i make stuff

Stripes for Marianne

Sometimes you just find inspiration and have to go with it. I was visiting The Most Amazing Yarn Shop In The World in June, and I saw this beautiful little cowl, knit with a yarn I'd never heard of, and decided it was exactly what I needed to make for my friend Marianne. So I copied the unpublished pattern (with the consent of the shopkeeper) and bought a skein of the yarn, and from there I was on my way.

 

PROJECT: Stripes for Marianne
 YARN: Crystal Palace Yarns Mini Mochi (self-striping), #118
 NEEDLES: US 4 circulars

Here's the recipe for this little cowl - super easy: In any fingering weight, self-striping yarn, cast on 120 stitches. Knit 1.5" 2x3 ribbing, then continue in stockinette in the round until you've reached your desired length (I made mine about 11 inches long). Bind off using your preferred method (I did a long tail sewn bind off). Gift to your good friend and wait for smiles. If you're lucky, she'll model it for you in 100 degree North Carolina heat.

 

  

Abalone

PROJECT: Abalone by Beata Jezek
 YARN: Sweet Georgia Yarns Superwash Worsted in Espresso
 NEEDLES: US 7 circulars

This pattern is really, really simple once you get the gist of it - it's really more of a recipe than a traditional pattern. It's written for just one size, so you have to modify it to your own measurements, but that's easy enough to do. You start at the bottom, bearing in mind that the width there is tapered, and then increase up till it's the full width you want for the body, and then you knit it straight up and it's easy as pie from there.

I used a yarn that was new to me for this project - Sweet Georgia Yarns Superwash Worsted, which is a wonderful, round, tightly plied yarn that knits into a really dense but squooshy and cozy fabric. I loved, loved LOVED it and highly recommend it. The colorway is Espresso, a good "matches everything" rich brown. I of course purchased this lovely stuff at Eat.Sleep.Knit - where else? 

 

This is my seventh sweater of the year, and the next several I'm making are doozies - oodles of stockinette that will surely take me a while to complete. Stay tuned.

Emelie

Sweater #6 for the year is Emelie, a new pattern by Elin Berglund (www.byelin.com).

 

PROJECT: Emelie by Elin Berglund
 YARN: Squoosh Fiberarts MC Sport in Cranberry
 NEEDLES: US 2, 2.5 and 3 circulars

In many ways, this is one of my favorite finished sweaters. It's a relatively simple design, knit seamlessly from the bottom up with lace panels along the front. Back and fronts are divided and shaped separately and then stitches are picked up for the sleeves and the sleeve caps are shaped with short rows. Stitches are picked up around the neck and for the button bands to finish it off.

Forgive my pale, snow white skin. I live in the Northwest now.

But even though the construction is simple, it's not short on details that make it really a special garment. The sizing is written for very petite and larger frames,  with patterning provided for three lengths. I made mine with sport weight yarn, and since my gauge was different, I made a smaller size (30") knowing that it would block out larger. I also knit mine shorter (12" from armpit) knowing that it would grow longer. It worked out beautifully. The sweater also features a wonderfully clever faux seam that's worked once you reach the arms by dropping stitches down in a line and then using a crochet hook to seam them up again. It gives the sweater so much more structure than a normal seamless garment has. Also, I love the 2x3 ribbing around the bottom and the cuffs - so much faster than twisted rib.

I definitely recommend this one!