Remember this?
It’s been languishing in my UFO pile for quite a while now, postponed by the necessity of getting Christmas presents completed. And there it lay, woefully calling to me, pleading piteously not to be left unfinished. Let me let you in on something; guilt trips are not the way to go with me :)
Well, last night I put it out of its misery :)
I’ve been seriously considering a poncho. I’ve always loved this type of garment but haven’t had one for years. I know there’s a poncho knit-along going on somewhere out there in blogdom so maybe that’s where the idea came from. I dunno - feels like I’m playing the favorite :)
The original shawl idea seemed like a hot one when I started it. But the longer the project languished, the cooler I felt towards it. So, a couple of nights ago, I cut the yarn and started this:
This was a triumph on a couple of levels (Headline: “Knitter breaks arm, patting self on back!”). First, I had to figure out what kind of gauge I was getting with this yarn on size 10 circular needles. Then I had to take a couple of measurements to figure out how many stitches to cast on. Then I remembered that this piece - a sort of cowl/hood combination - should probably be done in ribbing to enhance its ability to stay where I want it! Okay, so I’ll need more stitches that I thought…
I removed the circular from the shawl piece and got a good look at the length of the cable. Oh boy - that will be wonderful when I’ve knitted down to the point where I’m going to need to be able to hold a gazillion stitches but it absolutely, positively, emphatically and categorically was not going to do for the cowl.
Get out the bag of circulars, fish, fish, fish…
Ah-haa!
I found the size 10 Addi Naturas I had purchased a while back. I’m not sure of the length, (rummages for tape measure…hmmmm…24”) and it fits the diameter of the cowl perfectly!
So I cast on.
Now, I have never, ever been able to join circular knitting (on a circular needle - DPNs have never been a problem) without twisting the stitches. I have approached each effort with hope and optimism only to find after working a few rows that I had something that resembled a fuzzy pretzel. So I fussed and straightened and smoothed for quite a while before actually joining the ends of this thing.
(Trumpet fanfare) Ta Daa!!!!
It worked!
So I set off in K4, P2 ribbing and am, so far, pleased with the results. This part wil need to be at least 20” long to do what I want and I may add a couple of inches just so that when the thing is pulled up over my head, there’s some residual length that can pool around the neck - the better to keep out those nasty winter chillses, my dearses!
The idea is to work the cowl to the right length and then start increasing for the body of the poncho from there. I’m still working that part out but I have a fair idea of how to proceed. See, I don’t want something snug and I don’t really want something circular either. This should be loose and long and, ideally, diamond shaped - points in the front and back and at the sides. So I need to figure out how much and at what rate to increase. More math - yay!
A couple of things…
I had tried using the Addis before in the knitting of a scarf - just 36 sts worked back and forth. It was uncomfortable and made my arms ache as the cable is quite stiff. But, I’m not having any difficulty using them now in standard circular fashion. Is it possible that they work better one way than another? What a shock, eh? A circular needle that is easiest to use when knitting circularly! :)
This yarn is Lion Brand Homespun. It’s a bulky sort of boucle looking acrylic yarn. I’ve had nothing but trouble with boucles in the past, but this isn’t bad to work with and it works up nicely into a wonderfully textured fabric. The color is “Modern”, a sort of royal blue/medium teal/black kind of thing. While I would dearly love to add a few cables, the in-your-face color and texture of this yarn probably would obscure any cabling to the “why bother?” point. So I’ll just work out this piece without anything fancy and maybe consider doing another one at a later point with a different yarn.
Oh yeah - that shawl?
I am leaving Sunday for a cruise with my father (a gift from Dad). While I’m looking forward to it, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t wish I could bring all of you with me. I’m going to miss the blogging. It would be possible to do it from the ship, but internet access is king’s-ransom expensive, so I’m afraid it’s out of the question. Myria has kindly volunteered to produce a couple of “And Now For Something Completely Different” posts for the two Wednesdays that I’ll be at sea - so check back then. She is a wonderful writer with a superb imagination. I have no idea what she’ll come up with, but it will be worth reading :) Regular posting will resume on Monday, January 19th.
Take good care of all your dear selves. I’ll see you when I get back :)
No trackbacks yet.
I really like LB Homespun - I knit a coat from it last year and it’s held up very well. In fact, I picked up three skeins today to knit my Mom’s bed jacket/shawl/cape thingy. Can’t wait to see your cowl completed. :)
Have a great trip - we’ll miss you!
Have a nice, relaxing trip and, please, eat some steak somewhere along the line for us poor parents who are beset by vegetarian children…:)
Bron - It took me a while to get used to this stuff, but I really like the fabric it turns out. Thanks for letting me know that it wears well. That’s good to know!
Donna - Thanks for the good wishes. I promise that the fist steak I have onboard, I shall dedicate to your poor, meat-neglected tastebuds!
Thanks for the compliment about my cables on my site! :) I love it when I get comments.
About C.S. Lewis - I do think we’re going to continue in the Narnia series. My boyfriend and I read The Magician’s Nephew out loud at bedtime, and the chapters are the perfect length for sleepy reading. :)
Also - did you hear that Peter Jackson (the man who directed the Lord of the Rings movies) is going to direct a series of five movies based on the Narnia books? They’re starting filming in New Zealand in 2006. Pretty cool, huh?
Love the cowly-poncho idea - good for you, achieving so many new things! Have a lovely time on the cruise. :-)
