caïssa

Posted on Posted in projects, Uncategorized

this new sweater is destined to be a real favorite for me and i hope it is the same for you; it’s light, comfy and easy to toss on by itself over other layers. while it has plenty of volume, that extra fabric drapes beautifully against the body without adding bulk.

so that for all of its comfort and ease, it feels luxurious and streamlined as well, with only the most subtle of textures breaking its calm surface.

the body of this garment has the simplest of shapes that knits up quickly and easily; if you’ve fallen behind on that goal of knitting a sweater to wear to the fall shows, this just may be your answer.

uncomplicated enough to knit while watching TV or cheering on your weekend sports warriors, there is just enough going on to keep this project at the top of your work basket, with the pile of finished pieces growing.

all the trims are incorporated into the knitting of the main pieces so that once you’ve knit all five of them, you are done, save for sewing up four straight seams. it couldn’t be simpler to put together.

just ask all of our lovely test knitters, who finished their caïssa sweaters quickly enough to share our results as a group. they were gracious enough to send me photos for an album to share with you.

lara (above), anne marie (below) and myself all knit our sweaters with Spirit Trail Fiberworks Holda, a luxurious  lambswool/cashmere/angora blend, that has the softest, most sophisticated hand and a beautiful sueded surface.

 don’t you just want to reach through the screen to touch it? believe me, i wish you could . . .

it’s luscious  to knit with and wear; you won’t want to put it down.

i’ve knit mine with colorway—Purple Haze—that jen created just for knitting into this sweater. anne marie (above) has chosen Seaweed, and lara (below) picked Rosewood and of course jen has a full array of gorgeous colors just waiting to be picked up from her online shop.

to purchase pattern or view complete pattern information, please click here to visit the Bare Naked Wools or purchase the pattern in our ravelry pattern shop.

but the fun doesn’t stop there . . . barb (below) has knit her caïssa in briar rose wistful, a merino/alpaca/silk blend

doesn’t she look stunning in this blue-gray colorway? oh look—chris has named the color caïssa, so we can find it as easily as possible, haha. thanks chris!

wistful makes a lovely fabric for this sweater too—a bit heavier in weight, but with the same soft surface and drape.

it’s interesting to note that the sizing of this garment is very flexible; while lara knit the extra-small size, the rest of us have all knit the small/medium size, with the result that it is shown here with a varying amount of ease.

barb’s blue sample was actually knit for chris to wear and display in her booth. while it fits barb well, she has decided she’d like a looser-fitting one as well and is knitting, since she is quite a bit taller and broader through the shoulders.

she is already halfway through another new one in the next size up (barb is our house over-achiever; we love that about her!), this time in a beautiful green/gold colorway that looks outstanding with her eyes and hair (yes, even more than the blue).

i threw this one on for a few photos as well, so you could get an idea of what i’m talking about. if you are trying to decide between sizes and are looking for a little more room to move around in, choose the bigger size. if you like a closer fit, choose the smaller size.

on me, this sweater has about twelve inches of ease; while on barb, it has more like four—either way, it provides a nice fit, since the shoulders can sit anywhere.

we also have a beautiful sample contributed by jody, who knit hers in madelinetosh merino DK, in a rich red colorway (i don’t know which one, maybe oxblood?)

doesn’t it look amazing with her skin? jody finished this one up last week, i think and then emailed yesterday to say she likes it so much, she is already knitting a second one. she says this will be her go-to autumn sweater; what a great compliment, thanks jody!

well, i think that just about wraps up what i have to say about caïssa today; i’m off to the east coast to teach for the next ten days; next time you hear from me, i’ll be in sunny (and hopefully warmer) maryland.

 
and as always, many thanks to david for his wonderful photography, capturing both the fun and the serious moments and once again, our most grateful appreciation to lara, anne marie, barb, jody, and karolyn for their help and expertise in bringing you another knitspot design.
have a good weekend!

23 thoughts on “caïssa

  1. Hallelujiah! My Holda can FINALLY get knitted up! Thank you Anne! can’t WAIT to start! And thank you test knitters for being so patient with our prodding (coughcoughLaracoughcough)

  2. I love all the different colors and yarns everyone worked with to make the sweater. It looks like the perfect snuggly sweater for fall and early winter, well maybe for me all winter on Galveston Island 🙂

  3. I LOVE it!! See what happens when I can’t keep up with blog reading? I don’t even know to anticipate something this lovely. I may have found my next sweater… 🙂

  4. Very nice! I like the neck styling. I have on a store bought sweater today with the same neck style and it’s very flattering. I looked up the other Jody’s Ravelry project and that Madelinetosh colorway is called William Morris. 🙂

  5. Luxurious and streamlined indeed! A lovely design; the neckline treatment is especially graceful. I look forward to breaking my yarn-buying fast for this.

    ps: would you hint to Chris that we’d love sockyarn in the Caissa colorway?

  6. Oh, my goodness! I love this, I love that it’s long and roomy. I just bought Sprossling and Leaving, but I think I have to have this one too. Thanks for the wonderful photos. Caissa, looks great in all of the colors.

  7. It was worth the wait, Anne. Just beautiful. Now to decide on a yarn. I have my eye on a few – maybe even (dare I say it?) a blue!

    Beautiful photography. I want to throw everything to the side and cast on NOW.

  8. Hallelujah! This is well worth the weight. If this winter is as mild as last winter was here in Atlanta, this will be my “winter coat”. Blumchen and Leaving have just been bumped to a later flight.

  9. This is such a great pattern, thank you so much for having me test knit it! We are heading to the beach for a long weekend and Ive already packed my caissa. It’s going to be perfect for cool evenings and pairs well with anything.

  10. A cozy warm sweater – just in time for the first day of fall. Beautiful. And how fun to have friends whipping up their own versions for you to share with us!

  11. I love that you showed this sweater on different body types. In my fantasy world, my body looks like yours…in my fantasy world!

  12. Wow! As always Anne, I love your photo shoots and patterns. I looked at this one and immediately thought “Hallelujah” – for all the wonderfully beautiful women in different shapes and sizes modeling the sweater. You are such a smart cookie to have these lovely ladies show us how great it looks on everyone! Thanks so much. Off to buy the pattern now…

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