A bouquet

Knitted items from Dala-Floda, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

Considering all the embroidered flowers I thought this would be a suitable photo to celebrate that I turn 40 today! Actually, it feels as if I've been on a birthday party for a week: I was a workshop leader at a fabulous knitting event 1-4 August, and there I made new friends. They had planned a tour of the region of Dalarna (Twined Knitting Heaven) for a few days and I was happily shanghaied. We had a great time together and got to see - and fondle! - lots of twined garments from the 1800s, like the ones in the photo above.

Needless to say, I managed to buy some z-ply yarn too!

a bouquet

Not only knitting...

1700s, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

...but also having a lot of 18th century fun!

The Damsel Magnet

"Alba" sleeves

"Alba" cardigan: shoulder join, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

Here is the shoulder join: it is identical to the one I made for the sweater I finished some time ago. The sleeve is different, though, as there is no sleeve cap shaped with short rows.

Ann asked how I made those: starting with seven stitches in the middle I knitted back and forth adding three stitches each row until I had knitted all the stitches picked up around the armhole and could start knitting in the round. I was happy with how it turned out, but didn't feel like knitting lots of purl rows with two strands this time.

Alba sweater: sleeve cap

Instead I concentrated on figuring out where to start in the pattern. My aim was to make sleeve match the body, so I knew exactly where in the pattern I wanted the sleeve to end - but I also wanted to start where it would look good (I don't like it when patterns look amputated, and these repeats consist of 40 rows) and get the length right, of course.

Alba cardigan: body and sleeve

Jules asked about the Donegal border, whether it was my own or a new version by Alice Starmore. It is Starmore's, the one that you get with the kit. I modified it slightly, though: instead of casting on with the light colour I chose the darker one and added a couple of purl rows to make the edge curl inwards. There are photos of the original design here.

The more Starmore the merrier

Alice Starmore's "Alba" in progress, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

My second Alba will be a cardigan - mainly because it allows me to change colours in the middle of the front steek and simply cut out the centre of the steek with all the threads. (I did a similar thing a couple of years ago.)

I happened to order a Donegal kit fromVirtual Yarns some time ago. Not because I'm worth it, but simply because I want it. This pattern is slightly trickier to knit: unlike Alba, there are often long floats to catch with both strands. Well worth it, though, as it is like knitting jewellery.

Donegal

Don't you think the wool matches my William Morris tray?

The more "Alba" the merrier

"Alba", a design by Alice Starmore, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

Alice Starmore's "Alba" sweater had been waiting patiently for me for almost two years when I finally returned to it. I had picked up stitches around the armholes and knitted sleeve caps using short rows (my modification) but not the sleeves. Fortunately, I had finished both sleeve caps, so I didn't have to analyse the process as much as I feared.

Alba: sleeve decreases

Once I was back on track knitting the sleeves was pure joy! It is such a beautiful pattern and the colours are stunning. The sweater is not for me but for my friend Anders, but as soon as I had darned in all the loose ends I cast on to make another for but for my not quite sweaterless self.

sleeve caps and armhole

Much as I love Alice Starmore's designs (and this one in particular) I also love experimenting. What I've changed knitting Alba no 2 is the colour sequence for the check border pattern: less contrast and a gradual change from darker to lighter shades.

Alba no 2 (slightly modified) in progress

Also, I've started the main pattern at a different row to keep using the shades of blue from the check pattern for the background. This in turn means I skipped the light horizontal lines in the original version. I like Starmore's better, but mine well enough to keep it.

Alba sweater

"Mystic" sweater: reknitting sleeves

"Mystic" sweater: reknitting sleeves, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

To my immense surprise, the sleeves turned out to be too long - actually, having long arms was a main reason for me to start modifying patterns. (Small/medium chest, medium/large shoulders, large/xl arm length... What was a poor, disproportionate guy to do? Develop his knitting skills, of course!)

Knitting sleeves top-down is a major advantage in cases like this: I only had to rip back and reknit a few inches, and only the shortest rows too. I think the new, shorter version looks better: the net starts in the centre of the panel and blends with the ribbing. (I often write "blend with", don't I? Something of an obsession, I guess.)

Sewing the shoulder strap in place took some time, but wasn't as tricky as I expected. It helps having a nice patch of garden to sit in - and the neighbours came for a cackling visit.

good neighbours

I always block sweaters inside out as I think it makes it easier to get the seams straight. Many instructions tell you to do the seaming after blocking the pieces, but I prefer having the boring bits over and done with as soon as possible.

blocking

And here is what the finished sweater looks like. I just can't capture the colour (no 4009), but here is a good photo.

Diana asked about whether the shawl pattern "Leaves Dancing" is available in English. Not that I know, I'm afraid - but at least lace charts are international. 

Life at its worst...

On holiday, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

...should be like this: visiting dear friends, lovely weather and a bag full of knitting projects. Not to mention - but not in the photo - a lake nearby, delicious food and a bottle of champagne. (But this being life at its best is certainly good enough!)

It took some time to decide what kind of neckband to make for the "Mystic" sweater. The original has a cabled one; you knit it separately and sew it into place, which makes it similar to St. Brigid. However, I thought a turtleneck would look nice, and something simple would let the anchors be in focus. The ribbing is the same as for the cuffs (3 knit, 2 purl) to make it blend with the cable patterns.

"Så här ska det vara när det är som sämst," som en god vän brukar säga när vi har det som trevligast!

Gusset experiment

"Mystic" sweater progress, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

There is half a sleeve left to knit, but I've started seaming the sweater: to have some of it over and done with, to see how it turns out and to make it easier to handle. (It was like having an octopus in my lap.)

When I knitted St Brigid recently I added cables to the edges of the sleeves to make the seam as invisible as possible. I've done the same thing here, but developed the idea: the cables start at the bottom of the front and back pieces. When I got nearer to the armholes I added increases on each side of them to make a kind of gusset, and when I picked up stitches for the sleeves I added the gusset stitches. This way I could continue the cables without interruption.

The negative thing about it is that there is not only a cable but also a seam in the middle of the armhole, which might make it less comfortable than an ordinary gusset, but I wanted to give it a try anyway.

Kanske blir det lite obekvämt med en bred fläta med en söm i mitten i armhålan, men jag kunde inte låta bli att testa en idé jag fick. När jag stickade St Brigid nyligen lade jag till flätor i kanterna på ärmarna och tyckte att det blev snyggt - och då fick jag för mig att jag skulle testa att ha det så hela vägen från höft till handled. För att få en kilform under armarna ökade jag på var sida om flätorna och satte maskorna på trådar efter att jag hade kommit till ärmhålen. Sedan fortsatte jag på dem i samband med att jag plockade upp maskor för att sticka ärmarna.

A helping paw

A helping paw, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

Last weekend I was cat-sitting and made quite a lot of progress supervised by Puma.

I've kept the basic construction of Alice Starmore's design Mystic, but in a slightly different way. Instead of kniting the sleeves separately starting with the cuffs and ending with the shoulder straps, I started with the straps; when they were the right length I picked up stitches along the front and back and added the strap in the middle.

A pattern change is that I've added a net pattern to the sleeves. I think it works well with the anchors, and it is fairly easy to make it follow the shape of the sleeves.

"Mystic" sweater in progress

"Mystic" sweater in progress, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

This is a really difficult colour to capture: in reality it's brighter, greener and bluer.

But not this bright (and the green doesn't show here):

Not that it matters much - the important thing is that it's enjoyable to knit, which it is.

Thanks for all your comments on my Aranish sweater! Summer arrived at long last, so I haven't worn it yet. My impression is that we practically skipped spring this year. Didn't I wear layers and layers of clothes only a few weeks ago? It's a good thing I'm not allergic to wool like one of my friends!

Aranish sweater finished

Aranish sweater: front and back, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

What I always find tricky is getting the neck opening right - both comfortable and nice looking. If possible I want complete pattern repeats on both back and front. In this case the centre panel is worked over so many rows the opening would have been too low in front if I had done that. (A low-cut gansey doesn't feel quite right - and not simply because I have no cleavage to flaunt.) I could have knitted half a repeat on the back, but decided to add a little loop shape instead for a finished look.

Another finishing touch I like experimenting with is blending edges and main patterns: getting the ribbing to turn into cable patterns and vice versa as far as possible.

raglan detail

Quite obsessed with the combination of cables and Cascade 220, I've started knitting yet another gansey. Alice Starmore's "Mystic" (from Fishermen's Sweaters) is a design I've admired and wanted to make for a long time - and I thought of it at once when I spotted the teal skeins.

in reality darker blue with more green in it

Det är alltid knepigt att få till halsöppningen, tycker jag: förutom att det ska vara bekvämt vill jag att det ska se så snyggt ut som möjligt. För det mesta försöker jag få med hela mönsterrapporter på både fram- och bakstycke, men det är under förutsättning att en rapport inte stickas över alltför många varv. En djupt urringad fiskartröja känns inte som en överdrivet lyckad idé...

I det här fallet bestämde jag mig för att lägga till en liten ögla på bakstycket i stället för att stympa mönstret genom att sticka en halv rapport, även om det också skulle fungera.

Jag är riktigt förtjust i det här garnet (Cascade 220), och när jag fick syn på några blågröna härvor kom jag att tänka på en fin design, "Mystic" av Alice Starmore. Tanke och handling äro ett. (Ibland.) Fortsättning lär följa!

Aranish sweater: shoulder straps

Aranish sweater, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

After trying a couple of different ideas I've decided to combine raglan decreases and shoulder straps. If I had gone on with the raglan decreases they would have spoiled the honecomb pattern (unlike the way they blend with the decreases of the fishing net pattern). On the other hand, I didn't want the neck opening to be too wide, but this will be a happy compromise, I think.

I haven't grafted the straps yet as I wanted to knit the collar first to see if I could get it over my head. (My nose being a major obstacle in sweater matters.)

Christine asked about the pattern. My inspiration is a design in "Fiskartröjor" (fishermen's sweaters) by Uuve Snidare, but this is a heavily modified version of it with cables added and changed - not to mention the construction. The original design is made up of four separate pieces, and it doesn't have gussets.

Yesterday I went to Nordiska museet in Stockholm to check out a 1940s style apartment they've built for a fictional family.

Actually, I've made three of the garments in one of the closets! I've written posts about a green cardigan and a blue jumper before, but decided not to write about the project until the exhibition opened. It was a challenge I really enjoyed, trying to create convincing garments.

There is also a slipover (improvised) for the boy in the family. I like keeping people warm, even if they're fictional!

Aranish sweater: joins

Aranish sweater progress, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

Perhaps this picture gives a better idea of the construction: the two gusset halves are about to be joined (three-needle bind-off) and the needle shows where the side seam is.

Den här bilden visar kanske tydligare hur jag tänkte mig konstruktionen. Man ser de två kilhalvorna som möts under armen; jag tänker maska av dem tillsammans. Det syns också var sidsömmen är, alltså inte mitt i sidan.

Aranish sweater

Aranish sweater in progress, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

Thanks for all your kind words about St. Brigid! It was a really enjoyable project, and it reminded me how much I like knitting cables. Add to this that I thought Cascade 220 was perfect for cables, and what happens? Quite right, yet another new sweater in progress.

I call it Aranish as the yarn is thinner than Aran weight wool, but I'm using typical Aran patterns and am making a raglan sweater - and testing some construction ideas.

First I knitted the four pieces separately back and forth: I find it easier than knitting cables in the round as the cable patterns are done on right-side rows only and in this case every two/four/six rows.

However, I joined the four parts to knit the yoke in the round in order to avoid raglan seams. Instead, there are cables wih decreases on each side.

The front is wider than the back: there are side panels with increases to make gussets. (Same thing with the sleeves.) Therefore, the side seams will be closer to the centre of the back. This way I could accentuate the sides with a cable pattern without a seam in the middle of it. Not that it would have mattered that much, but I wanted to see if it worked.


The colour (no 9465) is difficult to photograph, but it is sort of cool brown with hints of grey in it.

Både flätor och Cascade gav mersmak, så nu har jag en till tröja på gång. Eftersom jag tycker att det är enklare att sticka flätmönster fram och tillbaka (lättare att hålla reda på var jag är när det bara är vridningar på rätsidan) har jag stickat fram- och bakstycken samt ärmarna för sig - men för att undvika sömmar stickar jag oket runt. I stället för raglansömmar har jag flätor med minskningar på var sida. 

Jag fick en lika fin som rolig komplimang för min St. Brigid i förrgår: "Den är så snygg att man blir alldeles förbannad!" Den ska jag leva länge på!

St. Brigid finished

St. Brigid: attaching neckband, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

This is the first time I've knitted a neckband separately before sewing it in place - but probably not the last time! It was rather tricky getting the length right and making the seam neat, but I really like the horizontal braid: a glorious finishing touch to an already gorgeous design. Starmore for president!

I added a finishing touch of my own: framing the sleeves with cables that slant in opposite directions. When joined by the sleeve seam they form a new cable pattern.

sleeve seam

With this sweater finished I thought I'd return to the 19th century-style "spedetröja" I started a some time ago and that has been lying waiting patiently in my bag the past couple of weeks. But lying under what? Look at the tip of the needle! Perhaps it bent out of resentment being neglected.