"keep passing the open windows"



60's pop sweater from Phildar Tendences Fall 2004
with hoodie from "Under the Hoodie" in Stitch 'n Bitch
in Phildar Oxygene

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Remember these crazy things?

They're the funny front panels from the original pattern for my pop sweater. They came out so well that I couldn't rip them out, even though they didn't work all sewn together in the actual sweater. So I saved them and they laid around collecting dust until last week when I needed some swatches to use in the finishing class that I was teaching. Much better than regular old square swatches, they were like mini-sweater swatches, with sloped shoulders to seam together, side seams, and that great curved neckline for picking up stitches.

They look way better like this than they ever did in the sweater!

Swam at the coolest pool ever. What a view! They had a heated outdoor pool too. (Look!)

Learned to ride a "big bike". With training wheels, versteht sich.

Got caught climbing a tree when no-one was looking. "Oh yeah, I can climb a tree. You didn't know that?"

Found our way through a corn maze.

Went down a mountain in a toboggan. Seriously, you had to take a ski lift to get back up to the top. (See the lift in the background?)

Drove go karts. And a tractor!

Did silly things for the camera. (Check out that old Pan Am hat!)

Finished pop. Hooray! (Pictures taken by S "all by myself".)

baby got back

baby needs blocking

Vacation knitting has been successful so far despite not being able to knit much on the plane (the sound wasn't working in our row for the in-flight entertainment, so I decided to try to sleep instead of knitting while trying to lip read Jimmy Fallon in "Fever Pitch"). I still managed enough knitting to complete the first tech guy sock yesterday night.

I can't say enough good things about this Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sport! It is so soft and knits up so well. The solids are called "nearly solid" and have the slightest bit of color variation in them. It's subtle, but gives the color a little more depth and richness than a flat solid would. Hubby loves it too: yarn, color, and the short-rowed heel and toe. It's the first time I made a short-rowed sock for him. I think this may be the beginning of a beautiful friendship!

Also up on the list of vacation knitting, is -- drumroll, please -- pop. Yes, I started pop on our vacation to Germany last year. And yes, I swore I wouldn't schlepp the thing across the Atlantic again. But right before we left, a package arrived from knitpal, Sharlyn, who just happened to have two extra balls of the exact yarn that I needed to finish it. So, I packed all the half-finished parts anyway. It should be cold enough here next week for me to even wear her once she's all done.

That's still not everything in the knitting bag. Oh and some yarn arrived at my in-laws too (heh, heh, don't know how that happened). I'll be a busy knitting bee this trip!

Pop is back! And I've finally settled on a neckline for her.

pop, almost done? way!

Yup, it's true. I've decided she's going to get a hood, a la the Under the Hoodie pattern from the first Stitch and Bitch book. I'll need at least one more ball of the pink yarn (from France!) to make the hood, so she won't be done for a bit, but as soon as I get that yarn....

can you picture it?

Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!

Two pop sleeves, nice and long now.

As for the front, I'm just going to keep passing the open windows.

Pop's latest neckline.

I finished the back, worked out this nice neckline for the front and even sewed the two pieces together, so I could slip it all on and make some decisions.

Decision: it's still not right. It's fine and all, but I now that I've redone it six times, I want it to be really awesome! I've got one more idea I want to try out. If it doesn't work, I'll go back to this neckline. In the meantime, I'm going to work on lengthening those sleeves. Maybe making progress somewhere else will keep me from throwing this whole project out the window.

Maybe.

Didn't think I'd forgotten about pop, did you? I did make a few attempts to fix her up in February, but this sweater is really stubborn - it just does not want to come out right! My latest attempt at the neckline is good, but too open. I think I'll keep the same shape, but leave myself a few more stitches for the shoulders. My shy bra straps should appreciate that.

But before I go back and fix the front yet again, I decided to tackle the back. When I first finished the sweater I noticed that although the measurements were good, it rode up a little while I had it on, so my February fix-it plan was to invent a new neckline and go back and add an inch before the armhole shaping on the body and before the sleeve cap on the sleeves. Since the front is in time out AGAIN, I ripped out the pink of the back and am starting the re-knitting there.

Straight knitting - I can't get that wrong, right?

The front of january is all finished! Looooove that neckline.

And I tried the keyhole opening on pop one more time. I managed to come up with a version with a one piece front. It looks much better on than before. But I'm still not convinced that this is not the right neckline for my striped version of this sweater. The opening throws off the pretty lines of the stripes too much. So back to the drawing board again.

And thanks to Jenanne, I was able to rip out the neck on that Banana Republic ribbed sweater afterall. She was absolutely correct that I was unravelling in the wrong direction. It's actually very clear in the link about unravelling sweaters that the neck should be separated from the body first and then ripped from there back to the edge. Doh! So I picked and snipped and finally ripped that neck out. The boys even helped wind the yarn into hanks.*

* (They actually turned their attention away from "Lazy Town" as soon as they saw the swift come out. And if you're a mom of a NickJr.-watching toddler you understand what kind of power "Lazy Town" has over kids and can appreciate my shock when they literally turned their backs on it to play with the swift.)

In yet another warm-up to the february fixing, I pulled out pop and ripped back the front to get ready to try my hand at inventing a better neckline.

First I've decided to lengthen each piece by about an inch. The sweater is actually the perfect size, but it tends to ride up, both body and sleeves, when I wear it, so since I'm ripping, why not add the extra inch that will keep me from having to tug on the bottom and the cuffs? I have to say that I've actually worn this sweater around the house quite a bit (when I was trying to decide if I wanted to rework it or not), and I really liked it. I think it could be a sweater I'll wear a lot. But first I gotta get that neck right! Maybe something more squared like in the original pattern that inspired my pop stripes? Maybe another split neck like my january sweater in progress?

Frankly, I can't believe that I'm still working on this sweater!

Weasley news:

Finally a picture of Peggy's little one in his weasley sweater! And a picture of Eklectika's TWO weasleys together - weasleys from A to Z! Also Leigh reports that she's finished hers and it was a huge hit, inciting some peer rivalry. Oh my!

Elsewhere, Orli finised the front of her weasley and Amy Lu is working on sleeves.

Sockapalooza news:

All non-beginners who sent their info to me should have received their sockapalooza sock pals by now. Remember, don't tell your sock pal who you are. Just find the perfect yarn and pattern for them, knit, knit, knit and send your socks off around March 15 with a note revealing who you are. We can all be surprised together!

Leftovers:

I heard from Elizabeth that she finished a version of my leftovers vest. Stripes are good, mmmm'kay.

And bookish girl, Wendy finished a Banff and is starting some sweat pants! I love to see old knitalong projects being made by others. It brings back fun memories of making my own projects. I had to pull out Banff and the sweatpants already this week and wear them!

Coming soon:

Last January we ripped and last February was for finishing. This year I'm declaring February to be for fixing. I've got a few projects, like pop that need some minor tweaking and plenty of others that need major overhauls.

Just so I don't chicken out with pop, I took her apart last night. Here's the front back on the needles again and ready for reknitting.

So this February, there'll be some ripping, some reknitting, reclaiming of yarn and rethinking of projects. Who else is ready to play knitting doctor?

What ever happend to pop, you might ask. Well, I did all the seaming, knit the neck edging, tried it on and then stopped. It's practically done (the two front flaps still need to be joined with the button and a small ribbed band), but I'm just not sure how happy I am with the little peek-a-boo opening. I have moments when I try it on and think that it looks really good. And then there are times that I've slipped it on and thought, no way, I should rip it and and make up a new neckline enitrely.

What do you think?

Finally sewn together so it looks right. Sleeves coming! Then the neck edging, an edging for the center of the front panel, and, and.... these Phildar patterns call for a lot of finishing.

Second pop sleeve done.

First pop sleeve out.

Reattaching front panels.

Time to buckle down and finish this sweater! So what are you seaming?

Final pop sleeve underway. Now for my dilemma. I still can't manage to sew together the top front panels of the pop sweater so that the peek-a-boo opening is actually open and the whole thing looks good. I'm considering reknitting the top of the front as a one-piece scoop or heart-shaped neckline. What'cha think?

And another dilemma. I'm chilly and I want another warm sweater in a hurry. I've got a bag full of bulky yarn waiting to become one. Here's the question: to Banff or not to Banff? Do I make another Banff or do I do something different - maybe Simply Marilyn? Maybe a slouchy cardigan? What'cha think?

(update: cardigan pattern info is in the comments!)

I'm having a hell of a time sewing up this pop sweater! Attaching the one sleeve neatly has proven very difficult. I'm not sure if it's the texture of the yarn or the what, but I just have not been satisfied with how it's been coming out. I've ripped out the seam so many times that the piece of yarn I'm using is already starting to get thin! And let's not even talk about sewing in those two little peek-a-boo pieces. I have no idea what I'm doing there. But I am determined to focus on the positive, so I would like to point out that now that the sleeve is almost in, the stripes do indeed match up.

just one sleeve done, so this is the only angle where I'm decent!

Green light to knit sleeve number two. Whew, knitting again - what a relief!

I give you pop sleeve and body, with matching stripes.

Well, the stripes match when it's lying on the floor at least. I can't be sure that it will exactly line up when I'm wearing it. So I'll be sewing up the pieces I have and trying it on before I get too far with the next sleeve. Better safe than froggy.

  
before & after

Sleeve number one underway. Yeah, that's the same sleeve. Notice something different in the two pictures? After knitting several inches into the orange, I had to rip back to the red, lengthen it and reknit the orange. I was nervous about tackling the sleeves, since I'm doing the stripes on my own and have to make sure that they match up with the stripes on the body. I did lots of math before I set off to start this first sleeve to guesstimate how much extra red I needed to knit (sleeves are longer than the body, of course). I followed the numbers I got and realized that although the colors were lining up, the sleeve was turning out too short. Did I mention that I suck at math? Then it occurred to me that I could simply count backward from the armhole shaping to get the length of each stripe correct. Doh! Rip, reknit and I'm back to the orange again.

And I've still got another sleeve to knit!

The lower part of the front of the pop sweater, which just goes up to the end of the armhole shaping. The knitting is short-rowed and stiches are kept live around the neck opening, so you can come right back and knit the ribbed edge. The short rows avoid the stair-step look that comes from binding off and makes that neckline look so much smoother.

It is so much fun having the project with me to knit at the playground. Several people have asked me what I'm knitting. I say, I'm making a sweater and they peer down at one of those crazy peek-a-boo pieces and look at me more than a little confused. And then when I try to show them where the piece would go (just above one breast), I'm sure they were thinking that either I was crazy nudist knitter girl or that knitting a sweater was much more complicated than they'd imagined! Giggle.

The two front panels that form the peek-a-boo moment in my pop sweater. This pattern is too cool! I still gotta find a big, pink 60's-style button to hold them together though. I just may have to hit the Columbus Day sale at Windsor Button.

Here's one half of the peek-a-boo front panel of the pop sweater. This pattern is so fun to make! These little panels are short rowed so they can have such lovely curves. I did have both panels done, but after finishing the second one I realized that they didn't match. I'd actually read the directions for the short-rowing incorrectly the first time - which is strange since the directions for the second part were to knit as for first part only in reverse. Heh, heh. I suppose that the "reverse" thing had me paying more attention and that got me to finally follow the directions. Oh well, no matter, it's only about 30 rows. I've already ripped and restarted, so you should be seeing a whole peek-a-boo this week!

I finished the back of pop! After I laid it out and took this picture, I realized that I had an old sweater somewhere with similar striping and these EXACT same colors. I searched through my closet and found a circa 1997 H&M sweater that indeed had two of the same colors. I bought it back when I was living in Germany and it was one of the first sweaters with brighter colors that I purchased after a long period of only browns, navys, grays and muted tones. After seven years, I still may like orange and pink, but look at how much the styles have changed!

I mostly worked on new projects while I was in Germany so that I could practice my continental knitting. I've only made a few projects using the technique since learning how to knit continental: the crazy continental, hubby's brown butter vest, and sooty mango. I was pretty satisfied with how they came out, but the yarns were fairly forgiving and at points the tension still wasn't completely consistent. So I stuck with throwing and used my left hand mostly for two-handed colorwork. But I've noticed that my throwing method keeps causing me little twinges in my right wrist, particularly when I am working in small gauges. I changed how I held the yarn, which keeps the twinges from coming, but my wrist has still been sore from my olympic record knitting pace in August. So, when I started klaralund I decided to give my right hand a vacation. And then I went on vacation. To the continent! I couldn't switch back then.

So in addition to klaralund, my secret project was knitted entirely continental (no, it's not quite done yet!). And I'm knitting pop continental style as well - except for the ribbing, which is still best left to my right (left to my right - hah!). I must say that I have been surprised at how comfortable I am knitting this way now and at how well the projects are coming out. The tension is very even and I'm even getting the hang of doing special stitches, like decreases and bind offs, with my left hand. So here I am knitting continental and loving it. I'm very tempted to switch entirely.

The only hitch is the few projects I still have underway, like the frankensweater and mom's jess cardigan. Plus, switching would put a serious cramp in my plans to knit the wavy-line sweater anytime soon. I've still got to get lots more comfortable with my left hand to do the yarnovers and lacy bits justice. But I do love a challenge!

* links stricken, literally translated as "left knitting", is actually how the Germans say purling, but it seems to me like a better name for continental knitting, don't you think?

Look at those colors. Look at those curves. Yummm....

We survived the trip back. It was a little dicey for a while there. The boys were IN-SANE for the first few hours of the flight. But they settled down when the kiddie cartoons came on. At first they had a hard time seeing the screen between the crack in the seats.

Once we figured out that they could stand and still not block other people's view, they enjoyed it. S found the Goofy cartoon particularly gripping.

And then they fell asleep until landing. Hallalujah! I knitted more of the back of the pop sweater while they slept, making it up to the first color change.

Again, I had no problems bringing knitting needles on the plane. Three cheers for Lufthansa and sleeping toddlers - knit, knit, hooray!

the sheep in the field behind the hedge

knitted teddy bears from the attic

woven in ends on my secret project

sock yarn on sale in the department store

my new pop sweater underway!

I may not have done much knitting while in Munich, but I did get a couple of new projects for the knitting bag.

First, from the Wollkorb - a Lana Grossa haven! - two balls of Cat yarn, the softest, fuzzy yarn ever.

After letting out a little moan upon feeling the sample swatch, the saleslady came up to me and told me what my fingers already new - there's alpaca in there! I'm thinking a fuzzy scarf to go with my new Zara jean jacket.

I also visited Wolle Rödel, where I got my cool circ needle holder last time I was in Munich. Lots more fabby Lana Grossa yarns, but I restrained myself. Yeah, I restrained myself so that I could get two bags of a soft wool/acrylic blend in white to make Ubernatural.

check out that Sonderpreis: 1.50 Euros!

But that's not all! A little package of Phildar patterns arrived at my in-laws while I was gone (thanks!). I just happened to bring along the perfect yarn for one particular sweater from this catalog (hee, hee).

It's more stash yarn. I am being soooo good! (Pause for applause - thank you, thank you.) I originally got the Phildar yarn from Leigh. She had bought it to make this sweater. The yarn didn't agree with her and I bought the yarn from her and had planned to make the same sweater. In the meantime, I've produced more than a few feminine sweaters (like Rosebud) with big, bell sleeves (like Klaralund) and am thinking, do I really need another? Not really. But I do need this sweater. It's the black one in the picture, but mine's gonna have the big stripes from the original sweater I'd planned. This is going to be so cool.

Fall, here I come!