i’m the type of knitter who, once she smells the finish line on a project, becomes completely driven to finish it up, to the detriment of all other projects. gone is the desire to partake of the knitting buffet; forgotten is the smörgåsbord of small project starts created by last week’s bout of startitis. it’s all about one thing, and one thing only.
even with the extra hour to knit last night, i didn’t quite get my sprössling finished—but almost!
just one more long underarm seam to go and i’m done. seriously, i almost stayed up to do it, but it was 2 am and we’d already changed the clocks and i had my spinning class coming at 10. i sighed and put it away to finish up today.
it’s just as well; if i’d finished it, i would have had to press the seams and then i wouldn’t have resisted trying it on and if i did and it didn’t fit, i’d be in pretty bad shape for class today. heh.
so better to leave that news til i have more time to digest it.
on the other hand, every single other bit of finishing work is done—all the ends are woven in in and each piece got a gentle steam blocking once i finished knitting. i wanted to open and relax the fabric somewhat for a smooth surface, but keep some of the tension of the ribbing for a good fit. the offset shaping is a nice visual detail to keep the eye moving and highlight natural curves
the pieces easily blocked to the right size without having to stretch too hard or steam too heavily; nice and easy with the iron was just perfect (for a detailed demonstration of how i pin and block sweater pieces, see my april 19 post about blocking ondulé or this post about blocking highlander).
neckband and button bands are on and they lay nice and flat. the jury is still out on the number of buttons til i can try it on (after the last seam is sewn). david talked me in to using less buttons and placing them 2.5 inches apart; my instinct was to place them 2 inches apart, but it did look a little button-heavy.
however, i’m worried that since it is a fitted sweater (and a soft fabric), too few buttons will result in unattractive pulling at the center front. it’s funny with sweaters—you can get pulling along the front bands even on garments that are too big. it’s not always unattractive, but sometimes it can make a sweater look too small. one solution i like is to use a larger number of small buttons than would be necessary for a woven fabric.
just in case, i ordered a few extra buttons and made sure it would be easy to reknit the buttonhole band.
the sleeves went into the armholes beautifully, with no fighting at all (i love when that happens).
now, just one long seam to go and weave in those ends, then i’m ready for a try-on. i can hardly stand it, but i really do think i need a nap first . . .
and friday night i bought two important accessories that will look great with this sweater. i finally got some real bras (you should have SEEN beckie’s face when she first saw me in one of them, hahaha!). they’re in the wash, so i can’t show you pictures today, but soon . . .
AND i got a great new bag at a deep discount—it’s gonna go with a lot of things in my closet, including all of my new sweaters
it’s got a good number of pockets but also a large center space—plenty of room in there to carry a sock project. though i don’t get out to shop much and have no idea what’s in style right now, i couldn’t help but notice they are showing a lot of rich color in leather bags and shoes this year, which i don’t remember seeing for quite a few years. i’m glad because i like a pop of color contrast with my mostly-neutral clothing.
in fact, i need to take advantage of what’s available right now because they could go back to all-blank and brown shoes at any time, right? beckie and i decided it was a good idea for us to go shopping every 2-4 weeks to be sure we stay on top of that . . .
this morning, as i said earlier, we met for spinning class and i continued working with the sample luxury fibers i brought home from my rhinebeck class.
i finished spinning the cashmere/silk blend and plied it with the cashmere singles to make a fine laceweight yarn (really fine).
it was so easy to spin a super-smooth yarn with great sheen from this extremely well-prepared combed top. incredibly lovely stuff from amy king, the spunky eclectic.
and then i turned my attention to plying the baby camel i spun during class, which was buried under the cashmere/silk singles.
which i also spun very fine, but woolier, since i was working with loose fiber and spinning long draw
neither of these is washed and dressed yet; i’ll wait till all my samples are done and then give them all a bath together (i’ll show them to you again at that time). i have brown yak spun, but not plied, and white yak still to spin along with an angora blend and some cotten. i dunno why i’m so intent on finishing my sampling with this stuff when i have actual spinning projects in progress that i should be working on, but since there’s no pressure to meet spinning commitments, i’m giving myself a pass on that.
well, i think i’ll go take that nap i was hinting at before, then tackle the last sweater seam.
after that, i will be free to return to my regularly-scheduled variety of project work . . . i’ve got a mink and a henley waiting in the wings that i’m beginning to miss.
39 thoughts on “pulling it all together at week’s end”
This is SO exciting! The green cardi looks lovely in it’s almost completed state. I can’t wait to knit it 🙂
The green sweater is just gorgeous. It’s definitely going into my queue.
Ooooh love the cardi! Can’t wait to see it modeled!
Thanks for linking back to the post about blocking Highlander. I am finishing up the body of my Highlander tonight, so I am in the chute.
Very pretty that shade of green and the buttons are just perfect for it.
You did a fabulous job on your cashmere! I still haven’t finished mine yet….I was side tracked by some Briar Rose BFL. 😉
I HAVE to ask – do you know the company or designer name of that wonderful bag you bought? I am in LOVE with the color and shape!!!
The sweater and spinning are quite snazzy 🙂 but I’m a bag lover from way back!
I love both the sweater and the bag! Do you have plans to publish the sweater pattern? What kind of bag is it? Thanks very much!
The sweater is gorgeous! The handspun is beautiful as well, what kind of wheel do you have?
That sweater is amazing. I love it. 🙂
LOVE that green sweater! So pretty! I love the bag too……I, too, must ask what kind of bag that is!
Beautiful buttons! Beautiful sweater! And I love the purple bag too.
Now that is a ‘tidy’ sweater. Trim, almost fluted and tailored. It is well suited to a trim figure. The green is very fresh, bold and the buttons are great. I used to sew all my clothes, unfortunately every time I sit in front of my machine in the last few years I want to throw it through a window. I quickly learned that a moderate but good fabric could be made into a special piece with the addition of detail, an exquisite piece of fabric along the welt of a pocket or on the collar, a really good button, passmenterie, etc. Now, I just want a gnome or a house elf to do the sewing and I will just direct the creative aspect. Boy, those days disappeared a long time ago.
Exquisite sweater, truly! I love the pattern too, it’s very soothing to me, very chic and playful too. Superb!
i have never commented before, but i just had to because that sweater is GORGEOUS! and i am so in love with the buttons. *sigh* also, fabulous purse!
I have got to have that sweater….It’s adorable and the buttons are perfect 🙂
great cardigan. I understand being ‘driven’ it sounds very familiar. Love the bag, enjoy it!
Your extra hour was definitely well spent. I’m looking forward to seeing the sweater modeled.
Love the way the cardigan is shaping up! I can’t wait to start one of my own (of course, I have a few holiday projects to finish up first.)
And I’m a big fan of the purple purse too – I bought myself a nearly identical bag about a month ago, and every time I carry it I feel so stylish (so unlike me) It will look great with your mink scarf!
I love that sweater!!
Beautiful sweater! I’m at the ending point of my never-ending gansey, and now I’m so motivated to finish.
Great sweater! It will look great on you, I’m sure. I get similarly obsessed when I’m nearing the finish line.
Love the purple bag. I only shop online, so I have little idea of what’s “hot” but rich jeweled tones are always a favorite of mine.
LOVE the purple bag!
The cardigan is absolutely gorgeous, and the buttons look as though they sprouted and grew there!
LOVE the purple bag – it’s so cheery to have a rich color to tote when it’s cold and gray outside.
I love the shaping on the sweater. Very nice!!
That’s a beautiful sweater. I love the waist shaping and I am in awe at your ability to flawlessly sew in a sleeve…
I love your green sweater. I wish that I were up
to knitting a sweater exactly like that; maybe
in a different color although I love green.
Oh, I love the green sweater–the shaping is so pretty and those buttons just make it even better.
Sweater perfection! It is beautiful.
My main comment, however, is to thank you for giving information about your spinning and how you spin certain yarns. Those comments, such as spun long draw, spun from the fold, stripped and spun from the end, are so very helpful to those of us trying to improve our spinning. You often send me straight to the wheel to practice.
Many thanks,
Ann
Please tell me the green sweater will be written up as a pattern for the rest of the world to enjoy? Please??????????
I can’t wait to see it on you, it’s gorgeous!
I am trying to convince myself that I DO NOT NEED a pair of purple or deep blue suede boots. They would be soooo impractical but SO MUCH FUN!
The sweater looks great & I like the shaping. Love your bag too with all those extra pockets.
The sweater looks lovely! I’m not much of a sweater knitter, but you are tempting me too much. This might have to be my post pregnancy treat to myself! Amazing job Anne.
Every time I think you’ve designed my favorite pair of socks or sweater, you come up with another one of each. I’ll be haunting my LYS until they arrive!
The green sweater is to die for. Absolutely gorgeous!! I will be watching for that pattern, I’m sure.
Your spinning is wonderful. I’m working hard to get to lace weight. Not quite there yet, but just started this past May, so I guess I need a bit more practice. 🙂
Ooooh, that green cardigan is so very lovely.
The sweater is beautiful! I like your new bag too; it seems so you.
Hi Anne–what a colorful post today! The sweater is so tailored looking. Very sharp indeed. Love the buttons! And the purple bag is very cool.
The sweater is gorgeous!
OOh, that bag is GORGEOUS. I agree with you about needing a pop of colour in your accessories, ESPECIALLY in the Fall and Winter. It helps offset the blahs we usually get at this time of year.
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