clobbered!

Have I Been Busy!

Oh, boy! Changes, they are a'coming. There are a lot of exciting things on the horizon for my little yarn studio this month - a big location change and a huge increase in space, which will hopefully give me some more time to focus and figure out just what it is that's been tickling me so much about fiber for the past few years. 

In the meantime, my yarn stash is packed up and even my spinning wheels have gone into hibernation! I couldn't put it all away, though, so I figured keeping a set of dpns and a skein of sock yarn out couldn't hurt me… right? 

HA.

It's amazing how there's a yarn store in every town. A yarn store with the perfect skein of sock yarn that's been waiting for you, obviously, like a rescue puppy that just needs you to take it home. Ok, I made myself sad there. I don't know why every X-Files marathon on Chiller needs to have multiple animal-abuse ads thrown in there. What demographic are they aiming at? It's breaking my heart!

I got sidetracked. Sorry.

When last we spoke, I had just started yet another sock, with yarn I found at a yarn shop in Frederick, MD. It was with the best intentions - the yarn was the perfect color for my ailing aunt, and I thought it would match up well with a pattern I'd been eyeing for a while.

The yarn is French Market Fibers Warehouse Sock yarn, in colorway "Muses"

The yarn was nice to work with - very soft and drapey, and I like the way the colors marbled rather than striping. The socks flew together, thanks to the easy pattern (with lots of lovely stockinette, something I haven't done much thanks to my propensity for choosing absurdly complex patterns) and many, many plane trips. 

Socks are perfect for airplanes. They're small, repetitive, easy to pick up and put down at a moment's notice, and identifiable (if you have people constantly peering at you). This past month I flew to Portland, ME, Los Angeles, and back to DC. And every single flight had a connection. Hell. But very productive for my sock empire.

As I was making these socks for my aunt, I tried to size them a little smaller than usual. I may have gone too small - we'll find out tomorrow when I give them to her. I'd never done an anatomical toe before, but I really like the look and feel of it. I did have one toe start to unravel oddly - as in, not from the end - when I tried them on. Maybe I fouled up the kitchener? I did some lumpy grafting and it seems to have sorted itself.

I did find myself with a few… not complaints, but quibbles as I finished the socks and tried them on. It seems I've reached a comfort level with sock-knitting where I now have opinions about what I like and don't like. I thought the cuff on these was a bit short. I also didn't like the straight stockinette heel flap - every other sock I've made does the thing where you slip every other stitch on the knit rows, and I like the thicker, elastic heel that gives you. But the pattern was fantastic - easy to knit, and I love the look of the finished product. 

So what to do? I decided I had to repeat the pattern immediately, subbing in my preferences! My first shot at altering a sock pattern. And wouldn't you know, I had just found the PERFECT skein of yarn at an awesome shop in Portland. So away we went.

Yarn is Frolicking Feet (a Maine company!) handpainted in colorway "Seafoam"

First of all, I LOVE this yarn. The pictures don't do its color justice at all - I'll have to try to get some in better light. It's a lovely slate blue, with shots of greenish ocean color - particularly suited to this pattern's wavy structure. It's a little thicker than most of the other yarn I've used, and feels stronger.

I really feel like everything came together with these socks - it's the first time I've put on a finished sock and thought, "Yeah, I could wear this all day!" 

I did an extra half repeat on the cuff to lengthen it, and knit my preferred heel. The sock feels snugger and more structured (which is also probably because of the yarn, which is much stiffer than the purple). I think I've gotten the hang of picking up the heel flap stitches, after many, many messy attempts. No gaping holes!

In conclusion: I've gone sock-mad. But I think I've found a keeper pattern, and a great new yarn - an appropriate one, too, because in less than a month I, too, will be a Maine local!