Mind the Gap

Ann, your finished Leaf Lace Shawl inspired me to take another crack at my Sylvan Spirit yarn. You might remember it spent a good portion of the summer on my needles, only to be frogged after being made into a most unflattering Cropped Cardigan.

As you know from working with this yarn, it isn't exactly an against-the-skin yarn. Not scratchy so much as crunchy, it needs to be layered over something. That eliminated most winter-accessories, and my yardage eliminated any full sweaters. And then I saw this amazing FO of Isel's, and thought -- a vest? I don't think I've ever worn a vest. Well, I have vague memories of wearing suede vests or wool vests with knickers and a big pin at the center of the collar in the 80s, but I have no memory of every owning a sweater vest. Was I a Vest Person?

Molly Ringwald is a vest for people who aren't sure if they wear vests, because it is more corset-styled than a classic menswear-inspired vest (I am now so sick of the word vest. How 'bout you?). The ruched bodice and the round cap sleeves make it more feminine. In a softer, cooler yarn, you could wear it as a summer top, but in the Sylvan Spirit, it is the perfect fall layer. You know, if we ever get fall weather.

Pattern: Molly Ringwald, Knitscene, Fall 2006
Yarn and Needles/Hook: Green Mountain Spinnery Sylvan Spirit, US 6 needle, B hook
Mods: I made a couple modifications as I knit this sweater. First, I knit the body in the round, and second, I eliminated the eyelet row at the bottom of the sweater.


The biggest issue I had with the sweater was once it was finished, the neckline gapped significantly, especially at the back. Despite having read on several blogs that the crochet edge would resolve it, my back still bagged, and the sleeves flopped off my shoulders, even after carefully applying a tedious crochet treatment to the edge with a teeny hook.

I knew that I could rip out to the back and decrease at the armhole edges on the back, but I was reluctant, as this would mean ripping out both sleeves and a significant amount of the the bodice. I've been learning to crochet a little lately, so I decided to try a crochet solution. I assumed that the designer called for such a small hook because the difference in gauge would draw the neckline in. So I decided to keep using the B hook, and instead started experimenting with skipping stitches along the neck. First, I tried crocheting into every other stitch. It worked, but a little too well, resulting in bunching.

I then crocheted by skipping every other stitch for one inch, skipping every fourth stitch for the next two inches, single crocheting into every stitch across the center of the back to keep things smooth and straight, then skipped the stitches at the same intervals for the last three inches. I also was sure to skip a few stitches where the sleeve caps joined the back to tighten the sleeves a bit. This was the way to go. It drew the top edge of the back in without bunching, and created a nice, smooth fit. I continued skipping stitches on the sleeves, but knit the front by crocheting into every stitch on the front.


I ended up eliminating the reverse single crochet row once I had resolved my gapping issue; the sweater looked and fit great as it was, and I did not want to mess with it. Also, I did not want to reverse single crochet.

The Sylvan Spirit is perfect for for this garment. The rustic feel sort of cuts the sweetness of the top, and it is the perfect weight for layering on a cool day. So, yes, I wear vests. I might even make another!

XRK Yarn-Along: Leaf Lace Scarf

Yarn-Along completed!

Liz and I acquired 4 skeins of Green Mountain Spinnery Sylvan Spirit for each of us and Mo at MDSW this past Spring. How would our projects diverge using the same yarn?

Initially, I wanted to try a short sleeve sweater with the Spirit, but then I read Liz's post on her experience with the yarn. No, no, no. That wouldn't do. Crunchy? Itchy? No way. Since Liz mentioned that she thought it would do for a simple shawl, I began to flip through some shawl patterns. I had never knit a triangular shawl before -- I was intimidated by the patterns: provisional cast-ons, endless repeats, and the dreaded yet all-important blocking.

Encouraged by Melanie and Stewart, my most excellent LYS buddies, I chose the Lace Leaf Shawl. What a perfect choice. This was easy. Easy. Easy. I couldn't believe how easy this pattern was. If you are looking to knit your first triangular shawl, look no further.

Pattern: Leaf Lace Shawl by Evelyn Clark
Yarn: Green Mountain Spinnery's Sylvan Spirit in Peridot, about 3.5 skeins
Needles: Knit Picks Options US 10.5, 32" circulars

Notes: I did not make any modifications to the pattern. I knit the DK size and completed 10 pattern repeats which gave me a medium size (the small was 7 pattern repeats and the large was 12). I probably could have done another pattern repeat, maybe two, with my yarn but I was ready to finish and wanted to be sure to have enough yarn.

The pattern is clear and easy to read. I am a chart person and I thought the charts were excellent although the repeats are easy enough to memorize quickly so I was never a slave to the chart. Even with lots of other concurrent knitting I was able to finish this in a few weeks -- and I am a slow, slow knitter.

The yarn behaved extremely well. (Read the excellent review here.) It was a joy to knit on 10.5s unlike the 7s that Liz was using (my 3.25 spi vs. her 5 spi). The color does become more beautiful when knit up -- with a silvery tone and flecks of yellow that are so hard for me to capture with the camera. The drape is divine, is this maybe the tencel? The shawl is light yet substantial feeling after blocking. It will become my favorite fall/winter/spring wrap (it was not perfect during the photo shoot in 90 degree weather!).

And what about the blocking? Did I have a recurrence of my aqualanophobia? After a nervous phone call to Melanie at The Yarn Lounge about blocking wires and the pinning process, I dunked this baby in lukewarm water, rolled it in towels, and then pinned it using plain old straight pins to my bed.


I kept gasping as I pinned, I really knit this?



I have never thought of myself as a shawl person. That has all changed! I can't wait for the temps to drop so that I can strut around town wearing this. Maybe I'll bring it to the grocery store so that I can drape it on me in the frozen food aisle ...



Fun, easy and extremely rewarding. What more could you ask for in a project?

Conwys

I love Nancy Bush. These socks were such a joy to knit and like Liz, I'm having a fling with Nancy.

Pattern: Conwys from Knitting on the Road by Nancy Bush
Yarn: Cherry Tree Hill Supersock Solids, Burgundy
Needles: US 1s dpn
Notes: No modifications. I loved knitting with this yarn and will knit with it again. I was surprised by the color which I found tended toward a deep rose rather than what I typically think of as burgundy. It is really lovely.

Lace Report
I haven't been completing my required 2 pattern repeats of the Diamond Border Scarf. I'm going to be picking it up much more this week. Although I did buy a pattern for the XRK Yarn-Along Yarn -- Sylvan Spirit. Many thanks to Melanie at The Yarn Lounge for help in picking it out! I thought it appropriate to knit the Leaf Lace Shawl with this yarn due to the name and the color. I won't start for a few more weeks since I want to be really making headway on the Diamond Border Scarf before I start another lace project.

Stash Report
I was in Charlottesville a week and a half ago and picked up these goodies at The Needle Lady.

Koigu and Jitterbug

Yummy. I see more socks and a chevie for me!

Garden Report
Here's how the garden looked at the close of June. Since I snapped this, the black-eyed Susans and purple coneflower have burst into bloom as well as my favorite oriental lilies. Things are so lush and full -- my time is spent mostly in watering, weeding, and deadheading ... oh and knitting on the patio!

XRK Yarn-Along

It doesn't take a sharp-eyed reader to notice that the three XRK bloggers have very different aesthetics, and are inspired to knit for very different reasons. When the same pattern catches all of our fancies, then, it is the perfect occasion for an XRK KAL. So at MDSW when Ann and I both swooned over the same yarn in the same color, we knew it would be the perfect yarn for the first ever XRK Yarn-Along. The yarn, Green Mountain Spinnery's Sylvan Spirit is a 50/50 wool/tencel blend, in a beautiful silvery green colorway called Peridot.

The idea of our yarn-along is to see what the three of us create with this same yarn, to see how different knitters can take the same material and create something totally unique, as well as learn from each other how each of us treat the same material.

So as the first knitter with the Sylvan Spirit yarn, I have some impressions and observations:

- the yarn is even more beautiful knitted up than in the skein. There are beautiful yellow flecks throughout the yarn, and some darker green ones as well. The yellow surprised me, especially with the generally silvery cast of the yarn, creating a verdigris color that makes the fabric rich and interesting, even in plain stockinette. The stitches are beautifully defined, and the fabric it creates is an interesting blend of elegant (the silveriness) and rustic (the tweediness and hand).

- the wool is not like a soft merino, so it does not have that super-soft hand, but I imagine that will change some upon washing. An informative review of the yarn here confirms these suspicions. It has a crisp, almost crunchy hand, but the fabric feels a little smoother once knitted up, similar to hemp or linen, although it is not at all twine-like to knit with. I wouldn't call it itchy, but itch-tolerance is relative.

- I am getting about 5 spi on US7s.

- This yarn would make a beautiful clapotis or any other simple shawl. It isn't smoothly silky, but the drape would be divine, especially knit at a larger gauge.

I originally had the Rusted Root pattern in mind but discarded that idea when I realized that this yarn really is wool. Not in that really scratchy, Lopi-like way, but in that really warm way. This is not a summer-top yarn. So I started the Cropped Cardigan with Leaf Ties from Stefanie Japel's Fitted Knits (also available for free here). Although my gauge is different, I think this yarn is a good match for the pattern, and it is the right weight for a cropped cardigan, a perfect, "throw-it-on-over-something" layer. But through this process, I learned something else about this yarn that I am very, very sorry to report:

- I don't think we bought enough yarn to make a cropped cardigan. A shrug? Yes. Bolero? Maybe. Vest? Sure. But a cropped cardigan with sleeves? Probably not.

- You can buy more of the yarn here.