I am so close to finishing the 80s pullover… I only have 4 inches (or so) to go before I can start the finishing process. I could have been finished days ago, but for some reason the back of this sweater is boring me to death. Possibly because it’s a giant rectangle of stockinette with no shaping. Don’t get me wrong, I love stockinette, but I like some shaping or something to keep it interesting. But I’m almost there – I should finish today!
Instead of working on the sweater I’ve been going through my patterns. I’ve finally scanned in the vintage patterns I want to make (I don’t like to use the books, they are too fragile!) and I’ve rediscovered some lovely patterns I already own. I like to make something out of every book I keep, otherwise what is the point of keeping them? I’ve been in the mood to make a few shawls and scarves, and I also found some nice new patterns. So here are some newly planned projects…
Perfect Pie Shawl from “Weekend Knitting” in some Elann alpaca I’ve had stashed for ages.
Veronica from Rowan 36. This pattern calls for 4-ply soft doubled, but I’m going to give it a go with DK weight yarn that gives the same gauge, in an indigo color.
Lisette, also from Rowan 36 (4-ply soft), and Brooke(chunky cotton chenille), from the same. Brooke is crocheted and is a Kim Hargreaves design. I love Rowan 36, which is the only Rowan mag I own.
I’m going to make the Montego bay Sea silk scarf from the current Interweave mag, and I’ve bought a skein of Sea Silk in Glacier to go along with it. Isn’t the color lovely? I will soon be selling some sock yarn to get rid of the guilt of how much this skein cost.
I want to make Melody’s Shawl from Morehouse farms in the KP laceweight I bought a bit ago. It has an interesting construction – it’s knit in the round and then cut(!) to make the fringe and open up the shawl.
I love this crocheted sweater from a Phildar book (I must make something from these books!)
And then there are my beloved vintage patterns. Making the 80s sweater has given me the idea that I would like to make a sweater from lots of different decades… although, I confess, the 70s will be tough. The only books I own from the 70s are overrun with the granny squares. Here are a few I like from my collection:
1930s
1940s
1950s
1960s
As a side note, isn’t the outfit the guy is wearing in the 2nd 50s picture hilarious? The 40s are possibly my favorite era. Both of those sweaters have just such lovely details. The vest (called a jerkin in the book) has two pockets and smaller ribbing to shape the waist area. It uses fingering weight yarn (do-able in a vest) while all the other patterns show above use somewhere between sport and worsted weight. These patterns are the exception – I have a number of patterns that call for yarn that gets 8 st/in which would have to be reworked, and a few books from the 1930s trying to convince me that I want to knit with crochet thread at 11 st/in. No, thanks.
So many patterns… I must get to knitting!
Green apples - Stitchywitch Creates 