The dreamer in me plans out my knitting projects in advance. Knowing the time that can be involved I vowed to start knitting my projects a season in advance. For example, I should be knitting a spring sweater right about now. Reality tells me that I should be knitting a spring 2011 sweater right now….. I get derailed by life, sewing projects, yarn and new knitting ideas. I know I am not alone!
I think it was two falls ago that I drove my daughters to a university “siblings” weekend. They were always excited to spend a weekend with their cousins and enjoy the activities the school planned for them. On the way back I stopped at a lovely yarn shop. I entered to browse, but had it in my mind that I wanted to knit a sweater using a tweedy yarn.
I was treated as a customer should be, because I ended up spending a good deal of money! When I was a SINK (single income no kids) and actually used to enjoy shopping for myself, I loved going to the boutiques in the city where I worked. They were lovely little shops with a limited selection of clothes that were handpicked in New York by the owners. The proprietors would help me select an outfit and then accessorize me. I always loved the result!
Similarly, at this yarn shop I expressed my interest in a tweed sweater. The saleswoman showed me some yarns and let me browse the pattern books. I found myself drawn to the cover sweater on this book:
I had never knit using more than one color of yarn. I love that, with knitting, I can learn new skills. She also convinced me to use a Noro handpaint yarn rather than fiddling with the three colors in the pattern. I left with pattern in hand, a number of skeins of Donegal Tweed and Noro Silk Garden.
I was nervous about the project and had never worked with two colors before. So I decided to learn this skill while making a felted bag. I love Sally Melville’s books to learn skills while making great projects. In her Color book
Sally gave me the know-how to make the KISS purse:
I was happy with the result and confident that I could move on to my sweater. The sleeves moved along quickly and I got started on the body, but as winter turned into spring, the thought of working on a heavy yoke sweater lost its appeal.
Despite the overwhelming feeling of guilt and self-admonishment for not finishing a sweater, there is a plus side to knowing that there is an almost-finished sweater sitting in a trunk. When winter descends, albeit a year later, you can pull out that sweater and finish it! I especially love the indulgent time I took at Christmas to sit on the couch and knit. Although we had many social events to attend, I didn’t have to cook for many of them so I had large chunks of knitting time – especially in the mornings when everyone else was sleeping or in the evenings when we enjoyed a family movie.
(Note to self: Even though I knit the same sweater as the one on the cover and I’m standing next to a tree, my hair will not become long and curly, my red nose and cheeks will not turn into glowing, radiant, skin, and I will not suddenly become model thin.)
I love the finished result. It is earthy and warm, perfect for backyard fun. The Noro just glows.
Fellow PEAR Crafter here dropping in to say… I LOVE that sweater. It is cold enough in Houston I could wear it for at least a couple of days. 🙂 ~Lanie
Very pretty sweater…nice job!
Beautiful, nicely done!
You mean there are crafters who DON’T get side tracked by new unexpected projects and actually finish things on time? I’d love to meet one of those individuals some day 🙂
Lovely sweater!
Congratulations on finishing your sweater! It is so pretty (and the tote is amazing!). I’ve yet to finish a sweater due to knitter’s ADd, so I have much admiration for those that do!
I completely love it! What a gorgeous sweater, and fun pics! (I think you look ADORABLE!)
Planning in advance is a great way to do it (if only we were all so patience and practical!)
Jane! It is beautiful! And it fits so wonderfully! Colorwork is so rewarding, isn’t it? Do you have any other plans for stranding, or will you take a break from it for a while?
Congratulations on making such a great sweater!
Incredible sweater! It looks so warm and cozy. You must have such a feeling of satisfaction knitting a garment like that. I adore Noro yarn, but find it too scratchy to wear next to my skin. But I love the colors and use it for bags. That KISS bag you made is fantastic!
Jane,
Beautiful sweater! Nothing I could ever do…..you did an amazing job. It really looks so great on you…and warm, while I am watching the snow come down, as you probably are too!
Just beautiful! I love the effect of the Noro – yay for clever yarn shop staff 🙂 I am certain you will get lots of pleasure out of wearing this now, rather than finishing it out of season 🙂