Marguerite cardigan started
Not being one to let the grass grow under my feet, yesterday I started the Marguerite cardigan from Louisa Harding's The Design Collection, the yarn for which I bought from Loop in London when I was down a month or so ago. This is how it is supposed to look when finished -
The yarn is Impression, shade 4, which is a mix of greens and yellows, with some brown running through it. The main green and yellow ribbon is polyamide, the brown and yellow strip is kid mohair, and there is a strand of what looks like sewing cotton in very dark brown wrapped round the two holding them together. This is the yarn in close up -
and this is it unwound a bit so you can see the different threads -
The cast on is on 3.25mm needles, and since my usual 12" ones still have the Victoria stole on them (and are likely to for quite some time to come) I had to use my longer pair. Which was just as well, as I had to cast on 242 stitches, and they only just fitted. The first two rows are stocking stitch, and then the stitches are decreasing by knitting two together all the way along, followed by another row of st st. This is followed by ten rows of rib, and was all something of a nightmare to do - I usually like pointy needles, but the points kept getting into the various strands of the yarn, or into the centre of the ribbon, and I had to watch every stitch. For the main body I switched to 4mm needles, which are less pointy, and things are now a lot better. I'm not completely happy with the rib with a frill under it, I was almost tempted to dispense with the rib, but I think that it would have curled up.
After a day's knitting I have this -
This is a close up of the stitches, although the colour isn't completey accurate, it's not quite that yellow.
It's coming out a bit shinier than I'd expected, it's interesting seeing how the flat yarn rolls up and makes stitches. The dark brown wrap thread is hardly visible on the right side, and the mohair is really only visible as a fluffy surface, although the brown of it does come through in places.
I can see why the yarn is called Impression, it does look quite Monet-like.
I'm pleased to have made a start, and seen how the yarn knits up, but I may have to put it away for a while, as I'm trying to knit whilst watching Wimbledon, and it requires to a little too much attention to where I'm putting my needles. Something simpler may be taken up, which probably should be the everlasting Rambling Rose cardigan, which has hit the rib doldrums yet again.....
The yarn is Impression, shade 4, which is a mix of greens and yellows, with some brown running through it. The main green and yellow ribbon is polyamide, the brown and yellow strip is kid mohair, and there is a strand of what looks like sewing cotton in very dark brown wrapped round the two holding them together. This is the yarn in close up -
and this is it unwound a bit so you can see the different threads -
The cast on is on 3.25mm needles, and since my usual 12" ones still have the Victoria stole on them (and are likely to for quite some time to come) I had to use my longer pair. Which was just as well, as I had to cast on 242 stitches, and they only just fitted. The first two rows are stocking stitch, and then the stitches are decreasing by knitting two together all the way along, followed by another row of st st. This is followed by ten rows of rib, and was all something of a nightmare to do - I usually like pointy needles, but the points kept getting into the various strands of the yarn, or into the centre of the ribbon, and I had to watch every stitch. For the main body I switched to 4mm needles, which are less pointy, and things are now a lot better. I'm not completely happy with the rib with a frill under it, I was almost tempted to dispense with the rib, but I think that it would have curled up.
After a day's knitting I have this -
This is a close up of the stitches, although the colour isn't completey accurate, it's not quite that yellow.
It's coming out a bit shinier than I'd expected, it's interesting seeing how the flat yarn rolls up and makes stitches. The dark brown wrap thread is hardly visible on the right side, and the mohair is really only visible as a fluffy surface, although the brown of it does come through in places.
I can see why the yarn is called Impression, it does look quite Monet-like.
I'm pleased to have made a start, and seen how the yarn knits up, but I may have to put it away for a while, as I'm trying to knit whilst watching Wimbledon, and it requires to a little too much attention to where I'm putting my needles. Something simpler may be taken up, which probably should be the everlasting Rambling Rose cardigan, which has hit the rib doldrums yet again.....