"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.

St. Brigid modifications

St. Brigid in progress: shoulder join, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

Never hesitating (anymore) to start yet another project, I cast on to knit Alice Starmore's design "St. Brigid" last month.

The original design has a shoulder strap, the middle braid on the sleeve continuing to the collar, but I decided to join the back and front without it simply to see how it would turn out.

Then I picked up stitches to knit the sleeves top-down instead of casting on to start at the wrist and having to sew the sleeves to the body. So far, so good. However, a modification that was not that successful was finishing the braid when it was about to be eaten up be the decreases (to the left in the picture below). I think it looks amputated. Therefore, I decided to test something else knitting the second sleeve and then rip and reknit one of them.

St. Brigid: two sleeve versions

Knitting the second sleeve I've made the braid slimmer as the sleeve decreases get nearer, and I think it looks a lot better. I don't mind having to do quite a lot of reknitting: I had almost forgotten how much I enjoy knitting cables, and Starmores infinite cable patterns are wonderful.

The yarn is Cascade 220 and I use 3½ mm needles (US 4).

Domino sweater: back

Domino sweater progress, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

This construction is quite unlike any sweater I've knitted before, and I'm in complete awe of Marianne Isager's skills as a designer.

I've knitted the shapes that make up the main part of the front (some of them halves to get straight sides and to shape the neck) and have started knitting the back. It's like the front: you start in an upper corner and add the shapes diagonally.

I spent Easter away from temperatures below zero and snow. No sign of yarn stores, but that doesn't really matter when you can bring your own yarn - even if it would have been nice to add some Maltese yarn to my stash. Instead I returned to Sweden with freckles, stronger legs from hours of walking instead and memories of new sights and new flavours. (When I'm abroad I always get interested in food in a way I never am at home and want to try things not likely to be found in Sweden. Sea urchin, for example, which was a treat.)

Valletta, Malta

Same but different

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

You get a different effect knitting Marianne Isager's design with a single colour. In her original sweater there is more focus on the shape of the individual mitred squares, while my version will emphasise the overall effect of the combination of them: panels rather than squares, since the vertical lines stand out.

I like both of them, so I might make another one similar to the sweater in the book some day. Isn't fascinating what a difference even a minor change of colour(s) can make?

Domino sweater in progress

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

There have been unusually many joys of knitting lately: all your comments on the Faroese sweaters make me very happy, I had a great weekend on the west coast as a workshop leader (twined knitting and lace patterns) and Marianne Isager's latest book arrived. She's one of my idols, so my expectations were high - and I was definitely not disappointed.

I've cast on to knit one of the sweaters, a design that consists of domino squares where you combine garter stitch and slipped stitches. The yarn is 2ply wool from Kampes, which I also use to knit the "spede" sweater I mentioned in my previous post.

Those sweaters are meant to be short and tight, and it's fun knitting a different sweater shape. The star pattern will cover the back and the sleeves, but not the front. Let's call it the bosom factor: the sweater is so tight that quite a few increases are necessary, and that would ruin the pattern. Therefore, the stars are in panels only with a stocking stitch area in the middle where all the increases are. This was not my own idea, but I got it from a 19th century sweater in a book I borrowed from Anna, who will get the sweater. Fortunately for me she will take care of the decorations once it's finished! Here is a beautiful example of a sweater made by Tålamodspåsen - who is more than capable of taking care of every single detail herself.

När bystfaktorn är hög gäller det att tänka efter innan man börjar med framstycket till en spedetröja. De ska ju vara korta och åtsittande, så det var nödvändigt att ha en hel del ökningar samtidigt som dessa skulle förstöra stjärnmönstret - och en slätstickad tröja är uteslutet. (Och då fuskar jag redan genom att ha alldeles för tjocka stickor för en riktig spedetröja. Hur tjocka? 2,25 mm.) I en bok jag har lånat finns det exempel på tröjor med ett slätstickat parti mitt fram där ökningarna ligger, så den lösningen knyckte jag med gott samvete.

Mitt andra (dvs senast tillagda) tröjprojekt är ett mönster ur Marianne Isagers senaste bok. Det är rätt roligt att lägga ruta till ruta, och jag tycker att effekten blir så fin med de vertikala linjerna som går mitt i rutorna. Till båda tröjorna har jag valt Kampes tvåtrådiga, och jag har skaffat det på Litet nystan i Stockholm. 

Faroese sweater finished

Faroese sweater, a photo by Asplund on Flickr.

First of all, thanks for your kind words about the Faroese sweater I've been working on! It is finished and delivered (a birthday present) and the size was just right. It was a lot of fun to knit too, and the only negative thing about the project was the smell that spread through the rooms when I washed it - it was like living in an old barn. (I grew up in the country, so I'm familiar with the smell.)
Ron asked about the armhole, whether I bind off some stitches at the bottom and then more as I go up. Not quite, but almost: instead of binding them off I put them on a thread. That makes it easy to add them to the stitches I pick up to knit the sleeves - and it's more comfortable too as there's no ridge. On the following rows I did some more decreases, partly for comfort and partly to make it look nice, to avoid amputated repeats, so to speak.

To avoid jogs in the pattern I added narrow side panels: this way all rows start with the same colour, and it is possible to continue the pattern along the sleeve and place the sleeve decreases on each side of it.

Carolina asked if I calculate in detail beforehand to make sure the pattern comes out right. Not really - or not anymore, I should say. Too eager to start knitting I do a rough calculation and then trust a combination of luck and experience!

Jules asked if short-row armscyes would work for an Alice Starmore sweater. I'm sure it would! The tricky thing is doing short rows with two colours, finding the right places for the wraps. There's a risk that light-colour wraps around a dark stitch will show glaringly, so I make sure they're the same colour. It's a pity if the wraps draw attention to themselves instead of being as invisible as possible.

shoulder join and sleeve cap

I've cast on to make a traditional Swedish spedetröja. Traditional in the sense that I use the traditional shape and a common kind of star pattern from the period (late 1800s) but it's not a copy of an existing garment. This sweater is for Anna, who teaches dances from the 1700s. Next lesson is tonight - highlight of the week!

2ply wool from Kampes; 2.25 mm needles (US 1)