Half a loaf
The Elizabeth Zimmermann Rorschach Jacket is half done. I’ve just finished the black stripe on the second half. We’re off to babysit my small cousins, and since I have completed all the freelance work and I sat for my final exam in Art History this morning, there’s nothing ahead of me after their baths and bedtime stories but knitting and HBO (or maybe Grey’s Anatomy, which I’ll admit I’m kind of hooked on, even though I think it’s gone downhill). This sweater is coming together quickly, although I’ve made some modifications to EZ’s suggestions. I’m making the medium-size length but the small-size width, and I had to reserve a lot more stitches for the sleeve than the directions indicated. EZ says to parcel the stitches out in thirds, with the middle third becoming the sleeve, but that would have given me an uncomfortably snug sleeve when I wanted this blousier effect. She also says to K2tog across the whole sleeve for the cuff, but I couldn’t get my arm in when I did that (and I have pretty skinny arms). I can’t imagine how it would have worked if I’d been knitting the sleeve with the smaller number of stitches the pattern suggests. But this is the way EZ wants us to knit: with sense. If the directions seem suspiciously ill-suited to your body shape, don’t follow blindly along. Change them until they please you. Half the benefit of making your own clothing is that you can customize it to your needs instead of living with not-quite-long-enough shirts and too-snug armpits and a-little-too-Flashdance necklines.
I’ve also been working on Glee, because I can’t go long without casting on for whatever Lisa happens to be knitting. It’s coming together nicely in a nifty indigo shade of Garnstudio Silke-Tweed that I found on sale, and I’m experimenting with a few short-rows on the bust. I hope they’ll prevent majorly revealing busty gappage in between the hook-and-eye closures. If anybody has tried this, I’d love to know what you did and how it worked out for you.
Posted: March 22nd, 2007 at 5:12 pm
Your Rorschach jacket is so classy. I like the way you have modified the design to suit your vision. I would like to try this jacket sometime.
Posted: March 22nd, 2007 at 5:29 pm
great photo! I like the new do… I’ve been thinking of going short for summer myself.
Posted: March 22nd, 2007 at 6:09 pm
Love the sleeves on the jacket! That’s going to be a stunner! Wish you could be here to have a Glee-along with me! Mine is coming along slowly, but I think it’ll be lovely.
Posted: March 22nd, 2007 at 6:49 pm
What a timeless line that jacket has! I can imagine it on Jackie O or on a modern hipster. Can’t wait to read your full notes on the interesting construction.
Posted: March 22nd, 2007 at 7:21 pm
Could you be any cuter in a femme-fatale knitter kind of way? I don’t think so.
Posted: March 22nd, 2007 at 8:28 pm
The jacket is looking great! (And your hair is still super cute as well!) Glad to see what that pattern looks like…
Posted: March 23rd, 2007 at 4:16 am
neat jacket! i love how EZ makes us think when we knit – not just blindly follow directions!
short rows are a great idea – the gaping at the neck was one of the “eh” things about glee for me….
Posted: March 23rd, 2007 at 4:42 am
There’s nothing more annoying than a too snug sleeve – your modifications look great!
Posted: March 23rd, 2007 at 7:36 am
I casted on for Glee too! Lisa and I met yesterday (or rather I visited her post-surgery self) and we worked away on our Glee’s. Gosh it’s a lot of stockinette…..Great photo by the way. Hope you have fun with your cousins!
Posted: March 23rd, 2007 at 7:39 am
what a great jacket — and so versatile, anywhere from professional to funky. can’t wait to see it done.
Posted: March 23rd, 2007 at 8:32 am
Love the black and white crispness! And I’m glad you calmly modified the pattern to suit you, rather than, you know, yell and throw the pattern on the floor or something. Not that I would do that. 😛
Posted: March 23rd, 2007 at 12:10 pm
Great pic Sarah! Have a nice weekend!
Posted: March 24th, 2007 at 9:25 am
You could totally start a new fashion statement with the half-jacket. It will be all the rage.
Seriously, it is looking good.
Posted: March 24th, 2007 at 12:16 pm
lovely!
Posted: March 24th, 2007 at 12:34 pm
Lovely half a jacket! I like how you modified the sleeves for yourself. I look awful in raglan sleeves (slopey shoulders, rather plump upper arms), and so many patterns call for them. I would love to find a way to make/modify raglan sleeves to better compliment my rather unassuming shoulders.
Posted: March 25th, 2007 at 2:36 pm
even seeing just half of it, i can tell that’s going to be so graceful and lovely. (and i dig grey’s too, even though it’s total trash. what’s next, mcdreamy and george sleeping together? that’s about the only coupling left!)
Posted: March 27th, 2007 at 4:43 am
Wow. That’s going to be one class act when you’re finished. I can’t wait to see it. Are you lying down in that picture??
Posted: March 27th, 2007 at 5:42 am
I think you’ll get a lot of wear out of that jacket–it looks great. You’ll be wearing that for years and years to come. And I love how you managed to shoot it so that it looks as if you’ve finished it!
Posted: March 28th, 2007 at 5:14 am
You know, I just had to comment again. I don’t know what it is about this picture that has me so enraptured. You look like a mannequin to me today. Waiting for someone to dig out the right pair of shoes to go with this outfit before up she goes in the window. Seriously, I CAN’T WAIT to see it finished.
Posted: March 29th, 2007 at 7:54 am
oh my goodness, that looks positively lovely! another EZ winner, for sure 🙂 I can’t wait to see the finished product!!
Posted: March 29th, 2007 at 11:30 am
wow…very cool!
Posted: April 13th, 2007 at 12:32 pm
Looking forward to seeing how this elegant jacket turns out. I hadn’t heard about this Rorschach Jacket until I saw yours. It’s really awesome so far!