Short Row Slough of Despond

The positive side of this week's knitting is that, thanks to Lucy Neatby's DVD, I now understand that I was mixing up all the many kinds of short row. I'd got all the techniques hopelessly confused. There are three main kinds of short row:
1. yarn over
2. wrap
3. Japanese
And, you have to keep in mind that the neatening process (when you work back and do a manoeuvre to hide the place where you turned) is different for all the techniques and for knitting or purling, so in fact there are about 7 kinds of stitch manipulation in total. Now that I know this, my head is a lot, lot clearer! I was using a pin and wrapping the stitch. Don't laugh. It isn't funny!

This vintage jacket has sleeves that are knit sideways and shaped at the cap with short rows. I watched the section on short rows a couple of times, light bulb moments pinging and blazing while I did, and then picked up the sleeve for the 'simple' Garter Stitch Jacket. I couldn't follow the instructions. They are so sketchy! I read them slowly out loud to Andy, which sometimes helps. He's very good at spatial things, and then sometimes as I explain it to him, I get it, but we were both baffled.

There is no schemata, so I can't measure the width of the sleeve to see if I'm on track. It's a vintage pattern, so I can't ask anyone else who is making it. I went to Ravelry and checked the boards. Nada. So I just launched in. I've gone wrong, of course, and will have to undo two thirds of the sleeve that 's in the picture, but I think I understand how to make it now. BUT...there's another little wrinkle. As I was knitting away I suddenly thought: Lucy's DVD shows how to graft garter stitch. Why didn't I use a provisional cast on and then I could have grafted the two sleeves sides together? The seam on the 80s photograph looks ugly. I didn't have the moral fibre to undo so much knitting, but now I have to pull most of it back...oh, I don't know! I might go back to finishing the yoke while I think about it.

I found a pattern for a Aran cabled shrug in Kaya wool by Crystal Palace Yarns on the Internet last night. It is EXACTLY the kind of garment I like - so far as one can tell from looking at a picture. I'm mad to cast on for it now! Or at least start swatching and see if I've got enough Aran in my stash to make a test garment with. The trouble is that I watched a programme on the BBC about time management (do you remember it? Garner and someone, was it? Two chaps in suits) and they strongly made the point that it was about 30% faster to start one project and stick with it. 30% faster I like. Not casting on for this wonderful garment I don't like! I might just make a swatch, just to see.

I don't know if you can buy Crystal Palace Yarns over here. I'll look out for it. The pattern is so clearly written. Maybe I could do this one. Maybe I should leave the 'Simple' jacket until I'm an expert knitter. I definitely should have been more influenced by the two stars for 'knitters with some expereince' and less carried away by the word simple!

And I Thought it Would be a Quick Knit!

I don't know what gets into me. Where does my sense of proportion go? I think it was the word 'simple' in the title. A simple little old jacket. Designed in 1934? Nothing but garter stitch. Blow that off in a week. No trouble.

I have a 'to knit' wish list as high as the Eiffel Tower -and I'm slogging away with charity shop yarn, and it's taking ages! I have a lot less time at the moment, but still...

The back and sides are finished, and I cast on for the back yoke - but the pattern gives practically no information, so what if I haven't done it right? You pick up and knit 70 stitches 'across the back.' What does that mean? Up to what point of the armhole shaping should I go?

After three inches of worrying, I realised the sensible thing to do was stop, knit a sleeve and then see how the sleeve would fit into the back shaping. Read the sleeve instructions - they are knitted sideways and the sleeve cap is done with short rows! 'Simple' Oh ha ha. Just carry me away, now!

Cast on for the sleeve and knit an inch. Sleeves take ages whatever direction you knit them in!

More Turbulence Problems

This photo was taken by mistake, but I like it because you can see my stash in the background - on top of the wardrobe. I'm gazing at my camera, puzzled, wondering what the best angle to hold it at would be. It's really hard taking photographs. I never did manage to work out how to take a picture that showed clearly how the neck of the Turbulence U-necked sweater gaped - I've knitted the shoulders too long, so back it all has to come. This happened with Krista. I measured both garments carefully when I blocked, so I'm beginning to wonder if I have short shoulders? It's the kind of information to look out for, when customizing a pattern. Next Turbulence I knit, I'm going to measure my armhole against the knitted piece, and if the garment seems long, then I'll stop knitting. I undid at least an inch of the shoulders.

The good news is that it's recoverable. The bad news is that I'm sick of it! I've already done the neck three times. I've put it all away in a deep dark hole until next weekend.

I don't think this garment knitted in a light colour will do anything for me. I probably won't wear this version. It is too small, and that's my knitting mistake, but the light colour makes it very unflattering around the tum and the arm area is painful! Talk about bingo wings! I love the neckline with the cable detail and the bracelet sleeves, so I think I'll knit another test version - in a lovely dark Gothic colour.

In theory, I ought to sew this cotton one up until I get it right, because how else am I going to learn? But like Tangerine Alef, and horrible Yellow Krista, it might stay in its hole until next spring, when it's light enough to see for sewing after work.

A Whole Week's Knitting

The size of the piece is deceptive - I've had very little time, but it knits up real quick. This piece is the sides and back knitted together, sideways. then you pick up stitches across the centre for the back and front yoke, the the sleeves are knitted sideways in one piece. Simple, huh? It seems to be going OK, although I've lost a stitch somewhere. I don't know if I'll like it - the yarn looks very crushed. I'll carry on though, it's a nice soothing knit.

I managed to seam up the second sleeve of Turbulence one night last week. I started setting in the sleeve, but I was so tired that I went wrong three times and gave up. I'm off to do it now (Sunday) in what passes for good light in November in Lancashire.

November Project

I have sewn up one sleeve on the Turbulence U-necked sweater, but seaming isn't knitting. When I get home frazzled after a long day with only an hour or less to relax before bed, I don't want to do seaming, I want to KNIT! So I've started the simple garter stitch jacket. I think it was the word 'simple' in the title that attracted me. 'Simple' sounds good to me! Maybe I can manage simple without the sturm and drang that accompanies so many of my projects.

The pattern is from a book published by Vogue in the 1980s - a collection of vintage patterns. There is a picture of a model with 80s hair wearing the jacket - but no schemata or measurements. We have much better patterns these days. I also like knowing who designed a garment. Then you can look out for their pattern books and read their blogs or websites. It makes the garment feel more like a friend designed it somehow. I think one of the hardest things about knitting is finding the right patterns, and if you love a designer's work and their patterns turn out for you - Kim Hargreaves and Norah Gaughn spring to mind - it helps the selection process.

The yarn is also vintage. It's 100% wool in Aran-weight, in quite a nice soft green with flecks in the wool, and there was heaps of it, which is good, but it's not that nice to knit with. It's very 'grabby' and keeps making a butcher's knot around my yarn-holding finger, which is annoying as I have to keep stopping and undoing it. It's been treated to be machine washable, but this has made it very rough and hard, so it's more like stroking porcupines than kittens. Well, maybe I exaggerate a little. Imagine stroking baby hedgehogs, that about describes it.

I saw an advert for Yeoman Yarns in December's copy of Yarn Forward, so I've sent off for the shade card. Their double knit acrylic is only 79p a ball - and the advert promises it's much better quality than the acrylic you can buy on a market stall. I used Robin acrylic from a market stall to knit a 50s 'Ladies Jacket'. Luckily my knitting was so awful that it had to go to the trash can. I say luckily, because although the acrylic was a nice colour and knit well, it did look cheap and naff in a finished garment. I tried it on with the tweed skirt it was knitted to go with. The skirt is a good one in a beautiful fabric (a Paul Costelloe snapped up in a sale) and the acrylic knitted fabric looked so wrong above it. Even though I use thrift shop finds for my test garments, I still always start out with the hope that they will be wearable!

I'm already thinking that I'll need to make another Turbulence before I knit the 'real' one. This is because I'm going to add waist shaping to the next one, and knit the sleeves in the round. That's two changes to test out before launching into one knit in expensive wool. I also want to make one in a dark colour. If the boxy shape of the garment still makes my middle-aged middle looked even more middle-aged than it is, even knit in a nice dark Gothic colour, then I'll save the lovely Jaeger for another project.

Lovely Pink Silk

It's taken me over half an hour to get into Blogger today - for some reason it wouldn't accept my password while I was logged in, but the password was correct because when I logged in as Andy, it let me log in as me! Words fail me.

Computer frustration almost destroyed my pleasure in this lovely stash addition - 50p worth of lovely pink silk. But not quite - it will be perfect for poppies.

Tomorrow I'll report on progress on Turbulence - and my new project. I've had it for now.

Sleeves are Done

I don't think I'll ever dare wash this sweater - it took so much pulling, tugging and coaxing to get the sleeves anywhere near the size they were supposed to be.

The side seams are done too. I stitched it up while watching Strictly Come Dancing last night. I'm getting nervous as completion looms - it's been a long and traumatic journey!