Beloved (well, sort of...)

Have you ever thought about the reasons behind the patterns’ names?  I have a lot recently, because sometimes these reasons are hard to understand. My last pick from Kim Hargreaves’ book Wilder is called Beloved. And the previous one that I made is called Cloudy. Yet, in my opinion, Cloudy should have been called Beloved. Why? Because it is definitely one of Kim’s favorites right now: it is repeated several times in this book as well as in previous ones. On the contrary, the cardigan named Beloved should’ve been called Cloudy. Why? Well, because the lace pattern is not very clear and rather hard to understand.
Why did I pick Beloved in the first place? At the beginning I didn’t like it much. It looks a little bit old-lady-ish and reminded me of the 50s – short, sweet, and feminine. Normally I prefer simpler silhouettes without frills, no girly stuff. Yet, I liked how it looked on the model – with a modern dress. I could see myself wearing it. And as soon as I can visualize the future garment I am gone – I want it right now, yesterday, nothing can stop me. And in this particular case, nothing did.

In this book some patterns have charts, some – don’t. Yet, most lace patterns are recurrent and, if you look carefully, you’ll find them charted. The pattern for Beloved is just written row by row. I spent a whole evening trying to knit something at least remotely similar to the picture in the book without any success. My abstract-sequential brain freezes up when a pattern is not charted.
Then, I remembered about Barbara G. Walker’s A Treasury of Knitting Patterns. A light-bulb moment! Soon I found Faggoting and Beehive Lace pattern which is the same one that Kim Hargreaves used for Beloved and, I believe, for Lake:
Row 1 (Right side) *K2, yo, ssk, yo, sl 1, 2 tog, psso, yo; rep from *, end k2, yo, ssk.
Row 2 *K2, yo, k2 tog, p3; rep from *, end k2, yo, k2 tog.
Row 3 *K2, yo, ssk, k3; rep from *, end k2, yo, ssk.
Row 4  Repeat row 2.
The only thing that I changed while knitting it was *k2 tog* in Row 2. I did *sl 1, k1, psso* instead, because it was easier for me. Somehow in Barbara G. Walker’s book the pattern looked logical and clear. I memorized it quickly, and from this moment on it was a pleasure to knit. The best part of this particular lace pattern is that you are bound to notice a mistake quickly, usually in the next row. No need to unravel half the garment.

Yet, after my initial failure with the lace pattern I decided to proceed carefully and recalculate everything.
The yarn - Debbie Bliss Cathay, 10 balls;
Needles 3.0 and 3.5 mm.
I'll try to explain my knitting process here as well as I can. If something is still not clear, or you have other questions – ask away!
The pattern itself is multiple of 7 sts plus 4. Plus 2 side sts for me (I do need side stitches for sewing). Back – 98 sts, ribbing 2x2 (I liked it better than 2x1 in the pattern) for 13 rows, in the last (14th) row 13 sts increased - 111 sts. Work in pattern for 80 rows. Begin casting off for shoulders in 130th row.
Left (and right) front – cast on 54 sts, ribbing 2x2 for 13 rows, increase 8 sts in 14th row. Work in pattern for 80 rows (I didn’t make the edge and knit all sts in lace pattern).
Sleeves – cast on 46 sts, ribbing 2x2 for 13 rows, increase 9 sts in 14th row. Continue in lace pattern increasing in every 11th and 12th rows (as recommended) to 77 sts, 102 rows till top shaping. I made sleeves’ tops shorter than the pattern asked for and, I think, they are still too long. And next time I will not increase in two consecutive rows, I’d rather space increases more evenly.
Since I didn’t make the borders while knitting the fronts, I picked up stitches afterwards and did them in ribs. I was afraid that if I did it in garter stitch as per the instructions they would stretch too much for my taste. Plus, in the book there is not one picture of the cardigan buttoned. This fact made me think that it might be because it looks good only unbuttoned.

 

The vintage black metal buttons are from my personal collection. I think they complement the garment nicely and heighten the metallic sheen of Cathay.

After sewing the whole thing together and trying it on before washing I absolutely loved the fit and look of it. A perfect little number to pair with a dress or pants, or even jeans and shorts. Extremely flattering and versatile – main requirements for an item of clothing for me. Unfortunately, after washing it stretched quite a bit. That happens often with Debbie Bliss yarns. Still, it is soft and light, and goes with everything, so I’ll wear it a lot.

Verdict: great cardigan, must be reworked in a better yarn.
Pictures were taken in Canada, in an adorable little town called Niagara-on-the-Lake, where we are staying now for the Shaw festival.

A tale of two cardigans

Actually, it is a tale of one cardigan - Cloudy - with some photos of the second one - Blue disaster. I decided to put them together because they are both summer cardigans and the process of making them was rather frustrating but in a different way.
I decided that I needed more summer cardigans because the only one that I had with me last winter in Florida was extremely handy and I wore it on multiple occasions. When I saw Cloudy in the last Kim Hargreaves’ book, I thought that it would be a great addition to my wardrobe.
A couple of words about the yarn that I used to make Cloudy. The only thing that I know about this yarn is that it is made by ColourMart. I’ll explain.
Several years ago my husband suddenly asked me what I wanted for Christmas. Since he doesn’t do it often – about once every ten years – I got superexcited and asked for the ColourMart yarn. I’ve read a lot about it on Ravelry and seen many wonderful projects made out of this yarn. Yet, every time I would go on their website, I’d get paralyzed by too many types of yarns to choose from. My husband on the other hand never had any problems with decisions plus he is efficient to the fault. He went on Ebay and bought the yarn there. Later  under a Christmas tree I discovered a big (huge!) box full of yarn that had no information about the weight, length, content or anything. There were chocolates in every pack, but nothing else. He picked good colors though – the ones that I definitely like. But it is difficult to figure out what to make out of a certain yarn if you have no clue about at least its length .I managed to identify some of it later (for example, the one that I used while making Blok). But most of it was left un-indentified, like Jane Doe in a mystery novel.
Making Cloudy from this yarn was, in a way, a leap of faith for me. I wasn’t sure I had enough yarn to actually finish the garment. It turned out that I had more than enough, and I was able to make the cardigan longer than in the original pattern because when I wear a cardigan I like my butt to be covered. At least the best (or worst) part of it.

Cloudy has a boxy shape, no side decreases or increases. The different length of back and fronts makes it look modern and a little oversized. The actual cardigan pattern is rather easy and straightforward. As soon as you figure out the directions for which size are right for you. Mine were for the size L. I made 6 buttonholes (the pattern calls for just 5) because I changed the length of the garment.

A raveler who already made this cardigan recommended trying first a sleeve or a front. She was so right! I had to reknit my first sleeve 5 times. Because of the lace pattern. It is not difficult per se – just two rows (no schematics, just row by row explanations), yet, somehow I kept making mistakes in it. Usually, in a pattern there are rows where you have to pay attention, concentrate, count, and other rows where you can relax and just go on autopilot. No autopilot for this lace! At least, not for me. I had to redo every part of this cardigan, the right front – 5 times, which made the whole process rather frustrating. This is not a pattern for the weak hearted, you’ve got to really commit to be able to finish it. My recommendations would be to start with yoga or meditation or both before you even buy any yarn for this cardigan. And no, I will not make it again. Ever.

I love the end result though. This garment is airy and lightweight, perfect for summer (or winter in South Florida). The yarn after washing lost its papery feeling, got much softer while keeping a very good stitch definition. Great yarn! It is a shame I have no idea what it really is. Can somebody help me?
And here are some pictures of me wearing the Blue disaster, my other summer cardigan.

 

You can also see these projects on Ravelry - Cloudy and Blue disaster.

  

Feeling blue

Finally I finished this blue disaster and am ready to tell my sad but hopefully insightful story.

 

It began when I was packing the yarn to take with me to Florida. The main goal was to use up the yarn that had been in my stash for a long while. So I started digging and at some point unearthed two (!!!!) packs of Ella Rae baby cotton in bright blue.

Honestly, I don’t remember when, where, and under which circumstances I bought this yarn. I must have been in coma or just mortally tired. Why did I buy 2 packs? My first explanation is that the yarn was probably cheap. The second one came when I looked closely at the inscription on a ball – 100 m. Only 109 yards long. I had 2 000 m of denim blue yarn, 88% cotton, 12% nylon, which means it would really stretch a lot. What was I initially planning to make out of it? No idea.

After some painful inner deliberations I decided to make a long cabled cardigan. I reasoned that cables would take care of the yarn stretchiness and cardigans usually eat up quite a lot of yarn. Now the question was – which cardigan? There are so many beautiful patterns on Ravelry.

It was a tough decision. I went by elimination method – what I need and don’t need in a cardigan (besides cables, which I definitely needed). First of all, in a cardigan I need pockets. Actually, I wish I had pockets in everything. And yes, if there are no pockets written in the pattern, you can always make them yourself, but… it is much easier when the pattern already includes pockets.

Secondly, I didn’t want a collar for my cardigan. From my experience, cardigans’ collars rarely behave the way they do on pictures. In real life they usually look frumpy and asymmetrical, and it’s not comfortable to wear anything on top of them.

At this point I remembered about this cardigan.

It is from a very old – VINTAGE – magazine. This one.

When I was much younger and just had my first child, someone gave me this magazine to translate a pattern from French. As a reward I could keep it for a while to look at and copy any pattern I wanted.

Boy, I looked and looked! I was in love with all the patterns and models! They were happy and carefree, wore amazing clothes in out of this world colors. You can imagine my life at the time if this magazine made such an impression on me (and I am not a very impressionable person in general). I copied and later made quite a few patterns from this book but I was using poor quality yarn and unfortunately almost all this work is now gone.

When I discovered Ebay (many years ago), one of my first purchases was this particular magazine. I don’t care that it is old. For me these patterns are timeless.  

Yet, I couldn’t just follow the pattern for the blue cardigan. Fashion changed over the years, and the pattern’s sleeves were disproportionately large. I decided to be brave and rewrite the raglan portion of the pattern to make sleeves look modern. Why, oh why I suddenly felt self-confident?! So out of character…

Off I went, and the back was almost finished during our last week in Florida. The yarn turned out to be pleasantly easy on my hands, and kind of addictive. It wasn’t splitty, I could make cables without a cable needle, so knitting was a breeze.

When we came home to Pennsylvania, I promptly made two front parts and was already anticipating wearing it in April (we had unusually cold April this year).

And then (sad, haunting music and drumroll, please) – disaster… While finishing the first sleeve I put all the parts together and finally – finally!!!! – noticed that the cables didn’t match. I don’t know how it would’ve fit me – probably well, but, while calculating and recalculating the raglan decreases I never even thought about the cables and the fact that eventually all the parts will be sewn together. Strange oversight, don’t you think? For a person who’s been knitting for the best part of her life, it was unexplainable and unforgivable. I was really mad at myself.

Anyway, I had two options - finish it the way it was and never wear it, or unravel all the finished parts down to the armholes, forget the raglan, and start all over with set-in sleeves. I picked the second option. But first I had to take some time out, regroup and recover; otherwise I would’ve frogged the whole thing. I am glad I didn’t because the end result looks nice.

These vintage buttons were bought last year in Oxford.

Eventually, only 14 balls of yarn were used. 6 balls left. And the yarn was discontinued years ago. A new challenge for my restless mind (and hands).

I don’t have pictures of myself wearing the thing – my photographer is in Florida. As soon as he is back I’ll post new pictures on Ravelry. For now you just have to believe me – it fits really well, it goes with everything, and I am going to wear it a lot. Halleluiah, all’s well that ends well, right?

Speaking of Shakespeare, we saw 2 of his plays while in London plus two more plays by other authors. Since this is a knitting blog (for the most part) I am not going to write what I think about The Taming of The Shrew in Shakespeare’s Globe and Romeo and Juliet in Garrick theater. Unless somebody really wants to know. Do you?

Overall this trip was very successful and I even found a London subway station named after me.

I bought yarn only for 1 project this time because we had a tiny carry on with no space for yarn. But… I got myself a lot of buttons. Buttons are great for airplanes – don’t take up any space at all.

For more of my London pictures go to my Instagram. 

Confidence boost, or The Elixir Of Love

What do you do, when you work on a project for a while (well, a long while, almost 2 months) and hope to finish it soon, already anticipating how, when and with which clothes you’ll be wearing it, and then suddenly (yes! Suddenly, because where were your eyes all this time I don’t know, but certainly not on your project) you discover that it must be unraveled because it looks ugly? Has it ever happened to you? If the answer is “yes”, and I hope it is, because I am not the only idiot in the world, it just cannot be true, so if the answer is “yes”, what would you do in this case?
As for me, I need to put the unfortunate project aside, take a deep breath (several deep breaths, actually), and make something that would cheer me up.
Next week we are going to London and see our older child. So I decided to make something for her. The question was – which yarn to use?
I bought Shetland Spindrift wool a couple of years ago, when I saw some patterns by Martin Storey (honestly, I don’t even remember now which ones). But when the yarn came in the mail I was disappointed. First, each ball has only 25 g and 105 m of yarn in it. Not much. Since I didn’t pay attention to the yardage while ordering (yep! I know!), I didn’t order enough. But this wasn’t a major problem. I could order some more. The problem was that I didn’t like the yarn – it looked too rustic and uneven, too homespun for my taste, plus it seemed to be scratchy and splitty. So, like any normal intelligent human being, I just put it in a bag and hid it somewhere in my stash.
Looking for yarn for my new small projects I rediscovered it, made a gauge, and was pleasantly surprised at how well this yarn felt and looked when knitted. And it wasn’t scratchy or splitty. And I had enough for a pair of socks, or a hat, or a couple of hats.

Actually, this yarn reminds me of Buddhist monks. It is called Spindrift – something spinning like a prayer wheel, something drifting like your thoughts during a meditation, something round and calming like a mandala. Try working with it – hopefully, you’ll feel the magic like I did.
Still, I decided to start with something for myself – to see how it will look in a finished project. For a while now I wanted to make myself a blue beret. At first, I found this pattern but then rejected it because it looked too homemade. I wanted a hat that looked like something that you can buy in a store. And then I found this darling little beret.
It looked adorable on pictures and it was a free pattern, another bonus. So I promptly downloaded it and started knitting it from Shetland Spindrift in dark blue. Perfect color for me. My only two problems with this pattern are its length (12 pages of explanations for a simple, made in a round stockinet hat seem to be excessive and are full of repetitions) and the amount of cast-on stitches for the adult size. I followed directions and casted on 90 sts.  After a while I tried this on and, no surprise, it didn’t fit my ginormous head. So I restarted with 120 sts and after this it was smooth sailing.

At the end I tried to felt it by hand in very hot water, failed, but discovered that the yarn didn’t bleed at all. Yey the yarn! So the felting was done in the washing machine.
I call this hat The Elixir of Love. First – because I wore it for the first time when we went to the opera of the same name. Second – because, in a way, it was an elixir for me, a salve for my bruised ego, a balm for my frustrated soul. All in all, it was a success (the hat as well as the opera). And a person needs some success after a big failure. At least this particular person. You can see more pictures and read more about the hat here.

Now I knew I could use this yarn for gifts. First, I made a pair of socks from Veronik Avery’s book Knitting 24/7 that I like a lot. I’ve made mittens from this book 4 or 5 times as gifts and I was eyeing these socks for a while. The pattern is very well written. If you read it carefully and then follow it, nothing can go wrong. The socks were made in record time for me. Because, to tell you the truth, I hate making socks!
Yes, I had to say it. I hate making socks because:
1) there are two of them;
2) they are rather difficult to make – you have to use 4 or 5 tiny pointy sticks that keep slipping from your fingers, and the stitches keep slipping from the pointy sticks (and I would NEVER use my expensive and very much loved circular needles for socks, it would be too painful for them and too irresponsible for me), not to mention the fact that you’ve got to constantly pay attention and count every row and every stitch;
3) and then, after all this work, they get ruined by wear almost instantly so what is the point in making them?
I know, I’ve heard so many times from different knitters “You need to have a sock in the making to take with you to a doctor’s appointment”. Personally, I can take anything to a doctor’s appointment, even a blanket (not that I make that many blankets, but I digress). Doctor’s waiting room seems to me not to be especially conducive to concentration required for sock making.
I make socks rarely, on special occasions, for some special, “sock worthy” people. Like, for example, Sister Kathy Letts, who was the Dean of Studies in the school where I used to work. Dear Sister Kathy, I doubt that you read this, but you are one of the most “sock worthy” people that I’ve ever known. Thank you for everything!
So, my daughter is definitely in the group of “sock worthy” people and she wears my socks mostly to bed, thus insuring their longevity. And I preemptively apologize for ranting about socks here, but this is the only time and place when I can do it, so – why not?
After having made socks, I started a hat. Also for my daughter. When she was living in Edinburgh she would wear them even in summer.
My first try was Kim Hargreaves’ Kat from Precious. I’ve made this hat so many times already and it is perfect as a gift. Yet, for this yarn it was too small and I didn’t want to recalculate everything so I just took a pattern from Kim’s last book – Wilder and made it in wool instead of cotton. I’ve already explained all the process here, so I won’t repeat myself. The hat is slouchy, warm, and cute.
I still have some Shetland Spindrift left and I’ve been thinking about making a long warm fairisle cowl/scarf from the leftovers. We’ll see. First, I need to come back to my “big failure” and rework it. After all, I got a little confidence boost from my successes with hats and socks, I took a step aside and don’t see it as a total disaster anymore. And I still want it as a garment.

 To be continued...

Computer viruses vs. tigers

Tonight my husband had a nightmare. In it I asked him to look at my computer and he instantly saw that I'd put a virus on it that was devouring all programs and content. Imagining time and effort necessary to reinstall everything and make my computer workable again he woke up drenched in sweat.
People used to have nightmares about tigers, lions, or sharks chasing and eating them. Now it is a computer virus who is eating, not humans yet, but the second best thing - their computers.
And I've heard about this new type of nightmare from other people as well. Is it really THAT common?
As for me, my computer is never a part of my dream. For the moment, at least.

Pinky, or How I Ended Up With This Color

In general I don't wear pink. At all. I am not attracted to it. Doesn't move anything in me. And this is usually how I buy yarn - I see a color and feel something steering inside telling me to go and grab as much of this yarn as possible. And don't make me start talking about buying yarn online - this is a real torture! So many colors! But pink never captivated or tempted me before.
And then I bought Kim Hargreaves' book Still, saw these two sweaters and became totally obsessed with pink. Not any pink, these particular shades of pink.

Last year in England I visited some yarn shops (as I always do!) and found the yarn required for these sweaters. Actually, you need two yarns together - Rowan kidsilk haze and Rowan lace. Unfortunately, there was only one shade of pink for Kidsilk haze in the store. It was so... pinky! And it was virtually impossible to squeeze all the yarn I wanted to buy in one rather small suitcase. To solve this problem I got a little less yarn than I needed praying without much hope that it would be enough. It wasn't. Even though I ended up making a different pattern, not one of Kim's sweaters. Here is why.
The first one is done in an openwork and requires something to be worn underneath (as a rule, I try to avoid such garments). And the second one has a deep plunging neckline at the back - I wasn't sure it was practical and would be worn often. However, I got the yarn, pinky and scrumptious! Great color for my birthday sweater, don't you think?
The pattern that I finally chose, - Corrina - was on my wish list for a while. I am just not a big fan of bell sleeves. But with the amount of yarn that I had I couldn't afford bell sleeves anyway. Would consider myself lucky to have any sleeves at all.
The only thing stopping me was that I was in the middle of another project. Usually, I work on one project at a time. I am a sprinter, not a marathon runner. I need to see the finishing line. I have to be motivated to finish a garment or I lose all interest in it. My motto is focus, focus, focus! No distractions! Yet, the pink yarn was a major distraction... Every day... Bright, fluffy distraction... So, one evening I just cast on for Corrina and didn't stop till it was finished. Last Sunday.

It is an amazing pattern.  It is simple and comfy - like a sweatshirt. It is very flattering and has some neat little embellishments that make it special. Of course, our pictures are not like the ones in Kim Hargreaves' books. My photographer is just an amateur not a professional. That is why, I believe, I don't look as pretty, or young, or tall, as the models in Kim's book.

The pattern is extremely well explained. It has charts in addition to the row-by-row instructions. Just follow directions !

I didn't make the bell sleeves but otherwise I didn't change anything.
For the neck edging Ann recommends to bind off stitches loosely or a sewn bind-off. At first the edging seemed to be too loose so I just bound off stitches. Didn't like it. Unraveled and did a sewn bind-off. Looks and feels much better.
This is the second Ann's pattern that I made and I love both of them. And this unusual color seems to agree with the pattern. The garment is really versatile and can be worn with jeans and skirts. I am going to an opera this Sunday. Guess what I am going to wear...
Pink used to be my younger daughter's favorite color. Sometimes she would wear an outfit with several shades of pink in it. "Pinky" was her nickname given by my older daughter, who was, of course, "The Brain".
I kept thinking about my girls while making Corrina. I am pretty sure one of them will want it for herself sooner or later. So I need a backup - more Corrinas in my wardrobe (in wool and in cotton). And I still haven't finished the garment I was working on when I started my Pinky...
If you are wondering what happened to "Pinky" (as, I am sure, you are, all two of you), she went to an Art School and became an artist. Now she lives and works in New York. Here is one of her last creations made for our new place in Florida.

And "The Brain"? She is a professor of English literature currently teaching in Cambridge University, UK. And I am just a proud mom who loooooooves to brag about her kids. We all do, don't we?

The Importance of Context, or As You Like It

What are the differences between these two pictures...

 

 ...and these two?

I took the first two last year at Tate Modern Museum in London and the blue thingy is a work of art. The second pair was made in our park in Pennsylvania and the rust-covered thingy is the remnant of an old railroad. And the differences? The first one is blue (it is covered with blue crystals and is actually sparkly), has more complex and tortuous form. The second one is covered with rust, has clean lines and simple, minimalist form. If you ask me, the second one also could be called a work of art, if taken from its context and put in a modern art museum. Or not. Its all in the proverbial eyes of the beholder.
Look at these pictures. To me they are nature own lace.

Yes, human made lace is more orderly, less chaotic, but this one is inventive and unfinished, it gets your imagination flowing in all possible directions.

 And here are two examples of lace made by yours truly. Of course it cannot be compared with St.Galen's lace pictured above. Still I am pretty proud of it.

Today I want to talk about three plays that I saw over the last two weeks. Yes, after several months on a tiny island it was great to put on some nice clothes and go to a theater.

The first one is called As You Like It by William Shakespeare.
It is a comedy with a very happy ending. Yet, for a comedy there is barely any plot in it. All things that actually happen there are totally unrealistic and unbelievable:
- a duke banished to the woods,
- two noble girls escape to the same woods, one - disguised as a boy,
- a guy who is in love with a girl disguised as a boy also escapes to the same woods (very popular woods, if you ask me!) and start hanging love poems on trees,
- later this boy saves his sleeping brother (still in the woods) from a lioness,
- an evil duke becomes a hermit, leaves the dukedom to the first duke (from the woods),
- four couples marry.
Since the plot is flimsy and non-important, the whole play is just "words, words, words". About life and love. Some of them very funny but if you think a little they seem to be serious. Some - seem to be serious but if you know the context - not that much. So, it is all as you like it... You want a silly comedy with shepherds and shepherdesses in some idyllic woods - here you go. You want to mock romantic poetry about love, melancholy philosophers and their philosophies - help yourself. Or maybe you are/were in love and want to dive deeply into this interesting topic - there is plenty of food for thought here. The famous monologue "All the world's stage, And all the men and women merely players." is from this play and is said by Jaques, a philosopher. "Jakes" was Elizabethan slang for toilet, so he may as well be talking "crap", who knows?
At the end, as usual after a play by Shakespeare, I was astonished at how little human nature changed in 500 years since the play was written. Yes, the words sound different, but the characters, feelings, and concerns are the same. What about evolution? Isn't it a long period enough to evolve? Or we are doomed to repeat same mistakes over and over? And what was Shakespeare's life like? How was it for him who knew so much about us, humans? And live with all this incredible knowledge?
A week later we went to another play - Doctor Faustus by Christofer Marlowe, who was Shakespeare's contemporary. It was well done and perfectly staged but throughout the performance it was quite obvious that this play is much more medieval than modern. Or baroque. But definitely archaic. It was interesting to watch from a certain historical perspective but not so much as a study of human nature.
Next day we saw Saint Joan by Bernard Shaw, and the contrast was palpable. Shaw is an amazing playwright - he weaves such skillful net with words that you forget about time and everything else. And even in a tragic play there is always place for irony and laughter. Exactly as I like it.
In conclusion. We are extremely lucky because there are so many great theaters in Philadelphia.

I love theater. A good play sucks you in, sort of swallows you like a whirlpool, you feel the energy that passes from actors to spectators, you become a part of the art creation that is happening right then and there. What do you think about it?

And yes, next time I promise to write about knitting...