Okay. The post is not knitting. It is about knitting! I have a few FOs lurking in the background and will share one with you today.
First, though, I sure hope you had a nice holiday weekend. Mine was very relaxing. Except for when we discovered that the wedding invitations had the wrong address. (Thank goodness it was my daughter’s fault, and not mine!). With two weeks to go we had time to send out a correction. Thank goodness we discovered it now! What if we got to the day of the wedding and no one showed up!?!?!
Okay, back to knitting. I just finished a large cowl/wrap: Moose River by Steven West. My friends and I spotted it at StevenBe’s, tried it on and loved it. What I really like about it is the fact that it is made with reversible cables. Fun to knit!
I used the same yarn as Steven’s sample: Wexford Merino Silk from Three Irish Girls (240 yds/115 gms, 60% silk, 40% merino), in two colorways: Little Black Raincloud and Heathered Lilac (for the top and bottom ribbing). Butter soft and beautiful.
The pattern recommends using a tubular cast on and bind off. No problem, thought I. I can do a beautiful tubular cast on in 1×1 ribbing. The bind off was another story! I used the technique described in Principles of Knitting, but should have done a bit of double knitting first (as shown here). With almost 300 sts, you need to use multiple pieces of yarn, and there isn’t a good place to hide the ends with a reversible edge. I may take off the last couple of rounds and try it again.
So, I got it all done and then couldn’t figure out how to wear the darn thing! My friend, Mary, finished hers at the same time and L.O.V.E.S. it. I think if I just wear it it will grow on me!. But after spending $125 for the yarn and the book, and two weeks of knitting, I would expect to be a little more enthused!
PS from Susan: Purrl Gurrl mentioned this in her comment, “There are two knitted items I find have no purpose at all, cowls and sock yarn shawlettes. I find both annoying to wear and neither do anything to actually keep the wearer warm. Both are wastes of time and good yarn in my view.”
I love cowls and sock yarn shawls! I wear them quite frequently. I find them both warm and fashionable. Scarves and shawlettes add color and style to my extremely drab wardrobe…and are being worn by Muggles everywhere, including my two fashionista daughters!
Very pretty! I understand your dilemma about wearing it, though. I always feel a bit self-conscious in that type of cowl. I like the way you have it styled in the first photo best.
Comment by Cheryl S. — November 25, 2012 @ 3:41 pm
What beautiful work! I agree that they way you have it styled in the first photo is the most attractive. And I also agree with you about your level of enthusiasm with you take the cost of materials and your time (and expert skill) into consideration, your should expect to be doing the “happy dance”. I have had projects where I have spent boodles of money on yarns and patterns, watched as the project evolved before my eyes and couldn’t wait for it to be completed so that I could try it on, and when I did, I wasn’t as pleased or excited as I had expected to be. It happens to us all once in a while, thank goodness there are yarn shops and more patterns available so that we can satisfy our creative needs!
Comment by Susan Huffer — November 25, 2012 @ 4:08 pm
I like it!
Comment by surly — November 25, 2012 @ 7:24 pm
For what it’s worth, I really like the cowl styled where it covers most of your shoulders. But in real life, all my cowls, scarves and wraps get bundled and wrapped around my neck for stability. I am terrible restless and everything falls off my shoulders… I love how it turned out though!
Comment by Samantha — November 26, 2012 @ 7:17 am
It is indeed very lovely, but I’m not sure where/how I’d wear it, and sorry to hear about your disappointment with the bind-off — especially painful since there are a bazillion stitches involved. And, good job for whoever caught the address mistake before the day of the wedding.
Comment by Susan — November 26, 2012 @ 6:45 pm
So when you tried it on in the store — how did you wear it? I’d go with that since you loved the look of it there. The color is beautiful and for that price, I think I’d be wearing it to the wedding! LOL
Comment by Wool Free and Lovin Knit — November 26, 2012 @ 9:40 pm
Beautiful cowl!
However, there are two knitted items I find have no purpose at all, cowls and sock yarn shawlettes. I find both annoying to wear and neither do anything to actually keep the wearer warm. Both are wastes of time and good yarn in my view. I can empathize with your frustration with the cowl, as beautiful as it is.
Comment by Purrl Gurrl — November 27, 2012 @ 4:57 am
It’s lovely! And the color is exquisite!
Comment by Lisle — December 1, 2012 @ 9:36 pm
Ooh, the colors are so so beautiful. I might have to break my yarn diet (and it is a DON’T BUY ANY MORE YARN diet).
Comment by Be;tty — December 4, 2012 @ 3:39 pm