Cool Contest

Check out this cool contest on Fine Martial Fiber's blog, but be forewarned--I had to get Mr Fix-it's help on this one, although one or two I knew right off on my own.

Sorry about the drive-by posting. I hope to have a full-blown one up tomorrow with photos of what I've been doing in the month of November instead of knitting the Cobblestone sweater.

Cambridge Jacket #2

It is finished. Finally. This sweater has caused more angst than any other pattern I have knit. From the gauge issues in November, 2006 to the zipper issues of November, 2007 it has been one long not-fun knit. But it is finished, it fits, and it was well-received. My work is done here.

Details: (modeled by CD home on break for Thanksgiving)

Pattern: Cambridge Jacket by Ann Budd from IK Summer 2006

Yarn: Galway by Plymouth in some now unknown shade of red

Needles: Addi Turbo size 7 ( I think)

Start date: November, 2006

Finish date: November 20, 2007

Recipient: Dad for his 77th birthday (totally ignoring the fact that it was initially knit as his Christmas gift for 2006)

Modifications and thoughts:

• I knit the sleeves from the top down (twice) using Barbara Walker's directions in Knitting from the Top, with further help from Jared Flood's Jarrett (since added to my Ravelry queue. I may just knit this sweater for myself in the second cone of English Tweed I scored from WEBS.) Check out that shoulder--pretty good, if I do say so myself.
  
• Blocked the size 44 to a size 46 or so because my dad has increased in girth since I started this project a year ago.
• I took the zipper and sweater to a local tailor to be sewn in due to the issues I had with the last zipper I put in, and also because of the time that has been consumed around here by the installation of hardwood floors in the downstairs of our home. When I went to pick up the sweater on the date and time promised it was not ready. Only one part of the zipper had been sewn in, and even that was done incorrectly. With just 4 hours until the birthday party I had to put the zipper in myself--never mind that I was supposed to be getting the house ready for Thanksgiving visitors. Sigh. I came as close to crying over a knitting project as I ever have on the drive home from the tailor's. I got home, sat down at the computer and did some quick surfing through some of my old zipper links, when I recalled that Grumperina had a good entry on zippers after my first attempt on the CJ #1. I followed her lead and have a much better zipper on this go round than I did on the first.
• Shorter collar because I think that tall collar is just plain annoying for the wearer.
• My knit and purl gauge are way different, so I have to do a modified purl to shorten up the amount of yarn consumed in that stitch and then knit into the back of the knit stitch on the next row. I'd like to tidy up my ribbing a bit, and to that end, I'm considering embarking on the TKGA's Master Knitter program. I said considering.
• Edited to add: I also modified the cuffs by knitting a k3p2 rib to match the ribbing on the rest of the sweater. Thanks for the reminder, Dorothy!
  

NaKniSweMo

Whooo Hoooo! November 1st and time to cast on for the 2nd Annual National Knit a Sweater Month (not to be confused with National Novel Writing Month--although I've heard rumblings on Rav of some people doing both! Yikes!) My project for the month is Cobblestone for CD. Since we last met, I've swatched in Forest Heather Wool of the Andes with no luck. I hated the fabric at the suggested gauge. Prior to Stephanie mentioning her love for Valley Yarns English Tweed, I had been keeping my eye on cones in a couple of colorways. Once she talked about the yarn on her blog last month, the number of lbs available of the yarn began to drop rapidly. I moved quickly and got 2 lbs each of Lichen and Dark Gold. All the lichen has been skeined, washed, rinsed, and balled--that's over 2000 yds. I swatched last weekend and came close to gauge with a size 8 addi, but I really didn't like the fabric that produced either. I also had swatched with a 7 and loved the tightish fabric it produced. Knowing I had more than enough yarn to make a larger size with the smaller gauge I've decided to knit the smaller gauge on 7s to get a nice warm sweater for CD. I didn't have enough yarn of the WOA to do this and couldn't justify another yarn purchase after the English Tweed, which was all originally planned to be used for me. I really thought that I would have gotten the Cambridge Jacket finished before today, but I still have 2/3 of a sleeve left. Instead of casting on Cobblestone with the other hanging over my head, I'll finish the sleeve first--should have that done by this evening. That will leave the rest of the month to concentrate on Cobblestone with occasional forays into The Teen's hoodie.

About the Cambridge Jacket, you may recall that the sleeve caps were rather puffy after my initial attempt at Barbara Walkers inset sleeve knit from the top down. I went with the numbers provided in the pattern, but that was the mistake. After reading about Brooklyn Tweed employing BW's method on his Jarrett (and yes, I did add this sweater to my queue, because it would be oh, so perfect for my dad, even more perfect than the Cambridge Jacket. So, if for some reason, this one doesn't work out, Jarrett is waiting in the wings for him. But I digress......), I tried to find the tutorial mentioned in his post. Sadly, the author had removed her blog in July. Christine being the great friend and 'net guru she is, told me about web archive at SnB last week, and then sent me the link to the very tutorial I needed! Thanks Christine! After doing a bit of math, I used 80 stitches rather than the 96 called for in the pattern and the sleeve caps look perfect now; they fit in nice and flat, no bunching at all. No more sewing in those nasty sleeves, although I don't mind seaming the body anymore, after trying mattress stitch.