Getting things done

Posted on September 09, 2007 by knittingpatterns4you | 8 Comments

This is what my Koigu Cashmere shawl looks like from my perspective as I work on it:

This baby is LONG. And I'm only about 2/3's done with it. It's about 22" wide and will hopefully be about 65" long after blocking . . . I had to buy another skein as it was clear I didn't have enough, I'm hoping 7 will be enough to get the length I want. Here's a closeup of the fabric, this is the best short to see what the color really looks like:

I really really like this colorway. As I knit it the colors keep surprising me, like every once in a while there is a little bit of a bright green that I didn't notice until I was on the 4th skein. And as different colors fall on top of eachother they always look different, so I'm never bored. But you knew that about me already, didn't you, this thing between me and Koigu? I should hope so after all this time!

This shawl is now too big to knit on public transportation so I'm trying to rush through to the finish before I lose the momentum. We all know my track record with getting distracted . . . I'm trying to avoid my usual MO!

Today I managed to tear myself away from knitting long enough to go to the garment district to get buttons for the Vivian cardigan. I found the perfect non-shiny black buttons and came straight home to do the buttonbands and finishing. This is how much yarn I had left after sewing the sleeve seams:

It's about 13". I actually have a whole other ball of this yarn, but there was no way I was breaking into a new ball just for a few measly inches (this stuff isn't cheap!). I found some similarly-colored yarn in the stash and used that to sew the neckband in, and no one will ever know unless I show them the inside of the sweater. Here it is blocking on the living room floor:

I haven't sewn on the buttons yet or woven in the ends, but other than those details it's completely done and I absolutely love it. I think I even love it more than the designer original it's based on! After all, mine's cashmere and that one was just a wool blend!

I think you can tell from this picture that using a handpainted yarn to do short rows creates a very interesting, yet subtle, effect. I didn't really think about it before I started, I just knew I wanted to make this cardigan and I had this gorgeous yarn, but in the end it feels like this yarn was destined to become this sweater. Sometimes things just work out! I love it when that happens.

I'm planning to have it completely finished tomorrow. Hopefully I'll have some modeled pictures for you then.

Hope you're having a productive weekend, too!

Posted in Koigu


8 Responses

xtina
xtina

September 19, 2007

That is one good looking cardigan, man! One of the best patterns I’ve ever seen for variegated colorways, it just look stunning. Add it to the queue!

Marla
Marla

September 24, 2007

Love what you do with Koigu!!! Especially the cardigan…do hope you write us a pattern…it’s fantastic!

weaverknits
weaverknits

September 12, 2007

WOW!!!! So much goodness in this post… first, Koigu cashmere? I did not know it existed. Wow. And the Vivian cardigan is lovely and has so much more character than the “original” upon which it was based.

Any plans to make the pattern available to the rest of us?

Romi
Romi

September 17, 2007

Wow! I love the sweater! That is awesome.

Melissa
Melissa

September 19, 2007

Cardigan is JUST GORGEOUS. I love it – short rows make all of the difference.

Sonya
Sonya

September 09, 2007

I adore Vivian!

Wanda
Wanda

September 10, 2007

The Koigu shawl is beautiful and I love the Vivian cardigan too. Isn’t great when things are perfectly aligned for a project? :-)

Gina
Gina

September 10, 2007

I love it, and yes, the short rows do create an interesting effect with the yarn. Lovely.

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