The Great Adult Tomten Garter Two Person Knitalong

For weeks Adrian and I have been taunting each other with ideas of big, garter stitch EZ jackets. (Don't we all need one?) BSJs and Tomtens are happily abounding in all corners of the world (thank god - I don't think I'll ever get sick of seeing 'em) but the elusive 'adult versions' of these sweaters have always been a somewhat intriguing and rare occurrence.

Well, in our common pursuit for modern elvish clothing, an entire wardrobe of garter stitch, and by-the-seat-of-your-pants knitting, Adrian and I have committed ourselves to a whopping two-person knitalong in hopes of one day dawning the hood of the true Zimmermann disciple. The Adult Tomten Jacket. (See some particularly fetching child versions here and here)


After securing the perfect yarn for the job (straight from Northern Montana) it didn't take long to get a quick garter stitch swatch underway and start Tomten-ing myself into oblivion. (Adrian's yarn is equally luscious, if not moreso - she's working a slightly chunkier version than mine!)


Of course there are a gang of mods that will be involved. The original design isn't famous for its flattering fit on adults, although this can be easily remedied with some commonsense shaping and fit modifications. I don't think EZ would have it any other way.


Until next time, we'll be floating away down garter river dreaming of that pointy hood at the top of the mountain.

Zeebee!

For some reason I can't resist tacking an exclamation mark onto this pattern's name, no matter how hard I try. I finished this hat a little while ago but didn't have a chance to take pictures until this weekend. This is an awesome, quick knit that comes with a strong BT recommendation.

Pattern: Zeebee(!) by Schmeebot
Size: 22" for my large 24.25" head
Materials: Rowan Yorkshire Tweed Aran in 'Wild Plum' (#410) held double
Amount: Exactly 100g (1 ball)
Needles: US 11 bamboo circulars

Started: 14 May 2007
Finished: 19 May 2007

The pattern is interactive - other than suggesting worsted to bulky weight yarn, you plug in your own gauge numbers and target measurements (including hat length, thank you!) and the pattern generates itself. Props go to the designer for also including top-notch diagrams. I love these little things.

The hat is worked side-to-side in four main panels using short rows. The best part? You aren't required to knit the wraps like you do on a sock heel - which was such a nice little bonus. Especially since I knit 80% of this hat in the dark (I was photographing a production last week and smuggled my knitting into the job.)

The following photo gives you a nice view of the shaping at the top where all the short rows come together.


There's a funny story behind this hat. About a year and a half ago I found a garter stitch baby hat in a book by Melanie Falick (it's pictured on the cover). The hat was shaped with short rows and had a very interesting construction. I kept the pattern around for months with good intentions on translating it for an adult head. When I randomly stumbled across the Zeebee(!) pattern, I read that its inception occurred in much the same way. Someone else had done the work, wouldn't I would be daft not to drop everything and knit this immediately?


It goes without saying that I love this yarn and even more this color. I'm happy I can wear it around on my head now in all its discontinued glory.

A few final notes of interest: because the hat is worked sideways it is super stretchy vertically but not so much horizontally, quite the opposite of the traditional hat pattern. I would recommend leaving just a tad more ease than you would normally with a traditional hat pattern. The language in the pattern can be a bit tricky, but the overall design becomes pretty intuitive pretty quickly, so I think it's fine.

I hope everyone enjoyed the long weekend. I started a new sweater.

Enjoy Your Long Weekend!

Just popping in to say hi and wish you a nice long weekend. I'm reserving Monday for knitting. Only.


Rowan Wool CottonAnd a little Friday Fiber to aid in my well-wishing. See you next week!

There's Been Knitting

As knitters I think we're constantly in a state of transience between our sense of inspiration (impulse) and our sense of duty. We swing back and forth, sometimes violently, between casting on for the next project which is sure to be absolutely perfect... ahem.. and that ne'er empty basket (or closetfull?) of half-finished projects whose days of divine inspiration have long since passed.

Well, I've spent the last week or two at the bottom of the barrel with my Works-In-Progress and, while I may have nothing terribly substantial to show for it, at least I feel like I've chipped away a bit at that compressed mass of wool that I so often try to ignore.

Most importantly, The Swisher has gotten some play. I was expecting to get more done on this in the last few days, but I picked up some last minute photo gigs that kept me in the city late into almost every evening last week. I did get some work done on it this weekend however.


A sleeve grows in Brooklyn.
The body is complete (the fit is spot on!) and I'm almost finished with sleeve #1. Since I'm working top-down I've been able to try it on as I go. This sure takes a lot of stress out of the process. Not only is checking fit a more fluid process, you can really nail your length measurements. A perfect sleeve length is one of those things that really makes one sweater stand out above the others for me.

And at long last, the February Baby Sweater saga is coming to a close. I've finished the knitting and now just need to retrieve necessarily charming buttons for this one. You'll get a full post with more photos and all the juicy details in the near future.


Once again a down comforter works as an amazing stand in for baby.
I'm right on the brink of a wave of new projects that I'm itching to start. While I wait for new yarns to arrive in my mailbox, I'll continue answering the call of duty with these old favorites. If nothing else to minimize guilt in starting what can only be called the Great Garter Wave of 2007. Stay tuned.

One Color Card to Rule Them All

Jamieson's Shetland. So this is what love feels like.

On The Up

Hey there! I've been out of commission for a few days. I got tonsillitis. It hurt. Bad. But things are back on track thanks to Dr. Cho and her magic pills. I'm finally feeling like a normal person again, even if it's a normal person with semi-serious seasonal allergies. Hey, I can deal with a runny nose and slightly itchy eyes if it means my throat no longer feels like it has knives playing hopscotch inside of it. This is a day to celebrate western medicine (I'm not always so enthusiastic about such things, but I'm happy about regular sized lymph nodes today)!

I was home sick for a number of days, which for me (and probably you) is always great because it means knitting knitting knitting. I did get a significant amount of knitting done, but definitely not as much as I would have on a 'regular' sick day (which sometimes isn't a sick day at all... don't tell). I actually had to sleep and veg out for a significant number of hours - hours that could have been occupied by an otherwise prolific amount of knitting. Ah well. Bygones.

Scott is progressing quickly (3 sts per inch), although I've lost a bit of momentum on it. Despite my best efforts to reduce bulk (namely working the pattern as a seamless raglan), this thing is still a beast of thick, squishy wool. I'm honestly wondering if I'll actually wear it, even in the winter. I left a bunch of ease but at this point the fit is anyone's guess. We'll see what happens. I'm giving you fair warning that I reserve the right to rip this up after its all over and repossess the yarn for a single layer (read: not stranded) garment that is more practical. I love the yarn so much, this wouldn't be such a huge trauma. I'll give it a chance though, and at least take pictures of the finished piece for documentation's sake, why not?


Here you see the yoke, knit just about halfway to the collar. The colors are great and the motifs equally so. No matter what happens, I'm enjoying myself thoroughly.

As my doubts grew about the future of Scott, I started some lace. One night I had the sudden urge for a lace-hit and I had this beautiful alpaca/merino/silk Queensland staring up at me from the floor needing some love. I think it must be the warmer weather, and maybe an unconscious response to the stranded bulk-fest of the sweater that spurned me into shawl territory.


I also picked up my February EZ Baby Sweater from the dregs with hopes of finishing in the near future. I've been reading Knitter's Almanac this week on my commute and enjoying it as ever. I usually read through it every few months because I find EZ's writing that entertaining. Yes, commuter, I'm the guy sitting across from you on the A train laughing aloud to himself with a knitting book in my hands. What can I say, she can knit a mean baby jacket and write some sassy, intelligent prose.

Good luck getting over the hump, my sights are already set on the weekend. Happy knitting.

Noro Scarf

I know I've said it before, but there are some projects that I think I enjoy photographing even more than knitting (we're splitting hairs here, but there it is). This scarf is surely one of them - and this post is so photo heavy, I doubt the text will be able to hold its own.

Pattern: Generic 1x1 Ribbed Striped Scarf (See details below)
Materials: Noro Silk Garden; 45 silk | 45 kid mohair | 10 lambswool
Amount: 4 balls in total in Shades 201 (2 balls), 234, and 86; Approx. 440yds/200g
Needles: US 7/4.5 mm KnitPicks Options
Dimensions: Approximately 5.5 inches in width and just over 6 feet in length, unblocked

Start Date: 6 April 2007
Finish Date: 25 April 2007

Manually striping Noro is a classic trick done by many a knitter before me - just check out all the beauties over on Flickr. I admit to spending a good amount of time appreciating all the interesting variations on the same theme for quite some time before taking the plunge myself. For full disclosure, this one sent me over the edge.


I've gotten a lot of e-mails about this scarf so I thought I'd throw out all the details - if it's too much for you, feel free to gloss over this section and rest your eyes on the hypnotic color changes. Noro is good like that.

The scarf is worked over an odd number of stitches in 1x1 ribbing which, in my opinion has two big benefits: the scarf is reversible and behaves very well (no curling) while also plumping up into a thick fabric that will look suspiciously like stockinette if you leave it unblocked. I cast on 39 stitches using US7/4.5mm needles to get a width of about 5.5 inches. On scarves of this nature I prefer to work a slipped stitch edging which adds a nice, polished touch and perfectly hides the working yarn as you carry it up the sides whilst striping to your heart's content. I worked two-row stripes using two different colorways of Silk Garden, slipping (purlwise) the first and last stitch on the second row of every stripe.


Colorways: I can appreciate all the amazing colors that Noro hits out of the ballpark, but in general wouldn't wear most of them. They're pretty bold. Lucky for me, Noro makes a few colorways that are toned down a bit but retain their luscious, tasteful, saturated quality that the knitter in me is drawn to. Not to mention the texture, which will slay me every time.

I used a total of 4 balls of Silk Garden (which will land this scarf in the $40-45 price range if you buy full price retail. A bit pricey for a scarf but ... so ... beautiful... ) in three different shades.


Two of the four balls of yarn I used were shade #201 which is a nice mix of deep blue-blacks, marine blues, silvery greys with a little purple shock thrown in to keep things interesting. See them pre-knitting here. I striped 201 throughout the entire length of the scarf with Silk Garden #234 and #86, two colorways that to me are rather similar. Main colors in both are understated and elegant crimsons, golds and blues, with lots of cool and warm grey tones in between. In their current configuration you can scarcely tell that they're from two different color families. Pre-knitted cakes of 234 here and 86 here.


I'm not sure there's much else to say about the knitting - it feels a little like cheating working such an easy, mindless process and ending up with such a stunning result. The benefits of a quality fiber (and dye job) have never been more apparent.


With spring upon us and summer approaching, I'll take what few opportunities I can to throw this thing on, but for the next couple of months I'm happy to call it wall-art in my apartment.


Happy Monday, one and all.