Owner's Manual

I have a secret.

OK, technically, I have many secrets and this one has been as equally well-kept from me as well as from you, until about 10 minutes ago, but the time has come to talk about it.

I have so many fucking clothes it's vaguely horrifying. (And I don't shop on a regular basis by any means?!)

I discovered this, alas, when I started ripping up my closet, shelves and drawers in light of a some bug-eaten clothes I've lately discovered. Although my house is regularly vacuumed, I use cedar blocks in my cupboards, I spray things with cedar spray and I wash things (though not as much as I might) with 3 drops of eucalyptus essential oil in addition to soap - this has occurred. And not for the first time.

The truth is, when you live in a densely populated place, in a home that's 125 years old and practically everything you own is made of wool, it's bound to happen occasionally.

Doesn't make it any less hideous.

So, here's my strike-back plan:

• Have begun the labour intensive process of shaking out all of my clothes. Only 1/3 of the way there - and I worked for 2 hours today.

• After shaking, and looking carefully at the clothing, I'm prioritizing my daily hand-washing. Those things that have bites (about 4 garments out of 50 so far, and the holes are manageable) have fast-tracked for hand wash. Darning will follow. Mind you, everything, eventually, will be washed. Seriously, I have an assembly line system - I can wash and dry 2 things at a time (as the drying requires a spacious flat surface). This will likely continue till May, at this pace.

• I'm off to the health food store to get some cedar oil to rub on my cedar blocks (apparently the scent wanes and either re-dousing or sanding is required).

• Happily, I am the kind of woman who keeps massive quantities of food-grade lavender in her cupboard at all times. (What?! You never know when you're going to need to infuse some dessert with flower-flavour...) Next up, I'm making a zillion sachets with ends of fabric - or maybe cooking muslin if I can find it. I want something airy to allow the scent to diffuse and torment those fuckers, should they still be around.

• I haven't found any larvae. I did see a fragment of one little exoskeleton on one garment (a garment without holes, weirdly). But I'm very aware that I must look for them, and draw conclusions from where I may find them. In truth, I really hope I don't find anything else - alive or dead. You cannot imagine my dislike of insects.

But back to my well-kept secret. I do not know how I can be the owner of so many things. It's particularly ridiculous as I cannot even remember the gorgeous garments 3-deep on the shelves (the tiny edge sliver of which is all that's visible).

I have zillions of freakin' awesome things - RTW, hand made, vintage... But what's the point? I'm either too fat for this thing or too over that thing. Some other thing just hasn't come out of hiding for 2 seasons. Honestly, I have sweaters that cost hundreds of dollars that do not see the light of day on a regular basis because I'm wearing other sweaters of the same description.

At this point, I don't even know how I can justify making new things. But making things keeps me sane, so stopping is not in the cards.

And don't think I never give things away. Routinely, I put stuff on the front walk (admittedly, not for 6 months now as we haven't had a moment without snow) and within a day (usually an hour) everything goes. What do you do, however, when all the things you have are gorgeous and you love them and you do not want to give them away?

At any rate, I'm looking for your feedback: Do you share my little secret? Does it bother you? How do you continue to make things without being awash in them (literally!)? I do give many things away but, really, you have to keep some of what you make, no? And - on a side note - how do you deal with bug-eaten clothes and the process of ensuring that those bugs get the fuck out of town? I thought I had a good system - I do! - but sometimes even systems fail.

Please, let's talk!

Mental Block

Over a couple of recent posts, the venerable Yarn Harlot (Stephanie Pearl-McPhee) has unapologetically set out her perspective on wet blocking newly-finished knits. 

The upshot (though, really, read the posts - I can't provide a better synopsis) is that wet blocking is the only way to go when it comes to final finishing of one's beloved hand knits.

These YH posts have elicited some very interesting comments, for example, one wherein the commenter described blocking as the difference between homemade and handmade. Strong words! Another commenter referred to Catherine Lowe, the owner of a new England yarn operation, whose philosophy is unique. Apparently, Ms. Lowe believes that one should knit a garment "too small" and then "couture block" to size (a theory with which I don't suspect the Yarn Harlot would agree, as Ms. Pearl-McPhee posits that blocking and stretching are not the same activity). 

What I can tell you is that I fall into the category of knitter whose gauge grows mysteriously as she goes. The YH references this "type" in her post, the type that fears blocking due to the potentiality for massive garment growth after submerging in water.)  As a side note, given that I always wet block, and I have certainly experienced horror as my sweaters turned into short dresses (at least until they dried and recovered), I'm actually down with the philosophy of knitting "too small". Now that I've started doing this - within careful parameters and not in any way as an alternative to doing the math - I'm finally making sweaters that fit. (Keep in mind, I also enjoy very close fit and I'm short, so this method suits me well.)

Here's the thing - wet blocking is divisive!

In full disclosure, I completely concur with Ms. P-M: wet blocking is not optional. IMO, it's the final step on one's path to knitted-object completion. I spend lots of time soaking and pinning and smushing and measuring. I roll wet wool - which smells hideous, btw - carefully, in multiple towels, to protect my precious stitches as they absorb excess water. I watch that blocking garment like a newborn. I fuss and I do think it's worth the outcome.

I'm on one end of the spectrum.

On the other end of the spectrum are those who espouse something between no blocking and steam blocking* (something I sense the YH doesn't consider blocking, even though many fantastic and knitters of gorgeous finished garments do).

I've steam blocked a variety of garments in my day. They looked much better after steaming than before. But they did not look half as good as they would have, had I wet-blocked them. There's something about using water to remove hand oils and extra dye as one actually cleans a garment that may have landed on some dicey surfaces in the course of knitting. There's something about pinning it out to size, or positioning carefully for optimal fiber recovery as the garment dries flat. The impact on the finished product is alchemical.

In all the instances I've steam blocked, I did so because I intuitively knew my final fabric was going to grow and morph. Sure, it saved my ass in the short-term, but I still needed to wash those knits eventually - at which point, my fears were generally realized. Now I knit on smaller-than-suggested needles (I don't even swatch on the recommended needle size, no point). I make the smallest size (rather than the 2nd smallest - which is my best size on paper). I often also use a yarn with thinner gauge than is called for. As I go, if I feel things are getting loose, I change up the pattern to address the issue. I'm not saying that my challenge is everyone's - I mean, many knit very tightly, and for them my plan would be a disaster - but for me it's made the difference between things I can't wear and those I love.

And keep in mind I do swatch! Swatching just isn't that useful for me, 90 per cent of the time. Because I'm a "responsive" knitter - because I consider the garment every step of the way (vs. swatching followed by knitting what I see on the page by rote) - and because I'm not afraid to make changes as I work - this produces better outcomes for me than any other method I've tried. Of course, if anyone has alternative suggestions - I'd love to hear about them.

You might believe that wet blocking can occur when your first wash the garment, after you've worn it for a while My perspective is that this does your fabric a disservice. When you wear before blocking, you alter the fabric in such a way that blocking may not be optimally effective when finally you undertake it.

At any rate, I've engaged in lively debate with my knitting friends about this topic, on a number of occasions, and I'm always amazed by the disparate and passionate opinions. I should concede, I've seen gorgeous finished projects that were steam blocked and I can't imagine there would have been any benefit, other than washing, to wet blocking those projects because they were so perfectly produced in the first place.

But I'm curious to know about you! Do you wet block? Steam block? Never block? What's your rationale?? Let's talk!

*As you likely know, one should be very careful using steam to block synthetic fibers. Synthetics tend to melt which will, at very least, change the way your fabric feels and wears.

Polka Dots and Espadrilles

I bought this yarn to keep myself off the ledge re: over-extended, semi-regular interaction with large blocks of unmelted street ice (laced with pollution):

Tosh Merino Light in Espadrilles

More to come on this, but (shh...) I'm using it to make a fantastic shawl that just screams spring:

Mizutama Shawl by Olga Buraya-Kefelian

(Blogger won't let me link to this deceptively simple pattern at the moment, but you can find info through my Ravelry page.)

It's my first time knitting with this single ply yarn. It is very popular and very reasonably priced at about 22 bucks for 420 yards. I'll let you know my thoughts as I knit.

Shop Versus Drop

The Svalbard is almost finished wet-blocking - a state for which I am grateful because knitting it drove me to distraction. In full disclosure, I am at my most compulsive in late winter (just before the spring arrives). Alas, in 2014 this may bode particularly badly as the winter is likely never to end and then I may have to insane-craft forever. My body needs a break, to say nothing of my brain.

On the plus side, I knit up an advanced-design in 3 weeks.

Photos to come, natch, but while I wait for the creature to stitch-set, I'll tell you about a few new purchases. Remember when I got pertussis and all I did for 3 5 months was to online shop by way of making myself feel like I would live to see another year? Well, I'm not quite at that state of shopping to mood alter*, but this winter is so phenomenally demoralizing that it's all I can do to stop myself from buying a new house in an entirely different country. When you consider that kind of damage, buying some yarn and shoes doesn't seem so extreme.

For starters: yarn. Look, I love to buy small-batch hand-dyed yarns at the LYS or at online boutiques but I knit a lot and so I choose to stock the basics. When I purchase for a specific project, I'm apt to buy very specific yarn. But I need sizable stash for when the mood strikes to, say, make a sweater on a whim. I try always to have 1000 yards of fingering and sport/dk on hand, in chic neutrals, for those moments. Since I just knit 2 sweaters, using stash yarn, I'm in the market for a top up.

My go-to yarn, for this purpose, is Quince and Co. - specifically Chickadee (the dk/sport weight) and Finch (the fingering). The yarn is reliable, strong, well-dyed (if not hand-dyed), comes in numerous beautiful colours, does not have a halo, does not tend to pill, recovers to size after blocking and supports a local economy (if not mine). Furthermore, the price is very reasonable. It's the highest-quality yarn at the price-point, IMO. And the shipping charges are reasonable.

Which is why I bought these:

Finch in Petal - when you see this knit, it's a very pale pink...

Finch in Twig

Petal isn't a colour I would generally go for - it's a very cool, ballet pink. But I think it will go perfectly as an accent colour for the Twig - and with these, I can make another version of the yoked Indicum Pullover (a sweater  I love, even though, last time I made it I used the wrong yarn). I can also use the Petal to pair beautifully with the extra skeins I have of Slate and Lichen. And one of these days I'm going to have occasion to knit another baby gift. What colour yarn could be better for that?

I bought the sport/dk weight in Storm, a blue tinged grey (as opposed to Slate - which used for the blocking Svalbard - a grey-tinged blue):

Chickadee in Storm - when you see this knit, it's a grey...

Additionally, and on a whim (since you know I am an online adventurer), after considering the Ferragamo bow flat for a long while, and then seeing it look totally chic on a woman of my age at the coffee shop, I decided to take the plunge with these:

Etsy Vendor: Feelz Like Home

Note: I love buying mega-$ shoes on Etsy, pre-loved (or even vintage), because I can try out a venerable brand (one that's supposed to produce long-lived goods) at a fraction of the cost. Ain't no way I'm spending 600 bucks on a pair of bow flats. (That's how much they sell for here...) I mean, I may not even find a meaningful way to include them in my wardrobe. But at 50 bucks (for a very gently used version), I can experiment with little repercussion.

Having said this, these shoes may not fit me in the end. The label indicates that the shoe is narrow and, though my foot measures a scant 0.2" wider than the shoeprint - and I strongly suspect the soft leather will relent - I might be wrong. Note: The Ferragamos I bought about 18 months ago, also via Etsy, have the exact same width measurement and those shoes do fit. I don't often wear those, however, because the heel is just too high for walking to work.

Finally, since I seem to be on a ballet pink kick, I purchased some more pretty buttons:

Etsy Vendor: Add Vintage

Sure, I hate making clothing with buttonholes, but you can never have too many pretty vintage buttons, right?

So, North Americans compatriots (stuck in a polar vortex): How are you managing not to kill yourselves over the misery of this weather? Are you shopping? Eating? Traveling? All of the above? Are you just made of grit and fortitude? I wanna know!

* To clarify, shopping to mood alter is not stupid shopping. I continue to subscribe to the belief that one should aim to buy the meaningful things. For me, those are craft building-blocks, things that are sustainable or edible (ahem) or things that enrich one's ability to live in the world (books). And lingerie is always fair game.

Goings On

So, more snow on the ground this morning - stupid, stupid snow. Yeah, it's the kind that just makes everything unpleasant, it's not accumulative. But it puts one in the worst of moods.

Mind you, sitting on the couch and knitting does seem de rigeur. (All of you knitters in more southern climes are so disadvantaged when it comes to the breadth of knitted objects you can actually make to use regularly). That's what I'm telling myself.

OK, there is progress on the Svalbard:

Keep in mind that this shell is still unblocked, which is why the ribbing is fluttery. Bind off is tough on something so unstructured and having approximately 450 stitches. The fabric will recover once it's been soaked and dried to size.

Some things of note:

• Once you get past the underarm gussets (those little triangle-shaped things at the underarms), it's a very uncomplicated knit. Mind you, it's insanely tricky until you get to that point, which is why I do not recommend this unless you are a very confident and active knitter.

• My error - right at the start of the yoke - has moved the underarm gusset on the affected size (the left) over by one stitch. It's not observable but I do wonder if it's going to torque the fabric as, effectively, I've made the fabric very slightly "off grain". I don't think it's going to be a problem - which is why (though I've known this since I realized the error) I've continued on. 

• I am very pleased with my fitting efforts to the extent that they are in my control. I altered the size by using DK-weight yarn (vs. the instructed, thicker worsted-weight). Given that I knit so loosely (even using my newish flicking method) it meant I could stick with the recommended needle size for the body. I did have to go down 2 needle sizes for the rib, vs. the one needle size recommended, because rib is where my loose knitting goes crazy. I also shortened the body to suit my dimensions and it's the perfect length in the back. The dilemma with this knit is that the back dimensions are entirely linked to the front (as this is all knit in one piece). Sure, I could have used short rows to lengthen the front but that would have added a layer of complexity to the construction I was entirely disinterested in taking on.

• The net result of the ingenious construction is that the front panels are proportionately very wide, no matter what you do, and the sides of the body, moving towards the back are too wide for most. This is why the pattern favours a straight, slender frame though, in truth, it would work well on a person with a thick middle having a small bust. In that instance the extra fabric would be uptaken by waist thickness but that thickness would not be over-emphasized by large breasts.

• My point is, I've done the best I can with a pattern that doesn't necessarily favour my shape - and really, doesn't favour most shapes, truth be told. Because my version is even smaller than the smallest size, it fits very well in the shoulders (which is to say, very closely). Most of the versions I've seen are just too big in the shoulders (which then makes them too wide in the arms, given the dictates of the unaltered pattern).

• The key to this will be in the blocking. I may opt to block the front panels longer than they currently sit, to move the widest volume of the front away from my widest part (my full bust). That will also restructure the fabric so that it becomes less wide as it becomes longer, though not too much (alas) as the fabric is SO stretchy it's ridiculous. Really, this thing has about 100% stretch factor given the rib. Practically everyone should be making the smallest size - regardless of their dimensions - unless they have very wide, broad shoulders and thick arms.

So, this weekend I hope to finish the sleeves and block this sweater. And then we'll see if it flatters. If not, someone's gonna have a nice new sweater with very little effort...

Thoughts?

Carpe Diem

I just wrote an entire post and Blogger ate it. It was a really good post, btw.

At any rate, my mood was greatly improved when I got home today and found a box on the dining room table containing this:

Fabrics from Fabrications Online... The fabric really arrived folded just like this in perfectly creased tissue paper.

The package arrived in less than a week and escaped the eye of Customs!

Here are a few close ups:

This navy wool twill, having 5-10 per cent stretch, has a lovely hand but needs to be washed a couple of times before I can determine how it's going to drape. May be best for a skirt or dress... Of course, the pic is over-exposed to show some semblance of colour, but in real life, it's a bit truer to navy - but a rich navy.

This salmon-shade rayon jersey is some of the nicest jersey I've ever felt. It's not too thin so it would make a great dress... It would also be perfect for the Issy top. It's more pink than the wool jersey I bought from Fabrications a while ago.

And finally, the taupey-beigey merino wool suiting with approximately 12 per cent stretch. Lord, it's gorgeous. The stretch factor is perfect and the fabric looks ridiculously expensive. I cannot believe it cost 18 bucks a yard. It would have been cheap at twice the price. I got the end of the bolt, I believe. (Sorry.)

Almost forgot to mention, you get 6 free swatches with every order and they're nicely presented (for ease of ordering):

So, there you go. It may still feel like winter, but this delivery warmed my heart.

Svalbard Sweater: Still in the Game

Honestly, you think I'd be more hateful about this project - given how it tortured me and how, frankly, I'm hateful about everything these days.

Alas, it's so ingenious, I am in its thrall. And I did manage to fix the error of doom which is how I'm at this point:

You can see the tiniest amount of weirdness at the height of the underarm, along the back of the sweater, in this overexposed photo. That's not because there is error, but because, in fixing the error along that row, the stitch tension was messed with. I believe that this will disappear altogether in blocking. Note: You cannot see it when you look at the sweater itself, only in the photo, given the lighting...

Cartridge stitch makes for an incredibly spongy and stretchy knit. I am happy I went with the smallest size - and that I'm using DK weight yarn (instead of the recommended, thicker, worsted weight). Purposefully, my version will be even smaller than the dimensions of the smallest size, and I will achieve my required armscye depth of 6.5" (vs. the 7.5 inches that the pattern would produce, were gauge achieved on the smallest size) and the required narrowness at the shoulders so that it doesn't look like a boob-highlighting sack. That's the theory, anyway.

I cannot abide 8 inches of positive ease - even if that's the look of the sweater. I think it is too slouchy and unfitted on the majority of wearers whose photos I've seen - and many of those wearers corroborate this perspective, regardless of the sizes they've made.

Keep in mind, there will be a rib border of 3 inches - preceded by a stockinette border of approx 0.5 inches added on to the edge of the sweater, so it's still going to be pretty wide in the end... And I do hope that 3 inches isn't too tall at the back of my neck or I might be forced to make my rib border a bit narrower than 3 inches.

In addition to my concern about ensuring that this garment fits perfectly in the shoulders (so that it emphasizes my smallness where it is visible (cuz I'm not going to be able to play up my waist or underbust when wearing it), I'm not concerned about it fitting over the full bust. It's an cardigan that will stretch to close with a pin (should I choose). But when it's open, I don't want a ton of bulk at the sides of my boobs or over my chest or it's going to look bad on me.

So, what do you think of it so far? Do you think I've got a chance at producing this such that it will work with my shape?