Why, hallo you.

Today I’m switching gears to chat knitting. But don’t worry…I am still sewing.

That said, with 2020 being the shaky year that it is {an understatement if ever there was one} I’ve found myself drawn to some pandemic pastimes.  Not everything I’ve tried has stuck…gluten-free sourdough starter, I’m looking at you. Sure, it was fun at first. But twice daily feeding and continual checking of the nest for optimal temperature…for a pet that can’t be pet? What was I thinking? What else? I’ve cut my own hair. Once. I’m on the fence on this one…my stylist will be working from home at some point in the future, but home is literally hours away. Contemplating the logistics of long distance travel that includes a ferry trip stresses me somewhat, but I really miss her. Do I stay or do I go go?

So far the stickiest…in a good way…2020 pastime has turned out to be knitting. Okay…I’ve knit a grand total of one sweater but….I do have the enthusiasm…and yarn…to give a second one a go.  I used to knit years ago…let’s say forty plus years. Back then I knit simple, chunky sweaters….no pattern, I made things up as I went along. Fast forward twenty years and a chance encounter with a scarf my friend wore. It was a narrow, long, and slightly stretchy floofy neckpiece….a trending accessory at many local craft markets. A trip to Michael’s, some beginner lessons for my friends, and we were eagerly knitting our own scarves for a season or so. Since then? The clickety clack of needles has been silent.

Over on IG I follow quite a few makers that both sew and knit and I’m always wow’d by their hand made knits.  Their treasures are eye candy. Lovely to look at, inspiring, but realistically beyond my reach…or so I led myself to believe. Yup, the Art of Knitting was not a craft that I was eager to revisit.

I can’t say for certain when I had a change of heart, but sometime last year I started thinking ‘Maybe’. I was discovering pattern companies that featured colourful, chunky knitwear….a playful and modern take on the garments I knit those many years ago. I was learning about circular needles, knitting in the round, and knitting top down. I decided I wanted needed to knit a pair of socks and endlessly questioned lovely Louisa from Damselfly’s Delights. Socks people! Suddenly, the age old craft seemed so new and fresh, and exciting. And the tipping point? THIS INSTAGRAM POST by the endearing Katie of Katie Kortman Art. Katie had learned to knit and her beginner choice of garment was colourful and bulky sweaters. I was seriously in.

So. Where to begin? For me, it was the Pop Jacket by Hip Knit Shop in Norway. In addition to patterns, the shop sells yarn and related products. You can find them HERE. I was immediately drawn to the five colour palette of the Pop Jacket…you could make it multiple times and it might never look the same. The cardigan is knit from the top down, on circular needles, with double yarn. The front button band is cast on after completion of the main body. The blue and white yarn is created by using a skein of both white and blue yarn. The instructions are clear but it is assumed that you know how to knit. I think this is typical of most knitting patterns. While I may not be a newbie knitter, I am a knitter that has been gone so long that everything on this project was processed as new information. I could, and I did, call a friend from time to time and Youtube became a new BFF.

I began this project in the summer after BC had eased some of its physical distancing suggestions….ie I no longer felt I’d be breaking any rules if I ventured into a yarn shop.  Of course there are lots of online shopping options, but I really wanted to see and feel the yarn before I made my selection of Drops Karisma Superwash. Unfortunately, it was my yarn choice that was ultimately the weakest link. I love the colours of my sweater…yes they are vibrant and playful in real life. I love that the yarn is 100% wool…a big step up from my early synthetic yarn days. And I like the price point of this yarn…the cost was well under half the price of the yarn ‘I really coveted’.  The big disappointment, however, is how incredibly stretchy this wool is. Louisa describes Superwash wool as slippery and I couldn’t agree more. My cardigan grows with wear and I find this annoying. The neckline stretches out and the sleeves get longer. After machine washing and drying, it shrinks back to original size, so it’s not a complete loss. I just have to be prepared to shrink it back up in the dryer from time to time. I guess on the good news side…I know it’s easy to launder.

Nope…not napping in this photo. Nor am I basking in late afternoon sunlight. Just that shot where my eyes happen to be closed. From the side view you can see the ‘fullness’ of the Pop Jacket. I made a size small, but I lengthened the body a bit and I shortened the sleeves.

You don’t have to like math in order to knit, but you have to do math in order to knit. Sleeves get their nice tapered shape by casting off stitches at regular intervals. The pattern instructions clearly state which rows to cast off and how many stitches to cast off each time….however…because I made the sleeves shorter I had to ‘draft’ a new sleeve. And…I had to keep precise notes of what I did so that I could knit an identical sleeve on the other arm.

The majority of the Pop Jacket is knit in stockinette stitch with garter stitch accenting the bands of colour of the sleeves.

I hadn’t made buttons in a while, but as I was unable to get into my favourite button stores, I decided to dig into my stash of Sculpey Primo and make my own. One of the little extras I do when working with Sculpey for buttons is after the buttons have been ‘cooked’ and cooled, I wet sand them beginning with 180 grit and working my way to about 2,000 grit. This extra love and attention gives the buttons a smoother, shinier finish.

Looking at the above photo, I’m reminded that the most challenging aspect of this project turned out to be the button band. Again, there is some math involved when it comes to determining the number of stitches to cast on for the band. I calculated my cast on stitches correctly but redid. And redid. My buttonholes numerous times.  I finally settled on a 2 stitch yarn over buttonhole. I intentionally placed all my buttonholes within the garter stitch sections of the rib…and as a result they are not evenly spaced on the band. For someone….me…used to controlling the look of buttonholes on sewn garments, it was a struggle to let go and accept this small imperfection. The only other change….the band is narrower than the pattern calls for.

Well. I think that covers my first knit project. Do you knit? I would love to hear if you a favourite designer or have suggestions for helpful resources.

Wearing:

Pop Jacket : : Hip Knit Shop

Gaston Trousers : : Republique du Chiffon See another pair HERE

Roscoe Blouse : : True Bias