Ok, so here's what I think I'm going to do for my second sweater.
I think I'm going to do another Central Park Hoodie. I like the idea of being able to look at a version of the sweater while I try to map out modifications, and I think that the CPH would work well in the Comfy that I have just ordered from Knit Picks.
I am going to knit the thing in one piece, and I'm going to try to do EZ's fake seams, to give the sweater structure. I'm going to do a 32 inch back and a 36 inch front, in an attempt to make the sweater fit better. I'm also going to add some waist shaping. I'm going to shorten the sleeves a bit more than I did this time, because even though I took three inches off of the finished product, they were still too long. And I'm going to substitute more-awesome cables for the simple ones in the standard CPH. I think I am going to do Barbara Walker's Saxon Braid for the double cables up the back and the sleeves. For the smaller cables, I might try to unvent the braided rib cable here.
I can't decide whether I'm going to do the hood or not, but I don't have to decide that right away.
The CPH is the single most popular cardigan pattern on Ravelry, and I feel like I should choose something more interesting and creative. But I don't think I'm going to. I think I'm going to be boring. The pattern is popular for a reason.
Showing posts with label Central Park Hoodie. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Central Park Hoodie. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Monday, March 31, 2008
All over but the zipper!
In a fit of insomnia last night, I put in the sleeves on my Central Park Hoodie. Here's a picture of the finished product. It's a terrible picture, because sadly it doesn't seem to be possible to take a decent picture of me in my bedroom mirror.
There's all sorts of stuff wrong with my CPH. The pattern isn't especially flattering on my body type, there's an error in the ribbing, and the seaming is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. And yet I love it. I made a sweater! Me! I feel like I am finally a "real knitter."
I still need to put in the zipper. The pattern calls for an open cardigan with no fastener, but that definitely would not work with my immense boobage. In that picture, it's held together with a safety pin. However, I'm contemplating holding off on the zipper until the next time I visit my parents and can make use of my mom's sewing skills/ sewing machine. I'm thinking about getting some sort of kilt pin type thing and sticking that where I currently have the safety pin. Is that cheating? Do I care?
There's all sorts of stuff wrong with my CPH. The pattern isn't especially flattering on my body type, there's an error in the ribbing, and the seaming is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. And yet I love it. I made a sweater! Me! I feel like I am finally a "real knitter."
I still need to put in the zipper. The pattern calls for an open cardigan with no fastener, but that definitely would not work with my immense boobage. In that picture, it's held together with a safety pin. However, I'm contemplating holding off on the zipper until the next time I visit my parents and can make use of my mom's sewing skills/ sewing machine. I'm thinking about getting some sort of kilt pin type thing and sticking that where I currently have the safety pin. Is that cheating? Do I care?
Monday, March 24, 2008
Second sweater!
I am so close to done with my Central Park Hoodie! I have finished the ribbing, bound off, and woven in all the ends. All I have to do is put in the sleeves and attend to the zipper, and then I am done. It should definitely be finished by Friday. Woohoo!
Of course, I am deeply neurotic, so all I see when I look at the sweater is its many imperfections. And there are several. In fact, I am sorely tempted to rip out the button band and knit it again, and part of me thinks I should redo the right front, as well. This is totally crazy, and the only cure for it is to get started right away on my second sweater.
My current thought is to revisit the Green Tea Raglan, which I made a failed attempt to knit last year. I think I would do it in Comfy, the new cotton/ acrylic blend from Knitpicks. Comfy is machine washable and light weight, which would be good for a summer sweater. Also, it's cheap: I could knit the whole sweater for about $25. As per usual with Knitpicks, the Comfy colorways are mostly not to my taste, but I think I would look ok in Blackberry, Planetarium, Fedora or Pomegranate. (Someone ought to tell the people at Knitpicks that not everyone looks good in cool colors or pastels. None of those colors is really right for me, and I would look like a ghost in all the other ones.)
The Green Tea Raglan has a seed stitch body and stockinette sleeves, and I think I would reverse those, to facilitate putting in some short row bust darts. I would also leave off the belt, because there is no way that a belted sweater is a good idea. Other than that, I think I will knit it just as written. I will probably order the yarn tomorrow.
Of course, I am deeply neurotic, so all I see when I look at the sweater is its many imperfections. And there are several. In fact, I am sorely tempted to rip out the button band and knit it again, and part of me thinks I should redo the right front, as well. This is totally crazy, and the only cure for it is to get started right away on my second sweater.
My current thought is to revisit the Green Tea Raglan, which I made a failed attempt to knit last year. I think I would do it in Comfy, the new cotton/ acrylic blend from Knitpicks. Comfy is machine washable and light weight, which would be good for a summer sweater. Also, it's cheap: I could knit the whole sweater for about $25. As per usual with Knitpicks, the Comfy colorways are mostly not to my taste, but I think I would look ok in Blackberry, Planetarium, Fedora or Pomegranate. (Someone ought to tell the people at Knitpicks that not everyone looks good in cool colors or pastels. None of those colors is really right for me, and I would look like a ghost in all the other ones.)
The Green Tea Raglan has a seed stitch body and stockinette sleeves, and I think I would reverse those, to facilitate putting in some short row bust darts. I would also leave off the belt, because there is no way that a belted sweater is a good idea. Other than that, I think I will knit it just as written. I will probably order the yarn tomorrow.
Saturday, March 22, 2008
An attack of finishitis
I am not good at finishing things. I like to keep my options open, and the best way to do that is not to complete anything, so everything can continue to be tinkered with and revised. Right now, I am in the process of not finishing two things. The first is my Central Park Hoodie. The second is the stupid, stupid article that I'm supposed to be writing for a Very Important Journal's special issue on the truly obscure subject of my dissertation. (I have no idea why the Very Important Journal decided that this was a good subject for a special issue. I don't think they're going to get enough decent submissions to fill a journal, and I work on this topic. My article really sucks, and I think it may be accepted just because nobody else is going to submit anything. But what do I know?) I'm not going to blog here about my unfinished article, because I can't think of anything more boring in the entire universe. Instead, I am going to blog about the only-slightly-less boring topic of my unfinished Central Park Hoodie.
So I'm really almost done with the stupid sweater. I have knit the body, done the side seams, knit the hood, seamed that, and knit the sleeves. All I have to do is knit the button band and then put the sleeves in. The instructions for the sweater say to pick up 150 stitches from the top of the hood and down one side, knit the the button band on that side, and then pick up 150 stitches on the other side and do the same thing. So I picked up 150 stitches, knit a couple of inches, and then did an i-cord bind off, which took for-frigging-ever. I-cord bindoff is super pretty, but it is definitely time consuming.
After I had spent three days doing that, I realized that the whole operation didn't make any sense. Those instructions assume that you are knitting the button band before you seam the hood. If you've already seamed the hood, it's not immediately apparent how to attach the two sides of the button band. I was going to have to cast on overlapping stitches for selvage and then graft the i-cord stitches. It all seemed very complicated. Also, the main reason to do one side of the button band and then the other is, I think, to facilitate buttonhole placement, and I'm planning to do a zipper. So I ripped out my three days of work, bought a second circular needle, and now I'm knitting the entire button band in one piece. I have picked up the stitches, and now I will probably spend all week doing the knitting and the interminable i-cord bindoff.
The thing is, this is my first sweater. I've been so anxious to do all the seams, just to facilitate the process of admiring my progress. Next time, I will know to be more patient and hold off on the seaming. That is, assuming that there is a next time. It is possible that I will be ripping out and re-knitting parts of this sweater for the rest of my life.
So I'm really almost done with the stupid sweater. I have knit the body, done the side seams, knit the hood, seamed that, and knit the sleeves. All I have to do is knit the button band and then put the sleeves in. The instructions for the sweater say to pick up 150 stitches from the top of the hood and down one side, knit the the button band on that side, and then pick up 150 stitches on the other side and do the same thing. So I picked up 150 stitches, knit a couple of inches, and then did an i-cord bind off, which took for-frigging-ever. I-cord bindoff is super pretty, but it is definitely time consuming.
After I had spent three days doing that, I realized that the whole operation didn't make any sense. Those instructions assume that you are knitting the button band before you seam the hood. If you've already seamed the hood, it's not immediately apparent how to attach the two sides of the button band. I was going to have to cast on overlapping stitches for selvage and then graft the i-cord stitches. It all seemed very complicated. Also, the main reason to do one side of the button band and then the other is, I think, to facilitate buttonhole placement, and I'm planning to do a zipper. So I ripped out my three days of work, bought a second circular needle, and now I'm knitting the entire button band in one piece. I have picked up the stitches, and now I will probably spend all week doing the knitting and the interminable i-cord bindoff.
The thing is, this is my first sweater. I've been so anxious to do all the seams, just to facilitate the process of admiring my progress. Next time, I will know to be more patient and hold off on the seaming. That is, assuming that there is a next time. It is possible that I will be ripping out and re-knitting parts of this sweater for the rest of my life.
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
In which my Central Park Hoodie begins to look like an actual sweater
I've finished the side seams on the Central Park Hoodie. On further reflection, I've decided that seaming isn't actually that bad. It took a while to get the hang of it, but now I can do it without much trouble. Anyway, I've cast on the sleeves, which I'm knitting at the same time. After that, it's on to the hood and the button band. Very exciting. It's awfully strange to think that I'm actually going to finish this thing.
Monday, March 3, 2008
Seaming has Commenced
One of the things I love about knitting is the constant opportunity to learn new and interesting thing. For instance, last night and today I have learned why everyone hates seaming so much. I think I've finally got the hang of it, but it sure is tedious and time-consuming. I've attached the right front of my sweater, and tomorrow I will attach the left front. After that, it's on to the sleeves.
The sleeves are another conundrum. I have freakishly short arms, and I think this is my first opportunity ever to own a sweater that didn't require me to roll up the sleeves. I'm very excited. I'm not so excited about doing the math necessary to make this work. I remember reading instructions for shortening sleeves somewhere, but I can't for the life of me remember where. I think after I psot this I'm going to sit down with the pattern and see if I can't figure it out for myself.
Anyway, as soon as the side seams are done, I will post pictures.
The sleeves are another conundrum. I have freakishly short arms, and I think this is my first opportunity ever to own a sweater that didn't require me to roll up the sleeves. I'm very excited. I'm not so excited about doing the math necessary to make this work. I remember reading instructions for shortening sleeves somewhere, but I can't for the life of me remember where. I think after I psot this I'm going to sit down with the pattern and see if I can't figure it out for myself.
Anyway, as soon as the side seams are done, I will post pictures.
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Random Ramblings
1. First, we have muffins.
The night before last, I was all set to make a lovely batch of pumpkin black bean soup, when I opened up my can of pumpkin puree and realized that I had mistakenly bought pumpkin pie filling instead of pumpkin puree. This was not a major tragedy: I used a third of a cup of pumpkin pie filling instead of a whole cup of pumpkin puree, because I didn't want my soup to be sweet. The soup turned out ok, although it definitely isn't as pumpkin-y as it's supposed to be.
But that is not why I'm posting. I'm posting because I used the rest of the pumpkin pie filling to make these delicious muffins, and I thought I'd post the recipe. It's adapted from the one on the back of the label. I made two big changes. First of all, because I didn't have "baking mix," I substituted flour, baking powder, and oil for the "baking mix" in the original recipe. Second, I left off the crumble topping. I think I'm going to frost them with cream cheese icing later on today. However, they're perfectly yummy as is, and if you leave off the crumble topping and don't frost them, I think they're parev. And I know you're thinking "if you're Jewish enough to care about such things, Em, then you shouldn't be posting on shabbat." The thing is, I'm not observant enough to care, but my friend M reads this blog, and her father keeps kosher. So that little observation is for M.
Ok, anyway, here's the recipe.
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons baking powder
2/3 cup plus 4 teaspoons sugar
3 cups flour
2/3 cups oatmeal (not instant, but quick-cooking is fine.)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 30 oz. can Libby's easy pumpkin pie mix
2 large eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil
Preheat the oven to 400. Grease or line cupcake tins.
Combine the dry ingredients (that is to say, everything up to the cinnamon) in one bowl. Combine everything else in another. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just moistened. Stick 'em in the muffin tins, stick the tins in the oven, bake 14-16 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean, and eat them. Because they are yummy.
The original recipe calls for optional raisins. I don't really like raisins, but next time I might throw in some dried cranberries or chopped dried apricots.
Mine was slightly different from this, because I had used 1/3 cup of the pumpkin pie filling for my soup. I chucked out a bit of the dry ingredients mix to compensate. It's possible that you'd want to use a bit less oil than I did if you were using the whole can of pumpkin pie filling, but I doubt it would make much difference. I suspect this recipe is going to be pretty forgiving of minor variations.
2. Last night I watched 28 Up, the fourth installment in Michael Apted's series of documentaries in which he meets up with a bunch of British folks every seven years and interviews them about their lives. And as I have been for the past two installments, I was struck by the fact that Michael Apted is actually a bit of a schmuck. He's kind of an asshole to the upper-class guys, at least one of whom makes it easy by being a complete stereotype of the oblivious reactionary upper-class twit. He's a lot more interested in exposing their privilege, which is blindingly obvious and kind of boring, than in exploring who they actually are as people. But where his jerkitude really shines through is in his treatment of most of the working-class men, the one downwardly-mobile, mentally-ill middle-class guy, and all of the women. On the one hand, he has obvious disdain for all of their lives, constantly implying that they ought to be disappointed that they haven't done anything "better." On the other hand, when one of the participant's wives expresses an interest in having a career even after she has children, he has obvious disdain for her, too, suggesting that she's difficult and that her husband, an academic, must find her a handful. This is supposed to be a neutral documentary, but it's clear that Apted doesn't have much respect for certain life paths. And that seems to include almost any female life path. Women are equally shitty if they marry and stay home with children or if they think they're worthy of having a career. Men, on the other hand, are only shitty if they don't have fulfilling jobs. It's all just patronizing and irritating, and it distracts from my enjoyment of what is otherwise a fascinating series of documentaries.
3. The Central Park Hoodie progresses. I'm almost done with the left front, and I think I'll finish it and block it today. After that, I need to take a brief break from knitting to sit down with some swatches and practice seaming. I've never done woven seams before, and they scare me. I will post about my results when there are results to post about.
The night before last, I was all set to make a lovely batch of pumpkin black bean soup, when I opened up my can of pumpkin puree and realized that I had mistakenly bought pumpkin pie filling instead of pumpkin puree. This was not a major tragedy: I used a third of a cup of pumpkin pie filling instead of a whole cup of pumpkin puree, because I didn't want my soup to be sweet. The soup turned out ok, although it definitely isn't as pumpkin-y as it's supposed to be.
But that is not why I'm posting. I'm posting because I used the rest of the pumpkin pie filling to make these delicious muffins, and I thought I'd post the recipe. It's adapted from the one on the back of the label. I made two big changes. First of all, because I didn't have "baking mix," I substituted flour, baking powder, and oil for the "baking mix" in the original recipe. Second, I left off the crumble topping. I think I'm going to frost them with cream cheese icing later on today. However, they're perfectly yummy as is, and if you leave off the crumble topping and don't frost them, I think they're parev. And I know you're thinking "if you're Jewish enough to care about such things, Em, then you shouldn't be posting on shabbat." The thing is, I'm not observant enough to care, but my friend M reads this blog, and her father keeps kosher. So that little observation is for M.
Ok, anyway, here's the recipe.
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons baking powder
2/3 cup plus 4 teaspoons sugar
3 cups flour
2/3 cups oatmeal (not instant, but quick-cooking is fine.)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 30 oz. can Libby's easy pumpkin pie mix
2 large eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil
Preheat the oven to 400. Grease or line cupcake tins.
Combine the dry ingredients (that is to say, everything up to the cinnamon) in one bowl. Combine everything else in another. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just moistened. Stick 'em in the muffin tins, stick the tins in the oven, bake 14-16 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean, and eat them. Because they are yummy.
The original recipe calls for optional raisins. I don't really like raisins, but next time I might throw in some dried cranberries or chopped dried apricots.
Mine was slightly different from this, because I had used 1/3 cup of the pumpkin pie filling for my soup. I chucked out a bit of the dry ingredients mix to compensate. It's possible that you'd want to use a bit less oil than I did if you were using the whole can of pumpkin pie filling, but I doubt it would make much difference. I suspect this recipe is going to be pretty forgiving of minor variations.
2. Last night I watched 28 Up, the fourth installment in Michael Apted's series of documentaries in which he meets up with a bunch of British folks every seven years and interviews them about their lives. And as I have been for the past two installments, I was struck by the fact that Michael Apted is actually a bit of a schmuck. He's kind of an asshole to the upper-class guys, at least one of whom makes it easy by being a complete stereotype of the oblivious reactionary upper-class twit. He's a lot more interested in exposing their privilege, which is blindingly obvious and kind of boring, than in exploring who they actually are as people. But where his jerkitude really shines through is in his treatment of most of the working-class men, the one downwardly-mobile, mentally-ill middle-class guy, and all of the women. On the one hand, he has obvious disdain for all of their lives, constantly implying that they ought to be disappointed that they haven't done anything "better." On the other hand, when one of the participant's wives expresses an interest in having a career even after she has children, he has obvious disdain for her, too, suggesting that she's difficult and that her husband, an academic, must find her a handful. This is supposed to be a neutral documentary, but it's clear that Apted doesn't have much respect for certain life paths. And that seems to include almost any female life path. Women are equally shitty if they marry and stay home with children or if they think they're worthy of having a career. Men, on the other hand, are only shitty if they don't have fulfilling jobs. It's all just patronizing and irritating, and it distracts from my enjoyment of what is otherwise a fascinating series of documentaries.
3. The Central Park Hoodie progresses. I'm almost done with the left front, and I think I'll finish it and block it today. After that, I need to take a brief break from knitting to sit down with some swatches and practice seaming. I've never done woven seams before, and they scare me. I will post about my results when there are results to post about.
Monday, February 18, 2008
In which I whine about the weather
The good news is that I have blocked the back and left front of the Central Park Hoodie, and I think they both look pretty good. The back is looser than the front, which is really the opposite of how it should be, given my rather ample boobage. I think I might compensate by making the button band a little wider than is called for. But at any rate, the back and the left front are both the right size, due to careful blocking, and they both look ok. I've cast on the right front and am hoping to finish it quickly. Then I have to face the dreaded seaming, but I will cross that bridge when I get to it.
The bad news is that the weather sucks. It really and truly stinks. We had flooding over the weekend, and now it's really cold, and all the standing water on the sidewalks and streets has iced over. It's like an ice rink, but without the ice skates. My balance is a bit off, due to my inner ear problem, and the whole thing is scary and treacherous. I would not leave the house, but I have an appointment with my advisor tomorrow. Oh, well. If I break my hip, at least it will give me something to blog about.
And just to make this post even more exciting, I have uploaded a picture of my empanadas from last week. I do not know what possessed me to take a picture of my empanadas, but here they are, in all their flaky deliciousness:
The bad news is that the weather sucks. It really and truly stinks. We had flooding over the weekend, and now it's really cold, and all the standing water on the sidewalks and streets has iced over. It's like an ice rink, but without the ice skates. My balance is a bit off, due to my inner ear problem, and the whole thing is scary and treacherous. I would not leave the house, but I have an appointment with my advisor tomorrow. Oh, well. If I break my hip, at least it will give me something to blog about.
And just to make this post even more exciting, I have uploaded a picture of my empanadas from last week. I do not know what possessed me to take a picture of my empanadas, but here they are, in all their flaky deliciousness:
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
The back is done
I finished the back of the Central Park Hoodie. Sadly, I am too tired to block it, much less take a pretty photo of it. Will block and photograph tomorrow.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Pictures! Get your fresh, piping hot pictures!
I took a picture of the back of my Central Park Hoodie. It's not a very good picture, but it is picture-y.
I'm a little concerned about how loose the fabric is. I put the back of the sweater on top of a white towel for better contrast when I took the picture, and you can see bits of the towel through the holes in the fabric. I think that when I'm done with the Central Park Hoodie, I may have to break down and work on knitting a little tighter.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Knitter's remorse
Ok, first of all, I am really, really enjoying working on my Central Park Hoodie. Before this, I'd mostly been knitting socks and mittens in tiny, tiny yarn, and it's really fun to knit something in giant, worsted weight wool. It knits up so quickly! I'm making lots of progress and I have high hopes for it being a nice first sweater.
But here's the thing. I am incapable of leaving well enough alone. I am somewhat dissatisfied with my sweater. I am already planning how I will do my next Central Park Hoodie, even though I am not yet a quarter of the way finished the with first one. First of all, while I am utterly enjoying knitting it in Cascade 220, I think I may do the next one in Cotton-ease. (Go ahead and scoff, yarn snobs. I may be cheap, but at least I'm solvent.) Second of all, I think I will knit it in one piece and try the groovy Elizabeth Zimmermann fake seam trick that I just read about in Knitting Without Tears. Third, I will fiddle with the cables. I haven't figured out how exactly I plan to fiddle with the cables, but I think I may do something wild and wacky with the mirror image cables on the back. If I made it into one big cable, instead of two adjacent little ones, I think I could do one of the really complex cables that I fell in love with when I checked one of Barbara Walker's Treasuries out of the library a while back. (Check out that link, folks. That blog is made of awesome. They actually knit the spider! And take a look at the Saxon Braid, because I think that's what I want on the back of my Central Park Hoodie.) Then I'll find something simpler but matching to do for all the other cables on the sweater. I want to do it in a lighter color, so you can see the cables better. Finally, I want to knit the whole thing on circular needles, rather than straights. I have to scrunch up my knitting to fit it all on the straight needle, and it prevents me from admiring my progress.
All of this sounds like fun, but I don't know why I can't just enjoy the knitting that I'm doing without fixating on how I could do it better. And am I really going to want to knit two Central Park Hoodies in a row?
Have I mentioned that the Chicago Public Library has a truly amazing selection of knitting books, by the way? No, of course I haven't, because I've only posted like three times. Well, the Chicago Public Library has a great selection of knitting books. They're mostly new and trendy, which is a little disappointing, because the historian in me enjoys looking at vintage knitting books. But they have pretty much every recent knitting book that I could want to look at, including the elusive Alice Starmore Fair Isle book. I can't decide if I want to check that one out or if I'll just fall in love with it and then be sad that I'll never be able to justify spending $200 on a knitting book.
But here's the thing. I am incapable of leaving well enough alone. I am somewhat dissatisfied with my sweater. I am already planning how I will do my next Central Park Hoodie, even though I am not yet a quarter of the way finished the with first one. First of all, while I am utterly enjoying knitting it in Cascade 220, I think I may do the next one in Cotton-ease. (Go ahead and scoff, yarn snobs. I may be cheap, but at least I'm solvent.) Second of all, I think I will knit it in one piece and try the groovy Elizabeth Zimmermann fake seam trick that I just read about in Knitting Without Tears. Third, I will fiddle with the cables. I haven't figured out how exactly I plan to fiddle with the cables, but I think I may do something wild and wacky with the mirror image cables on the back. If I made it into one big cable, instead of two adjacent little ones, I think I could do one of the really complex cables that I fell in love with when I checked one of Barbara Walker's Treasuries out of the library a while back. (Check out that link, folks. That blog is made of awesome. They actually knit the spider! And take a look at the Saxon Braid, because I think that's what I want on the back of my Central Park Hoodie.) Then I'll find something simpler but matching to do for all the other cables on the sweater. I want to do it in a lighter color, so you can see the cables better. Finally, I want to knit the whole thing on circular needles, rather than straights. I have to scrunch up my knitting to fit it all on the straight needle, and it prevents me from admiring my progress.
All of this sounds like fun, but I don't know why I can't just enjoy the knitting that I'm doing without fixating on how I could do it better. And am I really going to want to knit two Central Park Hoodies in a row?
Have I mentioned that the Chicago Public Library has a truly amazing selection of knitting books, by the way? No, of course I haven't, because I've only posted like three times. Well, the Chicago Public Library has a great selection of knitting books. They're mostly new and trendy, which is a little disappointing, because the historian in me enjoys looking at vintage knitting books. But they have pretty much every recent knitting book that I could want to look at, including the elusive Alice Starmore Fair Isle book. I can't decide if I want to check that one out or if I'll just fall in love with it and then be sad that I'll never be able to justify spending $200 on a knitting book.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Just so I don't forget: Zippery goodness
I think I'm going to put a zipper, not buttons, on my Central Park Hoodie, so I'm saving this little tutorial from Not Martha.
For reasons which I can't entirely explain, I am totally wiped out today. I don't even think I could post anything coherent if I tried. I'm going to go to bed and work on my sweater, and I will try to come up with something fascinating to say tomorrow.
For reasons which I can't entirely explain, I am totally wiped out today. I don't even think I could post anything coherent if I tried. I'm going to go to bed and work on my sweater, and I will try to come up with something fascinating to say tomorrow.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Progress on the Central Park Hoodie
I'm working on the back of my Central Park Hoodie, and I've finished the ribbing. Instead of doing 4 inches of ribbing, I did 4.5, because I don't really want a cropped sweater. There's nothing worse than that rush of cold air on your back when you sit down and there's a gap of exposed flesh between your sweater and your jeans. Like most people who make the CPH, I've added a little bit of length to the sweater to avoid that eventuality. I actually enjoy doing 2x2 ribbing, which I know makes me a knitting freak, but I'm glad it's done and I'm moving on to the cables. Yay cables! It's been more than a year since I've done anything with cables, and I'm quite excited at the prospect.
So that's great. But before I move on to the cables, I need to figure out what I'm going to do about waist shaping. The Central Park Hoodie doesn't have any shaping at all. It has ribbing at the bottom, and then it's the same diameter for the rest of the sweater. I am inclined to believe that's not a flattering look on me, because I'm quite curvy. Actually, that's not exactly right. For the most part, I'm not very curvy at all. I just have big boobs. I don't think that boxy sweaters are a good look on the big-boobed, so my plan was to add some waist shaping.
In an effort to do that, I went through and measured all of the sweaters that I own and like. (None of these are hand-knit sweaters, mind you, because the CPH will be my first sweater.) Now, none of my clothes fit perfectly, because of my odd shape. Part of the reason that I started knitting was in an effort to finally get my hands on sweaters that fit my big-boobed, small-framed body. But when I measured my favorite sweaters, I realized that they are all 36", which is my bust measurement, and none of them have any waist shaping. And that makes me wonder if maybe I don't need to add any waist shaping to my CPH.
However, when I looked at my most CPH-like sweater, I realized that in a sense it does have waist shaping. Like the CPH it has several inches of 2x2 ribbing at the bottom. Unlike the CPH, the body of the sweater is stockinette. However, there's a panel of 2x2 ribbing that continues up the sides of the sweater to the armholes. I think that allows the sweater to expand where it needs to expand and contract where I'd like the sweater to be a little narrower. The CPH has 14 stitches of stockinette on the sides, and I'm thinking about replacing it with 2x2 ribbing, for quick and easy waist shaping.
I can't decide whether that's crazy. I am a totally inexperienced sweater knitter, and I've never seen ribbing recommended as a way to achieve waist shaping. It feels like going out on a huge limb. But part of me thinks that nothing ventured nothing gained and that I know that I'm the kind of knitter who enjoys figuring things out by trial and error. So I might go ahead and do it, and if it doesn't work out then I'll just rip it out and start again. I think I'm going to post a thing on Ravelry just to see if people think it's a really crazy idea.
So that's great. But before I move on to the cables, I need to figure out what I'm going to do about waist shaping. The Central Park Hoodie doesn't have any shaping at all. It has ribbing at the bottom, and then it's the same diameter for the rest of the sweater. I am inclined to believe that's not a flattering look on me, because I'm quite curvy. Actually, that's not exactly right. For the most part, I'm not very curvy at all. I just have big boobs. I don't think that boxy sweaters are a good look on the big-boobed, so my plan was to add some waist shaping.
In an effort to do that, I went through and measured all of the sweaters that I own and like. (None of these are hand-knit sweaters, mind you, because the CPH will be my first sweater.) Now, none of my clothes fit perfectly, because of my odd shape. Part of the reason that I started knitting was in an effort to finally get my hands on sweaters that fit my big-boobed, small-framed body. But when I measured my favorite sweaters, I realized that they are all 36", which is my bust measurement, and none of them have any waist shaping. And that makes me wonder if maybe I don't need to add any waist shaping to my CPH.
However, when I looked at my most CPH-like sweater, I realized that in a sense it does have waist shaping. Like the CPH it has several inches of 2x2 ribbing at the bottom. Unlike the CPH, the body of the sweater is stockinette. However, there's a panel of 2x2 ribbing that continues up the sides of the sweater to the armholes. I think that allows the sweater to expand where it needs to expand and contract where I'd like the sweater to be a little narrower. The CPH has 14 stitches of stockinette on the sides, and I'm thinking about replacing it with 2x2 ribbing, for quick and easy waist shaping.
I can't decide whether that's crazy. I am a totally inexperienced sweater knitter, and I've never seen ribbing recommended as a way to achieve waist shaping. It feels like going out on a huge limb. But part of me thinks that nothing ventured nothing gained and that I know that I'm the kind of knitter who enjoys figuring things out by trial and error. So I might go ahead and do it, and if it doesn't work out then I'll just rip it out and start again. I think I'm going to post a thing on Ravelry just to see if people think it's a really crazy idea.
Friday, January 25, 2008
And she's off!
So today, after making enough gauge swatches to make a gauge-swatch patchwork quilt, I finally cast on for my Central Park Hoodie. Because I have morphed into the loosest knitter in the history of humanity, I am using size 3 needles for the ribbing and size 5 for the rest of the sweater. That's three sizes down from what's suggested, and I'm still not quite getting gauge. I chose the size with zero ease, though, and I've heard the thing runs a bit small, so I'm hoping that it won't matter so much if it's an inch wider than it's supposed to be. We'll see. I cannot bring myself to swatch on size 4 needles, so this is just going to have to do. The current plan is to add some waist shaping right above the ribbing and otherwise knit the pattern as written.
In other news, I finally seem to have mastered tubular cast-on. That means it's time to learn Italian tubular cast-on, which doesn't use waste yarn and is therefore better for my budget and the environment.
In other other news, I have especially vicious vertigo today. Why is it that when I have particularly awful vertigo, I can't concentrate on my work but have no trouble concentrating on various knitting-related websites?
(Some people here may not have heard the saga of my vertigo. It's not much of a saga. Sometimes I have vertigo. It's usually a nuisance and occasionally a rather large pain in my ass. It's also the source of my Ravelry handle. I'm sort of amused at all the people who are horrified by those who name themselves "Madison'sMom" or "MommyofTwo," because clearly it's vastly crazier and more pathological to name yourself after a medical symptom.)
And the only other thing is that I do seem to be making some progress on the article I'm trying to churn out. It may be crappy, but it will at least be done. As my friend Lisa pointed out, even if it's rejected, it'll be good to get feedback from some readers.
In other news, I finally seem to have mastered tubular cast-on. That means it's time to learn Italian tubular cast-on, which doesn't use waste yarn and is therefore better for my budget and the environment.
In other other news, I have especially vicious vertigo today. Why is it that when I have particularly awful vertigo, I can't concentrate on my work but have no trouble concentrating on various knitting-related websites?
(Some people here may not have heard the saga of my vertigo. It's not much of a saga. Sometimes I have vertigo. It's usually a nuisance and occasionally a rather large pain in my ass. It's also the source of my Ravelry handle. I'm sort of amused at all the people who are horrified by those who name themselves "Madison'sMom" or "MommyofTwo," because clearly it's vastly crazier and more pathological to name yourself after a medical symptom.)
And the only other thing is that I do seem to be making some progress on the article I'm trying to churn out. It may be crappy, but it will at least be done. As my friend Lisa pointed out, even if it's rejected, it'll be good to get feedback from some readers.
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