Twelve drummers drumming
With the twelfth day of Christmas officially drawing the holidays to a close, what say we blog a few more gifts?
Back in November I got a lovely letter from a dear friend in New York. She reads here and I don’t want to embarrass her, but she’s been one of the chief mentors of my life and a true kindred spirit. The sort of person you name a child for. No children other than the four-leggedies in the offing here, so I thought I’d better knit her something in the mean time. She mentioned wanting to knit “a really wow-y scarf” and asked for a pattern recommendation. So I knit her a wow-y scarf so she’d have something to warm her neck against the vicious Upper West Side winds, and sent her a copy of the book it came from. I present Drifting Pleats, from Lynne Barr’s clever Knitting New Scarves:
This is The Fibre Company’s Terra in the color Sorrel. Three skeins is exactly the right amount for this pattern – there were only a couple of yards left at the end. I can’t praise this yarn enough. It feels wonderful in the hank, but it’s even better when you’re knitting with it. It’s plump and lustrous with silk, but soft with baby alpaca and conversational with merino. Do you know what I mean? Some yarns feel so interactive, as if they’re having an invigorating discussion with your fingers. Anyway, I couldn’t get enough. And this pattern is such a kick that I found an excuse to drift some more pleats right away.
This color is Redwood. I blame these three skeins for pushing me into my love affair with the cinnabar color that left me helpless to resist that bulky wool I showed you last post. This scarf is now finished — bound off last night and just awaiting some end-weaving and a couple of blasts of steam — and almost ready to leave for its new home. This one is a commission from a friend who wanted a unique, handmade gift for his lady love. I’m a sucker for sentiment like that (and I may have a certain weakness for kind-hearted and extremely handsome men who can bunny-hop the cyclocross barriers), so I told him he could reimburse me for the yarn and we’d call it good. After all, knitting with this yarn is its own reward.
Know what? The year is only six days old, and already I’m seeing a trend emerge. 2008 is going to be about the appreciation of special yarns. 2007 was, in many ways, about patterns — mostly the designing of them. But most of those efforts began with the idea for the garment, and I co-opted whatever yarn seemed like it might suit. But my new projects are beginning with the desire to transform a beautiful yarn into its ideal knitted shape. It’s a subtle difference, but a whole new challenge. There will still be plenty of design happening at Blue Garter. I should be able to show you my Shibui sweater and socks very soon, and I’ve got a new pair of socks on the needles for them for this autumn. And one of these days I’ll properly blog the dainty little Jo Sharp Aran Tweed sweater-in-progress I’m calling Victoria, the pattern for which will be available here eventually. My sketchbook is fat with more ideas. But I’m going to try this year to give some of the special yarns in my stash the attention they deserve. And that, my friends, is as close to a New Year’s resolution as I intend to come.
Posted: January 6th, 2008 at 5:06 pm
lovely post! Beautiful scarves photographed beautifully. Intriguing glimpses of woodwork to match the woolwork. Happy New Year!
Posted: January 6th, 2008 at 7:16 pm
Loved the scarves [both of them, particularly the cinnabar one], and the juxtaposition of the second one with the conch shell.
Posted: January 7th, 2008 at 6:40 am
That’s a gorgeous scarf – and great photos of it. I have that book… haven’t yet worked up the courage to try any of the patterns. How would you rate the difficulty?
Posted: January 7th, 2008 at 7:25 am
Those are gorgeous carves! I haven’t seen anything like that before. Wow!
Posted: January 7th, 2008 at 9:07 am
What a beautiful way to say thank you to such a special person. I like your idea of appreciating special yarns – looking forward to your patterns and “finds.”
Posted: January 7th, 2008 at 10:02 am
Love those scarves! I’m sure their recipients will be very appreciative and warm. Can’t wait to see what beautifully delicious yarns you profile…
Posted: January 7th, 2008 at 4:02 pm
i’m dying to see how those scarves look when worn! you must model it when you’re done 🙂
Posted: January 7th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
I love that pattern! It’s beautiful.
Posted: January 8th, 2008 at 7:34 am
There’s something very satisfying about knitting a simple scarf in a not-so-simple yarn and/or pattern. Those are delightful. I need to follow your example and appreciate some of my own lovely yarns.
Posted: January 8th, 2008 at 9:35 am
That’s a great non-resolution! 😉 I look forward to seeing your beautiful yarns (and projects) this year!
Posted: January 9th, 2008 at 9:57 am
I was flipping through the book this weekend and thinking about the scarves. I definitely find your rendition of the Drifting Pleats a better picture overall (maybe because I find it easier to see and understand the pleats).
Posted: January 11th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
I love The Fibre Company’s Terra. It was one of the first yarns I chose at our local store after I learned to knit a few months ago. And the scarf’s not bad, either. 😉
Posted: January 18th, 2008 at 8:38 am
I like how it looks like ripples.
Posted: January 18th, 2008 at 1:34 pm
I just have to comment. The scarf is so beautiful. I’m going to have to try this one out. It so reminds me of the sea…and being a new transplant to a very accessible sea in LA, it works perfectly. Of course I’ll only have a few days a year to wear it 😉