Inside Knits

Working with motifs - part two!

2010-02-12T17:52:00Z

In the Winter issue of Interweave Knits, Vicki Square shared her thoughts on designing with and creating your own motifs in The Thinking Knitter, page 20. But there's always more to explore with motif shape, line, and color:

Geometric motifs lend themselves so well to knitting, with their straight lines and sharp corners. I am currently designing a kimono with an all over repeating motif inspired by Japanese shibori dyeing (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shibori) techniques: It is a concentric squares idea with a pin-dot of color in the center of the square, reminiscent of a rice kernel secured with thread in silk fabric before dyeing. I want a fine proportion to each square, with just a single line of stitches forming each one, and a single stitch as the center dot. Two colors and the stranded technique with a bamboo yarn gave me the fluid knitted fabric I envisioned.

The role of color in this design scenario has to be bold enough to present the motif with clarity. With just a single line of color to define my squares, the motif would get lost if the colors were too close in hue or value. When motifs use a larger block of stitches, with more than a single line of stitches, more subtle colors may be used with no loss of definition. For example, a solid maroon yarn and a coordinating marled yarn of maroon, brown, and black could only be paired successfully with motif areas that are large enough to differentiate the pattern. These colors were too close in value for my shibori design, but a soft lilac and maroon worked because the individual squares were more evident with the value variance.

When a motif calls my name, I choose a color palette to display it to best advantage. I consider the overall feeling my color choice makes, whether bold or subtle. And then, I want my knitting time to count. After all, who wants to put in all the time and effort to knit an exquisite motif that won't show?

Behind the Scenes at the Winter 2009 Knits Photoshoot

2010-01-05T17:32:00Z

We photographed the Winter issue of Interweave Knits way back in the first week of September, during which time we were treated to perfect blue skies and Colorado sunshine. It wasn't at all difficult, though, to imagine crisp, cold weather on its way, especially not when dressing our models in delicious winter sweaters.

The first day of the shoot was centered in and around the historic Armstrong Hotel in Fort Collins. On day two, we were lucky enough to shoot inside the Loveland home of an Interweave staffer who nests in an amazing church-turned-residence, complete with pews, pulpit, and stained glass aplenty.

It takes a village, as they say, and in these candids you'll see our models, photographer, photographer's assistant, photostylist, hair and makeup artist, our senior designer, and a few editors thrown in for good measure. If it looks like we're having fun—it's because we are!

Photos courtesy Tanya Vildasol

Knit a sweater from side to side (without ripping)

2009-12-04T22:10:00Z

Chunky wool in natural sheep shades combined with colorwork. Love it!

I’ve been working on the Heritage Cardigan by Sharon Shoji, found in the winter issue of Interweave Knits. A lover of neutrals and a lover of colorwork, I was immediately attracted to this project. As I worked on the pattern for the magazine, I thought about ways I could modify the project for my plus-sized self. As cool as the wide fold-back collar looks on the model, I’m not sure it would be flattering on me. A shaped shawl collar, though? Hmm.

To change the collar on this vest, I knew I’d have to change the body of the garment as well. This vest is worked from side to side in one piece—from the front edge of the left front (as it’s worn), across the back, to the front edge of the right front. There is some shallow front neck shaping, but not much—certainly not enough to accommodate a deep, luxurious shawl collar. A true shawl collar requires deep V-neck shaping, into which the wedge of the collar can be set. Since this vest is NOT worked from the hem up, I couldn’t just cast on and then figure out the neck shaping once I was several inches in. Instead, I’d have to reconfigure the cast-on number to reflect the left front at the deepest point of the neck shaping, working in increases to create an incline along the front edge. And I wasn’t sure how I’d handle the front bands—if they’d be part of the collar or not—so I decided to cast on for the left front and NOT work the ribbed band to start, as the pattern directs.

I really do know what I’m doing! but I think I was a little too eager to get into the colorwork, and I was a little cavalier about the calculations. You’ll see I’m halfway into the charted repeat for the left front (love the colors!), but there’s a problem. The neck shaping is still not deep enough—I need to rip it out and cast on even fewer stitches. If I worked the whole vest as established, and then tried to set in a shawl collar, it would be a high, short collar, and would appear more bulky than it really is because of the abbreviated space in which it has to fold back on itself and ease around the cut-out neckhole. It would look like a big collar on a crew neck sweater—odd, huh?

So I’ll be ripping this out and doing the thing right. Stay tuned.

In the meantime, here are some considerations for side-to-side garments:

They drape differently than up-and-down knits. In most cases, this means the knitting really doesn’t drape on the planes of the body—shaping, drapey fibers and stitch patterns can help with this.
The cast-on and bind-off edges, in most cases, become the side seam edges—work provisional cast-ons so you can work a graft or three-needle bind-off instead of sewing the side seams
The steps for tailoring change completely: shaping a set-in armhole is done with addition and subtraction of rows, instead of stitches
You still need finishing edges: if you’re working in stockinette, pick up and knit a ribbed band along the bottom selvedge after knitting the garment, for a traditional up-and-down hem band; or work a knitted-in band like in the Heritage Cardigan, which has a six-stitch ribbed edging worked at the beginning of right-side rows/end of wrong-side rows
Getting row gauge is really important—it affects the width of all the pieces, instead of the length
Getting stitch gauge is also really important—it affects the length of the pieces, and once you’ve cast on, there’s no adjusting to get your desired length—the cast-on count has to achieve your desired length from the get-go
You can’t knit these projects in the round (at least not in the traditional sense). Colorwork, as found in the Heritage Cardigan, is therefore worked flat in rows. The only way around this would be to steek the bottom body opening of the sweater (and the neck opening. And the treatment of the armholes would get tricky…)
Dolman sleeves work really well with side-to-side knits—cast on at the cuff and work the sleeve, then cast on at the top of the sleeve for the body and work the pieces together seamlessly

What tips do you have for side-to-side knitting?

What are you knitting for...Halloween?

2009-10-28T15:49:00Z

I've knitted miles and miles (well, actually, just a yard and a half) of bright orange I-cord. Can you guess who I'm going as for Halloween? Hint: I still need to cut it in half and wrap some tape around the ends of the cord for aglets.

If you need a refresher on I-cord, check out Kathleen's post on I-cord from a few days ago. I'm an I-cord devotee - it's strangely satisfying to slide those stitches and pull a row of knitting into a smooth, tight round. It's one of those knitting tricks that comes pretty close to magic. I like to use a very short DPN (about four inches long - I've seen these sold as "glove needles") to minimize the distance the cord needs to slide.

It comes in pretty handy, too. I love I-cord finishes on garments and accessories (it makes a nice stand-in for piping), of course, but I use it around the house wherever I need a bit of sturdy hollow cord. I've got loops of it running through the the holes in my kitchen utensils so they can hang on big hooks; I used some to hid a length of speaker cord in an awkward place; narrow I-cords have gradually ended up replacing most drawstrings in my clothes and bags over time.

And they come in really handy for when you need a set of bright orange shoelaces on short notice. I knitted this while watching the original Invasion of the Body Snatchers to get in the spirit - are you knitting part of your Halloween costume, too? Tell us about it!

Knitted Star Pattern

2009-10-06T14:00:00Z

These knitted stars appeared in the Fall 2009 issue of Interweave Knits (see Yarn Review, page 20). Each of the five "points" is knitted flat and joined to the last point. They’re fun and quick to make, and easy to adjust in size—try tiny ones for gift tags, or much larger ones for decorations, or sew two together and stuff.

This pattern may be used as a formula for any size star—we found 7-stitch segments to be the smallest practical multiple. The pattern below calls for 21-stitch segments.

To change the size of the star, cast on an odd number of stitches greater than 5. Follow instructions as given, working a double decrease over the 3 center stitches on each right-side row. Subtract 1 from the number of cast-on stitches and divide in half to find the right number of stitches to pick up along the selvedge.

Five-Point Star

Materials: Any weight yarn and suitable needles; tapestry needle.

Segment 1:
Use the knitted method to CO 21 sts. Set-up row: (WS) Purl.
Row 1: (RS) Sl 1 with yarn in back (wyb), k8, sssk, knit to end—19 sts rem.
Row 2 and all WS rows: Sl 1 with yarn in front (wyf), purl to end.
Row 3: Sl 1 wyb, k7, sssk, knit to end—17 sts rem.
Row 5: Sl 1 wyb, k6, sssk, knit to end—15 sts rem.
Row 7: Sl 1 wyb, k5, sssk, knit to end—13 sts rem.
Row 9: Sl 1 wyb, k4, sssk, knit to end—11 sts rem.
Row 11: Sl 1 wyb, k3, sssk, knit to end—9 sts rem.
Row 13: Sl 1 wyb, k2, sssk, knit to end—7 sts rem.
Row 15: Sl 1 wyb, k1, sssk, knit to end—5 sts rem.
Row 17: Sl 1 wyb, sssk, k1—3 sts rem.
Row 19: Sssk—1 st rem.
Segment 2:
*With RS facing and 1 st on right needle, pick up and knit 10 more sts down slipped-st selvedge of lefthand side of Segment 1, ending at corner. Turn and use the knitted method to CO 21 sts—32 sts total. Set-up row: (WS) P20, p2tog, turn—1 st dec’d. On WS rows, you will join Segment 2 with the picked-up sts along Segment 1 by working p2tog over last st of Segment 2 and next picked-up st.
Row 1: (RS) Sl 1 wyb, k8, sssk, knit to end—2 sts dec’d.
Row 2 and all WS rows: Sl 1 wyf, purl to 1 st before turning point on previous row (slipped edge st of Segment 2), p2tog (edge st and foll picked-up st), turn.
Row 3: Sl 1 wyb, k7, sssk, knit to end.
Row 5: Sl 1 wyb, k6, sssk, knit to end.
Row 7: Sl 1 wyb, k5, sssk, knit to end.
Row 9: Sl 1 wyb, k4, sssk, knit to end.
Row 11: Sl 1 wyb, k3, sssk, knit to end.
Row 13: Sl 1 wyb, k2, sssk, knit to end.
Row 15: Sl 1 wyb, k1, sssk, knit to end.
Row 17: Sl 1 wyb, sssk, k1.
Row 19: Sssk—2 sts rem: 1 st for Segment 2 and 1 st for Segment 1.
Segments 3, 4, and 5:
Rep from * for Segments 3, 4, and 5—after each segment you will have 1 more final st rem. 5 sts rem when all segments are complete. Break yarn and thread tail through rem 5 sts and cinch to close. Sew seam between Segment 5 and Segment 1. Weave in ends and pin out to block.

Behind the Scenes at the Fall 2009 Knits Photoshoot

2009-08-27T20:40:00Z

We shot the Fall 2009 issue of Interweave Knits in early May in and around Fort Collins, Colorado—where early May can mean still-blustery winds and snow. Our models were glad to wrap up in sweater coats and hats for our mostly-outdoor shoot—no such luck for the editor and photographers, though. Come behind the scenes with us on our first day of shooting, on the streets of Fort Collins and at the home of Interweave's founder. Compare the final shot in the magazine to the candids we're presenting here—can you picture it?

Click here (and then scroll down to see the photos) and enjoy a peek behind the scenes!

(Photos courtesy Terry Casper)

The Freyja Sweater: A Fit for All Women

2009-08-13T15:19:00Z

For the Fall issue of Interweave Knits, Courtney Kelley designed the Freyja Sweater, a feminine, contemporary take on the traditional Bohus pullover. Yesterday, Kathleen posted a gallery of the original Freyja. The sweater looks great on both Gallery Girls, and as you'll see, it also looks great in larger sizes on larger women. The overall look is understated—knitterly, elegant, casual. This is one of those designs that many women can wear, regardless of size or shape. Why?

The Freyja Sweater, at first glance, has some points against it for the Rubenesque woman—it's a seamless yoke, which often creates a lot of visual roundness and crowds the throat with a high crew neckline. The Freyja has a graphically patterned yoke, which usually draws the eye to the widest part of the upper body—the circumference around the upper arms, upper back, and bust. Patterned yokes often cut right across the bust, which is not attractive on large-busted women.

But Courtney made some excellent tweaks to the traditional here. The yoke is not a true seamless; the shaping begins with raglan decreases--not unheard of in the Bohus tradition by any means, but that's a different discussion! There is a diagonal line of decreases between the sleeves and body at four points. This continues, in just main-color stockinette, for a few inches before the colorwork begins. Raglan shaping creates a more tailored line than seamless yoke shaping, which decreases concentrically around the upper body. The raglan "seams" create definition at each side of the bust, which makes for a flattering fit.

The other decision Courtney made was to begin the colorwork well above the bustline. The patterning here is more neckline decoration than yoke decoration. The pattern draws the eye up, and by not falling over the bust or upper arm, does not highlight those round spots for us. Once the colorwork begins, the shaping occurs in pattern, concentrically like a seamless yoke. The neckline is low and wide, which allows some skin to show along the collarbone.

I made this pullover in my own size, 44" bust. With a plain lower body, it's easy to customize the shaping in this design. I created a long A-line silhouette, since the typical hourglass waist is not flattering on my pear shape. I cast on for the size 46", then decreased gradually down to the numbers for the 44" at the bust, and the yoke and sleeves follow the directions for the 44". I chose my own colors in the lustrous Road to China Light from the The Fibre Company:

MC: amethyst

CC1: grey pearl

CC2: autumn jasper

CC3: citrine

CC4: malachite

With ten sizes in this pattern, the Freyja Sweater can work for you, too.

Let's knit for us,

Lisa

Welcome to Inside Knits!

2009-07-28T15:56:00Z

We like to talk at Interweave Knits about how we're all knitters, too. I don't mean that we all know how to knit, or even that we're necessarily all very accomplished technicians or designers (there's always more all of us could learn!). I mean that we're knitters: We talk excitedly about constructions and techniques that push what we thought yarn and needles could do; we swatch new-to-us yarns just to see how they drape and handle; we argue passionately about the merits of centered versus leaning double decreases.

We think of our knitting as a way to produce beautiful clothes, of course, but we also see it as an art and a craft with a fascinating history, with deep anthropological and ethnographic meaning, even a little romantic myth attached. Russian, Scottish, and Estonian lace! Andean, Scottish, and Scandinavian colorwork! Danish twined knitting! Cable patterns that followed fishing routes! We love it all.

And we're bringing even more of that to you: We're launching Inside Knits today, and we plan to bring you inside information on the magazine, extended content for your favorite projects and articles, exclusive how-to information, and more. We're knitters, too-and we're looking forward to talking directly with you, our readers and fellow knitters.

First up, check out the preview for the fall issue of Interweave Knits on Knitting Daily and stay tuned for much more from the editors of Interweave Knits!

Happy Knitting!

Eunny