Design Inspiration Pattern Now Available

Remember my Design Inspiration Project that I started last February? Well, I've finally finished putting the pattern together! Meet........

Audrey

by Melissa Wehrle

Cute tunic length cardigan worked in a lacy stitch with a flattering deep V neckline. Body is worked flat with sleeves added as you go. Pattern includes written and charted instructions for lace stitch, detailed schematic, and extra chart to help layout neck decreases.

DIFFICULTY

Advanced

SIZES
XS (S, M, L, XL, 2X, 3X)

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS
Chest: 33.5 (36, 38.5, 43.5, 48.5, 54, 59)"/85 (91, 98, 110.5, 123, 137, 150)cm
Length: 29 (29.5, 30, 30.5, 31, 31.5, 32)"/74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 80, 81)cm

MATERIALS
- Fable Handknit Pure Baby Alpaca (100% Baby Alpaca, 50g, 145yds/132m, 7 (8, 8, 9, 10, 11,12) skeins Chocolate
-1 pair US size 5 (3.75mm) straight needles or size needed to obtain gauge
- 1 US size 5 (3.75mm) x 40" circular needle
- 1 stitch holder
- Tapestry needle

GAUGE
22 sts and 32 rows = 4"/10cm in Flame Stitch with US size 5 (3.75mm) needle

TECHNIQUES USED
- lace
- decreasing/increasing in pattern
- casting on extra stitches
- picking up stitches
- buttonholes

Fall Is In the Air

I know this sweater is old news, after all, it was completed back in July. However, this weekend it was finally cool enough to get some shots taken with me wearing it!


All the details can be found here.

Knitting Along

I started another secret project for Black Pearl Yarns about 3 weeks back. Body is done and sleeves are done, just need to block and assemble! Yay!


In a moment of weakness, I started my Slip Stitch Jacket even though the secret project was not finished. It kept my hands from getting too tired by switching between the two projects, so I guess that doesn't make it too bad! My goal is to finish before Rhinebeck, but we'll see how it goes.


I also need to finish up Grannie #2. The weather is almost right for this little number. Bought some pretty buttons today and just need to finish up the button placket and the neck trim. My goal is to finish by the end of the week.

Still need to take some professional pictures for my next pattern offering too. It's so hard to pin down some time on the weekend for this! I hope it cools down a little and doesn't rain this Saturday!

Park(ing) Day

In the spirit of Knitters Against Global Warming, here's an interesting thing I heard about today:

Tomorrow, September 21st, is Park(ing) Day, a day to call attention to the lack of green space in our cities. There are about 20 spaces to be set up in NYC, but there are others around the nation too if you don't happen to live in the Big Apple. If you happen to be nearby one of them, go take a stroll!

via No Impact Man

More info on Park(ing) Day here

And google map of all NYC park(ing) spots here

What My Co-workers Think of Me

Came in one day and this was on my desk:

Expectant Little Knits

The 2 designs I did for the maternity book will be out soon, January 08! They have the pre-order page up on Amazon - although I have to admit I'm not sure how long it's been up for. Sadly they don't have a preview page of any sort, so don't expect anything super exciting.

I'm just impatient to see how it turned out! Waiting is so hard!

Eye Candy Friday

Little late to the game here, but why not? Have a nice weekend everyone!


Rainbow in Flordia after a thunderstorm

Secret Knitting Wall

Being a designer is fun. You get to play with a bunch of different yarns and create something that is (hopefully) new and exciting to other knitters. As I knit along on my projects, my sketches come to life and become something wearable. But what is even more fascinating is watching others follow my sweater map and create something of their own.

One Planet has created a KAL especially for projects that originate from their site. Not only for patterns, but for yarns too. It's a place where I can help anyone working on my patterns, watch the progress and see the finished results. It's just beginning, but one knitter is already working on my Sunshine Tank and I'm so excited!

Being a designer has it's downfalls too, like deadline knitting that keeps the personal projects away. One Planet just released 2 more patterns recently and I am dying to make Analise. I have my Camouflage Lanas all ready, but sadly no time to start. Off to the Ravelry queue you go Analise!

Show and Tell

I received some goodies a little while back from the girls at One Planet that I realized I never shared. Since the blog content has been a little "secret knitting dull" lately, here's some yarny goodness to hopefully hold you over.


Yarn Botanika Radiance in "Beach" for my own "Sunshine Tank"


Be Sweet Bamboo


Artesano Inca Mist book and yarn
There are so many cute patterns in the Artesano book I want to knit now, but they will have to wait! I'm loving the 2 yarns Lis sent along too. One is 100% Alpaca and the other is 100% Baby Alpaca. Both are DK weight so switching yarn for each pattern is a snap.

Secret knitting is coming along well. Just finished up my second and final project for Pure Knits and cast on for my next cashmere design. I'm just knitting along and dying to get started on my Slip Stitch Jacket!

Monday Yarn

What could be better to brighten up a dreary Monday than yarn? Not much.

Last week, I fell in love with Teva Durham's new pattern book from Tahki Stacy Charles. It just so happened that I had a gift certifcate from kpixie left over from Christmas too. Christmas? Yes, Christmas. Keep in mind, I haven't been doing much "me" knitting lately!

So my package arrived today (with an autographed copy of the pattern book, none the less). I ordered a kit for the Slip Stitch Jacket, it's rated "experienced". That makes me so happy, you have no idea! Now if I could just get these secret projects out of the way, I could start! If deadlines make for some purposeful knitting, adding a project that is actually for me is like dangling a tasty carrot at the finish line.

I am also dying to make the Rib Leaf Cardigan, but one at a time, one at a time.

Stitch n' Pitch at Shea

Last night I met up with the Spiders for a night of knitting and baseball at Shea Stadium. It was so hot, but the night was still enjoyable - and the Mets won! I heard that there were about 800 knitters there. That's pretty impressive.


A long line of spiders, you can't even see them all!
Even though there were 800 knitters there and 2 of my fellow LIC knit girls bought their tickets weeks after me, we had luck on our side last night. Dana and Colette just happened to be sitting in the row directly behind us. What are the chances of that?


Colette and Dana
Have to admit I'm not much of a baseball fan, in fact, this was the first game I have ever been to. I'm just more of a hockey kinda girl. With that said, it was much more interesting than watching it on TV and if I did have a free night, I would probably consider going again. Maybe even before a Stitch n' Pitch 08? We'll see!

Anyone Seen the New Rowan?

My coworkers just got back from a shopping trip in England and they brought me back a present from Liberty, the new Rowan 42. If you've shied away from the last few issues because the designs and/or photo styling was a bit weird, those days seem to be gone!

I was so pleased to see a return to the old days with beautiful sweaters! I wish I didn't have so many deadlines, I would cast on right away! Just when I thought I had kicked my Rowan addiction........off to Ravelry to put them all in my queue! Maybe it's time to renew the subscription too........hmmm.

Updated to add link for a peek!

Secret knitting is going well. At the moment I'm working on a project for Yahaira (Pure Knits 2nd book). I had 2 projects picked up (yay!) and the first one is off the needles and in the publishers hand already. I think the release date isn't until 2009 though, so it will be awhile before you can take a peek. Sorry!

Sunshine Tank Reveal

Here's a peek at my newest pattern available from One Planet Yarn and Fiber!

Sunshine Tank
by Melissa Wehrle

DIFFICULTY
Advanced Beginner

SIZE
XS (S, M, L, XL, 2X, 3X)

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS
Chest: 24.5 (27.5, 30, 36, 38.5, 44, 46.5)"/62 (70, 76, 91.5, 98, 112, 118)cm
Length: 18 (18.75, 18.75, 20, 20.25, 21, 22)"/46 (47.5, 47.5, 51, 51.5, 53, 56)cm

MATERIALS
- Yarn Botanika Radiance, Fingering Weight (50% Merino/50% Tencel, 100g/3.5oz, 400 yds/366m) 2 (2, 3, 3, 3, 4, 4) skeins Snapdragon
- 1 pair US size 4 (3.5mm) needles or size needed to obtain gauge
- 1 pair US size 3 (3.25mm) needles or size needed to obtain gauge
- 2 US size 3 (3.25mm) double-pointed needles
- Tapestry needle
- Clear elastic thread (optional)

GAUGES
28 sts and 32 rows = 4"/10cm in St st on larger needles
32 sts and 36 rows = 4"/10cm in Wave st on smaller needles

You can purchase the download pattern on the sidebar or at One Planet. In fact, One Planet is offering 10% off the yarn used in this pattern, just enter the code SUNSHINE at checkout.

Stuck in Secret Knitting Land

Far from being sworn off knitting since finishing my long languishing fair isle pullover, I've been swamped in secret knitting for the past few weeks - and will be for the next 2 - 3 months. I would list it all out, but making a list will only further my anxiety. It's best to just think about one project at a time!

I got my refill skein of Lanas Puras for grannie #2 a few weeks ago, but had to set it aside for my latest secret knitting. I just need to pick up some buttons and finish the band. I made an exciting discovery this week just in time. A cheap button place in NYC! The store is called Pacific Trimming and it's on 218 W 38th street. I bought 6 buttons and it only cost me $3. I love M&J to death and all, but I would have paid at least $3 per button instead of 50 cents. Oh and Pacific has so much more than just buttons! They have ribbon, elastic, purse handles, buckles, too much to even list. My mind was just spinning with all of the possibilities.

And finally, I should be revealing one of my latest projects sometime next week, so stay tuned!

Remember This Project?

Does anyone remember this project?


If you don't, well it's been hanging around for about 2 years or so. It's been bugging the heck out me and challenging me, mocking me almost - at least when it wasn't buried under books, yarn, patterns, etc.

So I finally decided to do something about it.

Meet FairIsle Pullover (#30)





Fair Isle Pullover (#30) from Vogue Knitting Holiday 2004/05
Needles: US 6 & 7
Yarn: Blue Sky Alpacas Alpaca (colors as pictured in magazine)
Started: 2005?
Finished: July 4, 2007

This was my first ever fair isle project, although my second fair isle project was finished way before this one ever was. It was quite enjoyable, although I could have done a little better job with my tension. My biggest problem was figuring out how to anchor the yarn at the end of the row when the design no longer went close enough to the edge.

One reason this project languished so long was the fact I had done my decreases differently on each sleeve cap, so one of them needed to be undone. I ripped it and reknit it only to realize I had made myself a note that I only had 62 sts at the muscle instead of the called for 68. So it sat for another year. The ends were also a factor. Ugh! The weaving in of all those ends! Luckily I seemed to have done it in stages over the last 2 years. When I picked it up for finishing last Wednesday, I only had the ends from one sleeve left to weave in.

Overall, I'm very happy with the final result. It fits well (modeled pic to come soon) and it will be all ready to face the chilly weather in the fall!

The Design Process - Sweater Finished!

Sorry to keep you guys waiting so long, but here is the long awaited picture of the design process sweater!


It's not the best picture in the world, but you get the idea. Here's a details shot:


And now we can compare the sketch to the final product. How did I do?


I decided to leave the pockets off after all. Part of it was laziness, part of it was not wanting to add any bulkiness to the sweater. I also didn't want to mess up the pretty lines of the lace pattern.

I'm in the process of writing the pattern now, so once it's finished I will be putting it up for sale here on the site. (For anyone who was wondering!)

A Helpful Finishing Link

Seems I'm not the only one posting about the importance of finishing at the moment! The Knitting Curmudgeon is starting a finishing series with Part I up here. She also has a great little PDF in her sidebar links "Blocking for Blockheads". Take a look, you won't be disappointed!

I hoped to have a finished pic of the design inspiration project today, but the photographer was in a cranky mood this weekend. And just to tease, I have to say it looks super cute and I think it may be my favorite design so far. Maybe I'll snap a quick pic tonight......

Grannie Smith #2 is in the finishing stage and the much needed emergency yarn to finish the buttonbands is on the way! Yay!

The Design Process - Finishing

I felt so bad about my design process project sadly sitting on the couch, all hidden away. So I did something about it. I got out the tapestry needle and started sewing!

And now we enter into one of our last installments on the making of the garment. My next topics will briefly touch on the pattern writing process. I say briefly because a lot of it is the same as making up the first sample, just repeating it how ever many times for the total amount of sizes. Since this project has been put on hold for a few months, I'm so thankful that I wrote down everything I did here! It will make it much quicker to piece all of my info together. Anywho, let's get to it!

Finishing

When I put up my survey for neoknits a few months back, it was interesting to see that a lot of your "perfect patterns" would have more detailed finishing instructions. Finishing a sweater seems to be the other boogyman of the knitting world, right behind math. Yet, it's the most important part of any project. You can knit the most beautiful thing in the world, ripping back for every mistake, but if you don't take the time and care to seam it up properly, disaster can strike even the most unsuspecting garment! With the right tools, reference books, and a little bit of patience you'll be on your way to finishing your sweaters without tears in no time.

When getting ready to seam up a project, after everything is blocked properly of course, I line up the two seams and secure them every 2" or so with removable stitch holders. You could probably even use knitters safety pins. This makes it easier to handle the pieces and insures you won't have 2" extra on one of the seams.


From there I carefully mattress stitch the two seams together between the edge stitch and the next stitch. This is where edge stitches come in handy on garments with a special stitch design. Lace can be very hard to seam if you don't leave 1 or more plain stitches at each edge. You'll be cursing much less if you follow that simple rule when knitting up each section.

Can you find the seam?
Finishing encompasses so much more than just seaming though. It really includes cast on edges, bound off edge, button bands, pockets - anything that is added onto the garment after the main pieces are finished. Most of areas I covered in other previous installments. There is much more I can cover, but that would take hours! If you want to know more, you can pick up a good finishing book to help in your time of need.

I know there are several finishing books out now, but my personal favorite is The Knitters Book of Finishing Techniques by Nancie M. Wiseman. It has very clear pictures and it also gives Pros and Cons for using each technique. If you struggle with finishing your sweaters and don't like the results you are getting I would highly suggest buying a finishing book for your library. It just might be a sweater saver!

Now the sweater just needs some buttons and it will be all ready to go! Sorry to make you wait for finished pics, but we need to develop that patience for finishing your projects somehow! Every little bit helps ;)

Somewhat Personal Knitting Continued

And we have a sweater! Well, almost:


I swear the sleeves are the same length, really! It's been very enjoyable knowing that there is no deadline to be seen for this project. Trust me, there is enough on the horizon right now - all due about the same time that will keep me in check for the next couple of months. Again I will stress what a welcome break this is!

There's just one problem:


This is the only yarn that is left. For some reason, my knitting does this to me all the time. I always just keep knitting along, hoping for the best. I only have the neckband and buttonbands to go, but it's going to be really really close. Stay tuned and wish me luck!

Somewhat Personal Knitting

I'm taking a short, very short much needed break to work on something that doesn't involve a deadline. (Lisa, if you're reading this, you might just want to click that little "x" in the corner now!) I'm really supposed to be working on 2 other projects right now, but shhhhhh! You guys won't tell, right? ;)

I'm remaking Grannie Smith in Lanas Puras Melosa and it's flying off the needles. I love KSH, I really, really do! Sometimes a girl just needs a yarn that goes on the needles, comes off the needles and behaves when you want it to. This fingering weight yarn is a bit thicker than the KSH, but it gives the sweater a completely new look - and did I mention it knits up at the same gauge?


Also, our company is doing a little construction to our showroom for the month of June and July. Take a look at my new view from the 24th floor!



It's a far cry from my dark dingy cubicle on the 7th floor! There are 8 of us crammed in this conference room (including our boss!), but honestly I don't want to have to move back! I have a river view for goodness sake!

Radical Lace and Subversive Knitting

I finally got around to going to the Museum of Art and Design last Thursday to see Radical Lace and Subversive Knitting before the exhibit closes on June 17th. It was just one of those things when it opened in January, "Ah, it's around til June, I'll wait til the crowds die down." Well, I waited and waited and waited.....and I almost missed it! And that would have been very, very sad!

This said, I enjoyed the exhibit immensely. In fact, my fiance enjoyed it too (it's so nice to have someone to share all this knit stuff with!) The knit pieces were very nice, but I have to say that the works using other mediums to create lace like structures were what really caught my attention. I really wanted to take home the fabric with the hand cut lace pattern - and the car parts with a lace pattern cut out with a lace pattern in the dirt around it! Loved it! I wish I had pictures, but I wasn't sure if cameras were allowed and I forgot to bring it anyway :(

If you live in the NYC area and haven't seen it yet - go! You won't be disappointed!

Lucky Clover Corrections

What seems like years ago, Debbie Stoller contacted me frantically to make some corrections to my Lucky Clover Wrap from SnB Nation (which were not my fault btw). So I traded in some knitting time to fix er' up and redo all the math (which wasn't fun!) Anywho, for whatever reason, these were never posted in the errata section on Knithappens.com???? Actually, I stand corrected! They are posted and can be found here.

Anywho, I thought the corrections were lost forever once the Lucky KAL was gone, but I found them! When I was searching for something on my computer tonight, I came across them and would like to post them here just for knitters sake. I know some of you out there in blog land have had a terrible time with muscle sizing issues and I apologize! I'm not sure what happened on the publishers side, but I guess stuff happens.

Corrections for Lucky Clover Wrap from Stitch n Bitch Nation

Right front:

Pattern reads: Inc 1 st at waist edge of next row, then every following 7th row 6 times more – 94(107, 120, 133, 146) sts

Pattern should say: Inc 1 st at waist edge of next row, then every following 7th row 6 times more – 64(73, 86, 98, 112) sts

Sleeves:

Pattern should say:

With smaller needles, CO 86(88, 89, 93, 97) sts.

Work 6 rows 1x1 rib.

Change to larger needles and working in clover lace patt, dec 1 st at each edge of every 25th(25th, 32nd, 32nd, 32nd) row 2( 2, 4, 4, 4) times, then every 26th( 26th, 0, 0, 0) row 3( 3, 0, 0, 0) times – 76( 78, 81, 85, 89) sts.

Work even in pattern until piece measures 17 ½” from beg.

Shape raglan cap:

BO 7 sts at beg of next 2 rows.

Dec 1 st at each edge of every 4th row 9(10, 14, 9, 9) times, then every 6th( 6th, 0, 6th, 6th) row 2( 2, 0, 4, 6) times. BO remaining sts.

New final measurements for sleeve cuff opening: 13 ¼(13 ½, 13 ¾, 14, 15)
New final measurements for muscle: 11 ½(12, 12 ½, 13, 13 ¾)

Deadlines Are A Bore

Deadlines and secret projects are a bore....for this blog at least! Just thought I'd check in with a little sneak peek of my next secret project for One Planet. It uses Yarn Botanika Radiance, which is a pleasure to work with and has such a nice shine! Stay tuned for the finished product, it's blocking as I write.

7 Random Things

I've been tagged! I'm guessing this has been going around, but I'm 653 posts behind on bloglines! So please excuse me if I am way behind on this.

7 Random Things about me:

- I grew up in a small farming community in South Jersey
- I've managed to survive in the Fashion Industry for 5 years
- If fashion didn't work out, I wanted to be a drag racer
- I've been on the stage at Radio City Music Hall (Receiving BFA medal at graduation from FIT)
- I took ballet for 7 years before quitting to study guitar
- I've lived in NYC for 8 years and have probably spent no more than 25 weekends here in that time (I enjoy my SJ quiet country time!)
- My fiance and I share the same birthday

If you would like to do this, consider yourself tagged!

I hope to have some knitting content soon! Sorry to be MIA!

Green Living

I came across this post today from Right Out Loud about living greener. I just figured I'd share on behalf of Knitters Against Global Warming.

This also makes me think about what I have done to live a little greener since I started this little thing back in January. Well, being in the city it's easy to utilize public transportation, so that feels like cheating. But I have contacted the electric company and changed to wind generated power, buy local when I can and only drive my car sparingly when I am back home in Jersey. Every little bit helps right!

If you have posted about living greener on your blog (even if it hasn't been recent), drop me a line and I'll post a link here. Sharing ideas is just one of the many ways to help make a difference!

Been Awhile

Feels like I haven't updated in so long! Things have still been crazy at work and my free time has been spent working on several secret projects that are in the works. So with that said, don't know how often I'll be able to update over the next month or so. It's nice to have the work coming in – I just hope that I haven't gotten in over my head!

I've also been working on formatting quite a few new patterns for One Planet, getting our designs started for fall and helping decide on a few new yarns to add to the lines.

I'm still working on the design inspiration project, but I don't know the next time I will be able to post an update. I hope some of you are still interested! I know it's taken a bit longer to go through than I would have liked. It's such a cute sweater and now I just can't wait to get it finished up. It's almost a shame it's too warm now to wear!

And on a completely different note – just won tickets to go see Elvis Costello and the Impostors this weekend! It will be a much needed night out, I can assure you!

P.S. If you guys have heard of Ravelry, I have one invitation up for grabs if you are interested. Just email me at neoknits AT yahoo DOT com and I'll hook you up. They opened up a sign up list recently and were swamped with over 2,000 requests at last count! So if you check it out and aren't quick enough to email, be patient, they are busy getting ready for everyone!

The Design Process: Buttonbands

Finally! I am nearing the end of my little series. Not that it's a good thing, it's just exciting to finally be able to show you the final project and compare the original idea to the final product. I have to say, I think it's going to be pretty close to the original concept, which is not always the case with these things. I still have not seamed the sides or sewn on the buttons! I need to get on that!

So on to buttonbands!

I don't really use a set number when figuring out how many stitches to pick up. Usually I divide the number of rows by the numbers of stitches to get a ratio, but sometimes I don't. For this project, I decided to go with the ratio of 4 to 5. So out of every 5 sts, I pick up 4 of them.

For this design, I was able to pick up stitches continually from right bottom hem to left bottom hem, which makes things a lot easier! Whenever I hit a change (placket to neck, front neck to back neck) I placed a stitch marker so I can easily count the stitches to fill into the pattern.

Once stitches had been counted, I needed to figure out the placement of the buttonholes before proceeding. I counted up and had 92 sts from left front hem to the beginning of the V neck. So........

First you figure out how many stitches your button will need to pass through and how many buttons total will be used. I need 5 buttons and 5 sts for each button, so that will take up 25 sts (5x5).

I also need a few stitches at the top and bottom of the placket. You can't start buttonholes right at the edge! So I choose 4 for the top and 4 for the bottom.

Now we need to figure out how many stitches are in between each buttonhole. So we take 92 sts - 25 sts = 67 sts - 8 sts = 59 sts. Now we divide that by the number of spaces: 59/4= 14.75. Hmm, not an even number. So we add 2 sts to the top and 1 st to the bottom to make it an even 14.

So we have 6 sts for the bottom, 5 sts for each buttonhole, 14 sts between each and 5 sts on top!

Now that I have that info, I can figure out how many rows I'll need (9). And I decide to use a 1 row buttonhole, so I place it after the 4th row to keep things looking even.

Next up: Pockets? We'll see!

Getting Back on the Ball

Many thanks to everyone who has answered my survey so far! The feedback will be very useful for my future plans - especially your pet peeves! Most of what bothers you is eliminated in my patterns, but there is always room for improvement and I am certainly taking them to heart. I would like to have at least 30 10 more people take the survey so I have a good selection of knitters covered, so if you haven't taken it yet would you put down your needles for just a few minutes for me? I know it's a lot to ask, but I will be so appreciative! Survey is now closed! Thanks for all your help!

Looking at all the responses actually has me feeling a bit better about things and has put a new fire under my bum. And just in time too! I found out yesterday that Debbie Stoller is finally ready to bring the Advanced book to the front burner so that project will now added to the list. I also have 3 projects in the works for One Planet and just might have something else in the works for Sundara. As I always say, when it rains, it pours!

I have finally finished the button band on the design inspiration project! Yay! Now I'm debating if I still want to put the pockets on it. I'm going to sew it up tonight if I have time and maybe I'll take a picture and do an informal poll: pockets or no pockets? I'm leaning towards pockets, but we'll see. Button placket how to post coming soon!

Too Tired to Knit + Knitting Survey

I just can't seem to get past this lull I've been in for the past month or two. The knitting mojo is definitely suffering from the long hours spent at work everyday and it's getting quite old! I miss my knitting!

I've been trying to finish up the "design process" sweater and write up my last few installments in the series, but every time I try, I get delayed a bit. Not much is left on the sweater! It's soooooo close! To keep this from being a completely picture-less post, here are some buttons that I picked up from work last week for the sweater:

It also didn't help much that I came down with a horrid cold two weeks ago due to the crazy rainy weather we've had here in NYC. However, with the weather warming up, I finally felt better just in time to catch Lolly on her visit to The Point last Friday. We've been attempting to meet up for about 2 years now so it was nice to finally cross paths.

I hope to have another installment in the design series to post this week, but in the meantime would you guys mind helping me out by taking a little knitting survey? I've been thinking a lot about my designs and expanding my pattern business lately and any incite into your knitting minds would help so much! It's short and should only take about 5 or 10 minutes, but if you're a busy bee like me and can't fit it in - could you help by passing it on to another knitting friend? Many thanks and good knitting karma will be sent your way :) You can find my survey here.

The Design Process - Blocking

As promised, I finished up the left front this weekend and am finally able to proceed with the series. I know I had mentioned talking about picking up stitches, but how could I leave out the very important process of blocking! Shame on me!

I know there are people of both the wet block camp and steam block camp out there, but personally, I belong to the steam block camp - for the most part anyway. There is just something about putting your brand new sweater in a tub of water that really scares me! In fact, washing my sweaters brings about so much anxiety that it's really not funny.

So I start by grabbing my sweater parts, pins, blocking board and measuring tape. I lay everything out matching the measurements from my sketch book to the sweater and pin everything down. The blocking board makes this process an absolute charm, by the way! I used to pin everything out on a towel on the floor, which worked, but I hated it and it took double the time. In fact, honestly, before the blocking board I have to admit I didn't really do too much proper blocking to size. It would get a shot of steam from the iron to smooth the edges for seaming, and that was about it. Don't have a blocking board? You know how you never know what you want for your b-day/Christmas/Hanukkah/other holiday? Exactly! :)


So we have everything pinned down and even, so now I hit it with a good amount of steam being careful not to touch the iron to the surface. Sometimes with stubborn seams, you'll need to use the tip of the iron a bit but try your best not to make contact if you don't need to.

After steaming, the pieces will be a tiny bit damp, so I let them dry for a bit before unpinning them. And after unpinning, I still let them sit for a half hour or more just in case the knitting wants to pull back to shape on it's own. Trust me, being patient will pay off in the end! As with swatching, proper blocking is very important for a pleasant outcome of your garment.


Next up: picking up stitches for the neck and buttonband and placing buttonholes.

All Finished!

The Pea Pod Baby Set is all finished! After washing, the yarn turned out super soft and I'm very pleased.

Pea Pod Baby Set by Kate Gilbert
Size 6 needles
Rowan DK Wool: 3 balls Avocado
Started: March 23, 2007
Finished: April 3, 2007

I am very happy with the final outcome, but I had a hard time getting into this project for some reason. Maybe I just don't like deadlines that don't have to do with design projects? I don't know. But for such a small project, the knitting sometimes almost drove me up a wall. This coming from the girl that thinks a Stockinette Stitch garment on size 2 needles is a good idea!

So now I can get back to the "Design Inspiration" project, which has hit a snag for the past 2 weeks or so. I did something when increasing in pattern on the left front and I couldn't figure it out for the life of me! I ended up charting it out and ripping back quite a bit (I was about 1/4 the way done the sleeve). But it's back on track now and I hope to have the left front done by the end of the holiday. Once that is done, I can continue my series with calculating stitch pick up for the front button bands and sleeve cuffs. Also, I'll show how to calculate evenly spaced buttonholes.

Finally got around to checking bloglines today, and I was surprised to only see 410 posts waiting for me. After not checking in for several weeks, I was dreading how much I had missed, but apparently you guys are just as busy! Hope everyone has a nice relaxing holiday!

Pre-Block

Here we have the Pea Pod Baby Set pre-block:



After a little bath and 6 buttons, she'll be all ready to go for the baby shower in 2 weeks. Apparently baby couldn't wait til her due date in May though. There were a few complications and mama had to have a C section yesterday. Baby unfortunately only weights 3 lbs, so it will be a little while before she can fit into her little outfit. Send good wishes her way!

The Design Process - Finished, no - more math, yes!

Yay! The back is finished and I'm ready to move onto the front! If this was a pullover, I could just cast on the same amount of stitches and follow the back numbers until I got to the front neckline, but no such luck. I need to figure out how many stitches to cast on for each front taking into account the button placket.

I cast on a total of 95 sts for the back, so we'll start by dividing that in half which gives me 47.5 stitches. Don't like that, so I go down to 47. 47 doesn't work with the 2x2 ribbing, so I go down one more to 46. But I also have to account for a button placket here, which will be 1.25" wide which would take up about 6 stitches. The 6 stitches then are divided in half (the placket sits evenly over the center front) so we now have43 sts to work with. Again, this doesn't work with the 2x2 rib, so let's try 42. Now I need to check and see if the 42 stitches work with my lace pattern (42-4=38, 38/7=5.42......) nope. So I figure out that I either need 39 stitches or 46 stitches. I decide to go with 46, even though it's 1/2 of my total back. It's always better to go bigger with a button placket since they tend to pull.

So I cast on, work my rib and pattern til I have 15" worked. It's now time to figure out the neck decrease frequency.

On the half, I have 24 neck stitches to decrease and 14.5" to work them, or 116 rows. If we divide 116 by 24 we get 4.8333333.... hmm, not so even. So what do I do? Well, we have a special formula for uneven, unruly numbers like this.

1. I take the 2 even numbers that are closest to the 4.8333 - which are 4 and 6 (these are your frequency numbers).
2. Next I multiply the total number of decreases by the first number which is 4 (24x4=96)
3. Now subtract 96 from the total number of rows (116-96=20)
4. Divide 20 by 2 (20/2=10)
5. Multiply second decrease number (6) by 10 (6x10=60 rows)
6. Subtract 60 from 116 (116-60=56 rows)
7. Divide 56 rows by 4 (56/4=14)
8. Divide 60 rows by 6 (60/6=10)

So after all that, I determined that my decrease frequency is every 4th row 14 times, then every 6th row 10 times. I'm sure this might not make much sense, but if you pick up Maggie Righetti's book Sweater Design in Plain English, it will make MUCH more sense.

At the same time I'm doing all this neck decrease business, I'm also following all the underarm shaping and shoulder shaping as established on the back. And here's what I end up with:

A left front! ok, there was supposed to be a picture here, but things have been a bit crazy around these parts lately! I don't want to delay the post any longer, so please us your ultra creative mind to picture a left front :) (I actually wrote this on 3/15!)

This is it for the math for awhile - at least until I get to the button placket. The second front will be knit up exactly as the first. To make absolutely sure they actually do knit up the same, I keep a small 3x4 notebook handy to mark all of my decreases and rows. It's especially important in this case since I am working in pattern and would like it to match up evenly at the side seams and across the front. The little book also helps when you put the project down for a day or week or year or two. It's always easy to pick up where you left off.

The Yarn Harlot visits FIT

I'm a bit late with this post, but when I had gotten home from the event on Thursday night, my computer would not boot up. Apparently the technically challenged DB had succeeded in giving my computer a nasty virus. He won't be allowed near my computer where all my precious knitting pictures are stored any time soon....

So the Harlot. It was a pretty full house and she talked for about 2 or 2 1/2 hours about how knitters are misunderstood and why we should commend respect from the muggles. Various good deeds were done for the night with knitters working away on squares for Warm Up America, hats were collected for babies in other countries, and money was collected for Doctors Without Borders. I could go into more detail, but I'm sure the event has been covered sufficiently elsewhere.


Full House


Bad blurry picture of the Harlot

There were quite a few knitters who had come from long distances, which was pretty impressive: England, Switzerland, Virginia, California - just to name a few. I was even recognized by a far away knitter from (I believe) Switzerland - or at least she recognized Tatami. It was kind of neat!

Preparing for "Represent"

The Yarn Harlot will be at my alma mater, FIT tonight to kick off her new book release! I wish I could join in on more festivities of the day, such as a sock picture in the park, being in the crowd at the Today Show, or participating in a yarn crawl - but this girl's gotta work for a living and taking off for the day is not an option. I'm happy enough to be able to join the (hopefully) 750 knitters in the auditorium at 6pm. It's going to be great!

Speaking of work, it has been crazier than normal lately. We are preparing for Holiday 2007 market and the new sweater designs have been flying off the imac the past week and a half. I estimate my assistant and I have put out another 100-75 sweater styles in just this short time. I need a vacation!

The upswing in my full time job has put my knitting on hold for the minute, hence delaying the "series" a bit. I'm just way too tired when I get home to even think about picking up my knitting, let alone writing a blog post about math. I'm sure you all sympathize!

I need to get back in the swing of things soon though, I have many projects on the horizon. Take a look at my newest yarn shipment from One Planet:


This will eventually become 3 secret projects. Yes, we will be back in the secret phase soon!

And I also received my Rowan DK Wool for the baby project. The color is a bit brighter than I expected, but since I'm a green person I don't mind! I need to get this on the needles quick and find out when the shower is. That's the problem when it's the boy's family - info doesn't get passed down quite as quickly!

I hope to see some other NYC knitters tonight! Represent! :)

The Design Process - Yet More Math

After working the bust increases, it's now time to shape the underarm seam for the doleman-like sleeve.

Instead of using a set formula for the increases, I drew out a chart to make sure the shape is what I wanted. I wanted the increases to be worked over 2", which according to my row gauge is 16 rows total.

So I got out the trusty graph paper and started drawing. Here's what I came up with:

So I'm increasing a total of 11 stitches over 15 rows (1 stitch every other row 4 times, then 1 stitch every row 7 times) - close enough to my 16 total.

After working my underarm increases, I now need to figure out how many stitches to cast on for the sleeve at both ends of the back.

I want the sleeves to be about 10 1/4" long from the shoulder to the cuff. So 10.25 x 2 (sleeves) =20.5" + 9" (neck) = 29.5" wide. Then I subtract the body 29.5" - 18" = 11.5" for the underarm seams. But I have 2 underarm seams, so I need to divide by 2 = 5.75" for each side or 31 stitches wide (5.75 x 5.5=31).

I already increased 11 stitches for the underarm shaping, so I can subtract that from the 31, so we have 20 stitches to increase.

But before I cast 20 more stitches on for the sleeve, I need to make sure the total number of stitches follows our stitch repeat numbers (7 sts + 4). 99 sts + 22 sts + 40 sts = 161 sts total. 161-4=157, 157/7= 22.428...... = not going to work! So I messed around a bit with the numbers and figured out I needed to add 15 sts on each side (99 + 22 + 30=151 sts. 151 -4=147, 147/7=21 repeats). The sleeve will be about 1" shorter on each side, but having the numbers work out makes it easier to place the repeats correctly so I can live with that.

After casting on the extra stitches, I was able to veg out for awhile and knit even for 7 1/2". Once I hit that point, it was time to think about the shoulder shaping.

I decided I wanted to try some short row shaping on the shoulders since I've never done it in a design before. Well, I wanted to do short row shaping, but with the lace pattern going on, I ended up with a lot more stitches than I was supposed to, so out it came! I did a traditional bind off instead and slipped the first stitch of each bind off row to avoid the ugly "stair step" edge you get if you don't do this. To figure out how many stitches I needed to decrease, I subtracted the neck opening stitches from the sleeve stitches and have 51 stitches to decrease on each shoulder over 14 rows. Because I can only decrease one side per row, I actually only have 7 rows to decrease over. So 51/7= 7 with a remainder of 2. So I'll be binding off 7 stitches 7 times and then have 2 sts at the end left over.

There will also be a bit of back neck shaping involved which will involve separating the back at a certain point, but I think it's safe to say that I'm pretty sure you just want to see a progress picture by now:


Next up: Math for a cardigan front and neck decreases - fun!

Thanks to everyone who made a suggestion in my time of crisis! I decided on the Rowan DK Wool from elann.com for the baby goods. I love Rowan and hey, it was cheap! If it wasn't a budget project, I probably would have gone for the Zara, but I'm sure there will be a next time!

Help!

I'm wondering if anyone can suggest a nice DK weight yarn for a baby sweater. I'm making the Pea Pod Baby Set from Interweave and don't really want to use the Debbie Bliss it calls for. Does anyone have a suggestion of something that is machine washable, is soft and holds up well without pilling? Oh, and did I mention cheap?

I ordered some Jaeger Baby Merino DK from Webs and they totally disappointed me. I placed the order on Sunday and today.......3 days later......they email me to tell me it's out of stock! Meanwhile, I go back to the website and it says they still have 6 skeins in stock (they had like a billion when I ordered). Hmm, needless to say, I don't think I'll be ordering anything from them EVER again! So I'm in panic mode now and don't know what to do. I know it's not that big of a deal and I can get this yarn elsewhere, but I lost 3 days on a tight schedule project! And now I'm not so sure I want this yarn now since I'm going to pay much more somewhere else. Sigh.

The Design Process - More Math

Sorry for the delay in the series! Last week, I was so busy with work (it's market week - ugh!) that I was hardly able to knit a stitch. Even if I had tried to knit a stitch, I was so tired I don't think I would have been able to. Buyers zap the energy right out of you!

When we last left off, I had explained a little bit about the math that needed to be done to get me up to the waist point. I also had to make a decision about the chest and if I wanted to decrease or increase at this point.

I decided to increase for the bust and I changed a few measurements around. So here's the updated schematic:

For the bust to measure 18", I need 99 sts. There are 95 sts on my needle, so I need to increase 4 sts total - 2 sts on each side (99-95=4, 4/2=2). Now I just need to figure out the spacing of those increases.

I have 2 increases to make and 24 rows to work them. To keep a nice slope, you need to space the increases out evenly or your side seams can look a bit odd. In this case, since I only have 2 sts to increase and it's actually pretty easy to figure out. I increase the 1st stitch after completing 15" of the body, then I increase 1 stitch more 24 rows later.

Not too much math involved on the increases on this sample, but what if I wanted to increase more stitches over the same 3"?

Just for example's sake, let's say I needed 4 increases on each side instead of 2 and had the same 24 rows to work with. I would divide 24 rows into 3 intervals (space between each inc) and would get 8. So I would need to increase 1 stitch every 8 rows 4 times. This works out perfectly and each increase is on the right side (since it's an even number). It doesn't always work out so easily and sometimes the numbers need to be fudged a bit, but we'll leave that for a later lesson - like the neck decreases.

Next up: shaping the underarm seams and shoulder decreasing

The Starla Cardi Revealed

I'd like to introduce another Secret Project: The Starla Cardi! Knit up in Lanas Puras Melosa - Worsted Weight, it's sure to fly off your needles.

If you head on over to One Planet Yarn and Fiber you will find details how to purchase the yarn for this project at 10% off!



Starla Cardi
by Melissa Wehrle

DIFFICULTY
Beginner

SIZE
2/4 (6/8, 10/12, 14/16)

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS
Chest at Underarm: 21 (24.5, 28, 31)"/53 (62, 71, 79)cm
Finished Length: 17.5 (18, 18.5, 19)"/44 (46, 47, 48)cm
MATERIALS
- Lanas Puras Melosa - Worsted Weight
(100% Merino Wool, 3 oz, 215 yds), 3 (3, 4, 4) skeins Margarita
- One 24" (61 cm) or longer US size 8 (5 mm) circular needle or size to obtain correct gauge.
- Four stitch markers
- Three stitch holders
- Tapestry needle
- ½ yd 7/8" wide ribbon
- Six ¾" diameter buttons

GAUGE
18 sts and 25 rows = 4"/10 cm in Reverse St st with US size 8 (5 mm) needles or size to obtain gauge

The body is worked in one peice up to the armholes. Each section is then split and worked separately to the shoulders.

More on the design series soon, hit a little snag with the armhole increases, but we're all good to go now!