Must have finally finished!

… as in, “surely you must have finally finished your Must Have Cardigan!”  This project definitely was a crock pot kind of knit rather than a stir fry or a pressure cooker sort. Kristina and I cast on together on September 1, 2008.  I took a hiatus from the project around the holidays, but finished knitting in March 2009.  I finished seaming and knitting the buttonband sometime in the summer, and finally bought buttons (in Boston) and sewed them on in July.  But YOU haven’t seen it since then, because it hadn’t been photographed.  Well, here it is – ta-dah! The sleeves are a tiny bit long but I’m still happy with them.  I kept some notes about what I learned knitting this sweater.  Here is what I want to remember for the next sweater project:

1. Adjust the rib pattern on the waist so that it flows into the main pattern. There’s really no reason that this waistband shouldn’t flow nicely into the main pattern, but it doesn’t.
2. I found it a little difficult to pick up stitches for the buttonband from reverse stockinette. It is SO EASY to pick them up in stockinette, but in reverse stockinette, there is no neat little “channel” to stay in. I will modify future patterns to avoid this situation.
3. In future pieces which require seaming, I will remember to put the increase/decrease stitches at least 2 stitches in from the edge that will be seamed. The increases/decreases got in the way of following a nice neat channel when seaming.
4. I will consider changing needle size downward for part of the sweater body in order to create subtle waist shaping. (I thought about doing this before I started this project, but frankly, I forgot once I was in the heat of things. This sweater is a bit boxy and could do with a little shaping!)

I have a tendency to overbuy yarn for large projects, fearing that I will run out.  Initially I had 16 balls of this (Knit Picks Wool of the Andes, color “lake ice heather,” 110 yards/ball, 1760 yards total).  I can only find 4 untouched balls in my stash now, so I guess I used 11-12 balls in all.  I’m still hazy about whether my initial swatching ball was included in the 16-ball count (I swatched a lot for this project, in 5 different yarns).  Well, anyway, I guess this sweater used about 12 balls, around 1300 yards.

Watch for me wearing it next week!

Button, button, who’s got the button?

Windsor Button has the button.  They have a lot of buttons.  They are smart people, for they have created a button play area for children just inside the front door.  Here are two out of the three young button shoppers at work sorting and filling those little boxes:

I would have required a wide angle lens to capture the entire wall of buttons at this shop.  Here is a piece of it.  Impressive!

This is not a self-serve operation.  You have to be waited upon and ask for a box from the other side of the counter.  If you have too many boxes out, the clerk whisks them away again.  I can understand why they do this, from an organizational point of view.  It is very easy to get buttons mixed up, and they have a LOT of buttons.  A button terrorist could make short work of this place.  But still, the librarian in me really chafed at not being able to go behind the counter and browse.  Mediated searches are so twentieth century!

Lots of their buttons come in many sizes.  Want to see the inside of one of the boxes?  Look at how wonderfully old and wooden they are.  Check out the joinery.  Each of the cardboard boxes inside the big wood box holds a different size button:

I tried to make my button decision as quickly as possible, as Boy 2 declared that he had to go potty, and Windsor had no public restrooms.  I paid and we ran over to Macy’s a half-block away.  I would have liked to browse more in Windsor – they had some yummy yarns, including Berroco (which I almost never see in person) and Madelintosh (there was some delicious sock yarn near the entrance).  But alas, yarn shopping was preempted by potty needs.  This is the lot of the mother of young children.

Here is my sweater with the new buttons perched atop.  Maybe I’ll sew them on this evening.  Then we can do the final photo shoot for Must Have and be totally done.  What a relief for us all!  :)

The Wrong Buttons

Have you seen that Wallace & Gromit cartoon called “The Wrong Trousers”?  My kids love that one.  Sometimes we walk around the house pretending to wear “the wrong trousers.”  Cracks me up every time.

This is a case of “The Wrong Buttons.”  Thankfully, the wrong buttons aren’t mechanical and out of control.

I finished seaming my Must Have Cardigan yesterday.  All that remains is to sew on the buttons.  These are the buttons I bought last October … but now I don’t like them at all.  They are a lovely navy blue, but they draw attention away from the sweater.  That’s not what I want them to do.  So I haven’t sewn these on, and I’m on the hunt for different buttons.  I’ll try Windsor Button later this week – surely I can find something there!

Happy 4th of July!

I pulled a few socks out of the sock drawer to make a silly sock 4.  I don’t have any white socks, so red and blue will have to do.

We are having a lazy day here in central PA.  Today there has been reading, Sims Kingdom on Wii, and bike riding.  The weather is amazing – highs in the 70s, partly cloudy/partly sunny, and breezy.  I don’t mean to lord it over my Texas readers, but really, this is why I love living here!

Believe it or not, I started seaming the Must Have Cardigan.  I have 4 seams down and 2 to go.  Maybe I really will be ready to shop for buttons by the time we’re in Boston next week.

Buttonband, buttonholes...

Practice makes perfect
Originally uploaded by JLW in PA

On Friday, I practiced picking up stitches for the buttonband and making buttonholes on my Must Have Cardigan. I decided to use the "one-row horizontal buttonhole" described by Margaret Fisher in her book Seven Things That Can Make or Break a Sweater. I took a class based on the book last September at Knitters' Day Out. I think this buttonhole technique is tidy and good-looking, much better than the cast-off-on-one-row and cast-on-on-the-next-row buttonhole instructions stated in the pattern.

The "winning" buttonholes are on the left side of this swatch. I goofed on one tiny but important step on the buttonholes on the right side of the swatch, and they have a saggy loopy piece of yarn that looks awful. The left side shows a 2-stitch buttonhole and a 3-stitch buttonhole. The 2-stitch one ended up being right for this project. Also, the band is a better width on the left side and the holes are centered more nicely.

I started to pick up the 272 stitches for the buttonband on Friday afternoon but didn't finish until later in the evening. It takes a while! I can pick up stitches so beautifully on a stockinette background ... but this sweater has reverse stockinette next to the band. Blech. Also, the pattern didn't really specify how to do the increases and decreases on the body of the sweater, and I think I did mine too close to the edge. They interfere with my "reading" of the rows. These are issues I hope to address in my next sweater.

Even though 272 stitches isn't that many (what, 4-5 rounds of a sock?), it took me forever to knit the 7 or 8 rows of the band. I had the stitches on a 60" circular and the stitches required a lot of shifting. Plus, the band is ribbed. I finished it yesterday. It needs a little blocking before it's ready for its reveal.

Next step: set in the sleeves and sew the sleeve and side seams.

Then, all that's left is the buttons. I no longer like the buttons I bought for this project. They look too dark. So I'm on the prowl for new ones. I didn't see any I liked at The Mannings on Saturday. I may try my local sewing shop. If that doesn't work, maybe Kristina and I will call on Windsor Button when we visit Boston next month. It looks pretty hardcore.

Time for a block party

Here are all 5 pieces of my Must Have Cardigan, before weaving in the ends and blocking. After hearing about Kristina's Must Have 911 (Ravelry link), I am very relieved that the cables appear to match up at the shoulders. Whew!

I think I'll settle in this evening to weave in ends, with hopes of blocking in the next couple of days.

I still need to knit a button band onto my swatch and practice several sizes of buttonholes. I can do that while waiting for the sweater to dry. The Margaret Fisher class that I took back at Knitters' Day Out 2008 taught me to buy the buttons before knitting the button band (it's easier to knit a buttonhole to match a button than to find buttons that match the sweater AND fit the buttonholes). Then estimate what size to make the buttonhole. Knit one buttonhole in that size, knit another one stitch narrower, and another one stitch wider. Put the button through and decide which is best. Then use that one on the actual sweater. Sounds logical to me! Kristina and I both bought buttons for this project at The Mannings last October, so I'm set there.

What time is it?

I can barely keep my eyes open and it's not even 9 pm. Aren't I supposed to be on West Coast time? So isn't it still happy hour? I guess not when you got up at 3 am (West Coast time)!

Anyway, this is all to say that the detailed update of knitting in many time zones will have to wait, as will photos. Here are the highlights, though:

1. I finished sleeve #2 on the flight out (took me 4.5 hours, but it's done).
2. I took a Knitting 911 phone call from Kristina re the Must Have Sweater shortly after arriving in Seattle. It's not good. I'm afraid to look at my back and fronts to see if I have the same issue.
3. I finished sock #2 of the undulating rib socks for my mom.
4. I cast on for another pair of undulating rib socks for myself. Finished sock #1 and got halfway through #2.
5. I never needed the spare sock project, but it felt good to have it.
6. I visited the yarn shop on Bainbridge Island, which was absolutely lovely, but surprisingly, did not buy anything.
7. I had a blast at the Nordic Heritage Museum in Ballard. I made a new friend and it was even more fun to go with another knitter-librarian. I bought some books and some roving.

And now, to bed with me!

I'm packed

Tomorrow I leave for the West Coast. The knitting plan:

1. Finish sleeve #2 of Must Have Cardigan on the long flight. I'm over halfway done with my row count... maybe 2/3? Plus, the rows will start getting shorter at some point soon. [Pack extra pair of needle tips size US 5 on the off change that mine are taken at the airport. Pack end caps and key in case the knitting needs to be secured on the cable.]
2. Finish sock #2 of undulating rib socks for my mom. I've turned the heel and am almost done with the gusset decreases, so there's not much sock left here.
3. Start a new pair of undulating rib socks - for myself - using Dream in Color Smooshy in color Spring Tickle. This project uses the same needles as #2. I only have one pair in this size.
4. On the off chance that I finish 1-3 and still need to knit, or on the equally off chance that my sock needles from #2 are confiscated at the airport, I have one more project packed - Knit Picks Essential yarn in a heathery denim blue, the Hedgerow Socks pattern, and my trusty old 2.0 mm sock needles. Hedgerow is a simple rib pattern repeated over 6 stitches and 4 rounds (rounds 1-2 are identical, as are rounds 3-4), and it looks like good conference/travel knitting.

I also have books for 2 different book groups to keep me busy (Twilight, by Stephenie Meyer, about which some woman wonder why the teens are all aflutter, and The Elegance of the Hedgehog, by Muriel Barbery).

And a slew of knitting podcasts downloaded on my mp3 player.

Yeah, I'm packed.

Sleeve One, Done

I haven't been posting much lately because I seem to be working on the same old thing. How many times can you look at the Must Have Cardigan?

I finished Sleeve #1 last week - here she is. I've started S2 and have decided to take her along to Seattle. S2 isn't good conference knitting, but I think she will be good company on the long flight. With luck, I might even finish her on this trip!

I have definitely decided on the Bainbridge Island jaunt on Wednesday - a ferry ride, an artsy island in Puget Sound, a LYS, good restaurants and cafes and boutiques and galleries... sounds great! I have figured out how to get to Pier 52 from my hotel and what the ferry schedules and fares are. Seattle appears to have insanely good public transportation.

Sleeve 1

Sleeve 1
Originally uploaded by JLW in PA

I haven't posted in a while. It is only so interesting to see the same project again and again, with more inches on it. But in the interest of breaking the silence, I give you a progress shot on Sleeve 1.

Righty Loosey Lefty Tighty

Last week, I finished the right front of the Must Have Cardigan. Here are Righty and Lefty, checking each other out, wondering if they can work together. I think that they can.

I noticed that my knitting loosened up on Righty, as the fabric measured longer at the beginning of the armhole shaping than it did on Lefty. I had the same number of rows and the diamonds matched up perfectly. I guess I just loosened up as the pattern became more and more familiar.

Now, it's on to Sleeve #1. I had hoped to wear this sweater yet this season, but today's 59 degree weather makes me despair. 59 degrees in February!?! It will get cold again, but still...

Soon, a spinning update.

Baby Got Left Front

Somehow this post title just isn't as catchy as Baby Got Back... but as you can see, I now have the left front of the Must Have Cardi completed. Not being blocked, she's not looking her very best in this photo (especially the inside edge, which is curling like crazy). Still, I post it as proof that I've finished it. Now I am inspired to cast on the right front right away.

I wonder if the sleeves will be about the same number of stitches as the front pieces, or more?

Baby got back

Must Have Cardigan back
Originally uploaded by JLW in PA

Ummm, is that an okay post title? I finished the back of my Must Have Cardigan! It took 146 rows in pattern. Now I've started the left front. It's sooooooooooo pretty. I love it.

I'm going to try to stay focused on this project for a while, in hopes of wearing it before the cold months are over. The last sweater I completed was ready to wear in June. How thrilling it would be to wear this in Spring 2009.

IK Fall 2008, and Must Have Update

I love listening to Nicole and Jenny (Stash & Burn podcast) review each new issue of Interweave Knits and discuss which patterns they like (and don't). I thought I'd try that here. I know a lot of you are regular readers of this magazine.

In the Fall 2008 issue, what do you like? The Dumpling Bags caught my attention. I probably wouldn't carry one, but my younger son would! He is a little squirrel who finds tiny objects and packs them away in boxes or bags or baskets. His current obsession is acorns, which he refers to as "nuts." If you've seen Ice Age (or Ice Age 2: The Meltdown), you'll know that Scrat the squirrel is obsessed with getting a perfect acorn. These are the acorns my son adores. We look for oak trees all over town and scour the ground underneath to add to his "nut" collection. He would love one of these little bags. I would make it without the flower motif and do something else, maybe a geometric design, or maybe robots or bugs or something. The pattern calls for Cascade Pastaza yarn (50% llama, 50% wool), and I have some of that in stash left over from a hat I made last winter.

I kind of like the Bacchus Socks, though I don't think I would put those bobbles on the foot part. The cuff would be okay, but not the part that goes in the shoe. The pattern calls for ShibuiKnits Sock, and I have some that would look nice. But I have other plans for it...

The Knotty or Knice Socks caught my eye, but not so much because of the pattern. Did you notice the color of this Blue Moon Riber Arts Socks that Rock Lightweight? It's hoofle foofle. That just makes me want to knit with that yarn. Which reminds me, I always meant to get some of their sock yarn in the colorway "pond scum" a year or two ago, and I never got around to it. I'll have to investigate and see if Pond Scum is still available.

There is an ad on page 111 for ads' Huggable Friends. The photo shoes a really cute doll that my sister-out-law would adore for her daughter. I'm not a big toymaker, but this is a cute doll. See the ak traditions website - the doll is shown in the fall right margin, third photo down.

And finally, an ad (p. 77) for a felted wine tote caught my eye. My parents are notoriously hard to shop for, but they and their active senior set do drink some wine. Maybe a sassy wine bag would be just the conversation piece in Sun City? Next time I am stumped about a gift for the parents who have everything they need already, I'll remember this concept. Could be a good stashbuster, too!

Lest you think there's been all reading and no knitting, here is what the Must Have Cardigan is looking like today. The pattern is completed through row 61. This is the back of the sweater. It's soooooo pretty......

Must Have Cardigan - the beginning

Must Have Cardigan - back
Originally uploaded by JLW in PA

Here she is... the first few inches of the Must Have Cardigan. Yummy cables. I'm happy with my yarn choice (Knit Picks Wool of the Andes in Lake Ice Heather).

Pattern management, or avoiding the flip-a-thon

So you know that Kristina and I started knitting the popular Must Have Cardigan back on Labor Day. I've knit the ribbing and 9 rows of the pattern, and the pattern itself (the physical thing printed on paper) is really frustrating me.

The pattern is condensed into 4 pages in the Patons booklet. I photocopied the pattern so as not to mark up the original, and my photocopy is printed double-sided on 2 sheets of paper. Big mistake! I use 3 of the 4 pages on each row, and the knitting experience is practically a spectator sport with all the flipping.

My first response was to photocopy it again, then cut up one version and tape the relevant bits (like the stitch glossary) right next to the parts to which they referred (like the charts). Last night I got out scissors and double-stick tape and went crazy.

I'm still doing a lot of flipping, though.

In the end, I made a spreadsheet to help me keep track of my rows. The basic pattern follows a 4-row repeat, so some stuff changes 1-2-3-4. One of the charts is an 8-row repeat, and it's pretty straightforward to incorporate into the 1-2-3-4 pattern. But the other chart is 26 rows (NOT divisible by 4!), and that's where things get sticky. I finally gave up trying to hold all this information in my feeble brain and typed it into Excel.

Behold, the spreadsheet:

Now I can check off each row as it's completed, and not fret about post-its coming off the pattern while the pages rest in my knitting bag. Or post-its coming off the pattern while in the hands of small children. Either is possible.

Kristina, I'm emailing this to you!

Labor Day Knitting

Labor Day was meant to be the kickoff date for another Knitalong with knitting buddy Kmart. Back at MDSW 08, we decided to tackle another runaway knit, the Must Have Cardigan (made famous by the Harlot herself). K bought yarn at the festival and I bought some later in the summer.

Actually, I bought 6 single balls of various yarns and knit a bunch of swatches (one didn't even make the swatching cut). Here are some of them. I am always drawn to blue (my favorite color), but I also tried a couple of greens:
In the end, the winning swatch won for three reasons:

1. I thought a lighter color would show off the cables better than a darker color.
2. This yarn (Knit Picks Wool of the Andes in color"lake ice heather") is neutral enough to go with a number of other colors. This is a cardigan, after all, so we need to consider the shirt that goes under it. I don't know if the photographs really show it, but this is a light icy grey with a hint of bluish-purple in it. It's not truly grey. I don't think I could have endured a whole sweater out of plain grey.
3. This yarn is heathered. I think the heathered yarns result in even more versatile garments, and I wanted to try a heathered yarn for this project. Here is the winning swatch with the pattern:

While I was swatching, I figured out my gauge and decided I would be knitting on a US 5 for the bulk of this project (US 4 for the ribbing). I'm getting exactly 5 st/in on that needle, and I like the resulting fabric. I knit the Rogue on this same yarn, but on a size 7 needle, and the fabric is a little loose.

So... Labor Day dawned beautiful, and I could have knit all day. Except... my son thought it would be a great idea to "go berry picking and make jam!" So, we did. There is a great U-Pick place near here called Yellow Hill Farm, and the raspberries were plentiful and delicious. We made a double batch of raspberry-blackberry jam (YUM) and have enough berries left to make another double batch of plain raspberry jam.


Finally, after the jam was made and the kids were in bed, I cast on for the Must Have Cardigan. Here she is, just out of the gate. It's a slow start, but I think this will be a wonderful fall knitting project this season.