Seedlings

I, for one, am more than ready for spring. And it looks like the lettuce and wisterias are just about ready too.

My knitting is also coming along quite nicely. Sweaters #1 and #2 are bound off, blocked and in heavy rotation in my winter closet. Sweater #3 is a secret (but it'll premiere before the year is over) and will be done in a few weeks.

I've already decided that #4 is going to be the Chiton pullover from the cover of Knitscene but I'm being good and only knitting one sweater at a time. It feels a lot like progress, I may even up the stakes to 12 in '11. It does make for nice, even math...

Happy weekend!

p.s. another one of my favorite recent designs premiered this week – the Woodland Turtle Cowl. I do have to say, I absolutely love how this one looks/wears/fits/is made to be under pea coats.

 

Wisteria: My First Sweater

Here she is. My very first sweater design. Wisteria is knit in Soft Linen and is part of the collection in Perennials, recently published by Classic Elite. It is the simplest of knits--a short sleeved, yoke top knit from the top down with flared sleeves and a cinch at the hips. 

When I worked at my LYS, it was a 3 mile round trip that I walked on most days. Everything changed when I got an 'all-grown-up' job and started driving to work. After a few months at the desk I gained about 15 pounds (some would argue it was a good thing, I'm munchkin-sized). 

I designed Wisteria with positive ease to hide my new smooshy parts. The open neck sits on the shoulders and the body of the sweater is loose fitting down to the cinch at the hip. The cord pocket is worked into the piece as it is knit and an i-cord tie means the sweater can fit just right on many different shapes and sizes. Soft Linen has just enough drape to give the fabric movement and animal fibers in the yarn keep the fabric from being sheer. 

I do have to admit I think this piece still looks great on the slim model; it's sweater for many sizes. And in plain stockinette, it's also a sweater for many skill levels. Having already knit this piece for CEY, I think I may make one for myself in Firefly. It will take more sizing and calculations (different weight yarn) but one yoked top later, I'm up for the challenge...

Scraps

Since I began knitting (about five years ago), I have kept my scraps. They piled up and eventually became a substantial part of my stash. After I added the "queen chair" to the apartment, I needed a cozy rug for my chilly toes underneath the chair. Filling that need became the ultimate use of my scrap collection.

The pattern is a shorter, chunkier version of the Sancelia scarf, with scraps held quadrupled. It is mostly wool (my fiber of choice) and almost entirely dk and worsted weight yarns. The rug weighs 1.75 lbs / 794 grams and uses the equivalent of 16 50 gram balls. I did not purchase any extra yarn or break into any complete stash skeins to finish it.

This was certainly an interesting visualization of the colors I use most (and least). It was also very fun to work through my scraps, four strands at a time, and remember old projects. It would be impossible to purchase yarn for this sort of project that would include so many shades and variation. 

To keep the rug in place, I found a non-slip rug pad that added a bit of extra cushion. It is the perfect finish to my queen chair and knitting corner....