Daisy debuts
This is my third year of crazy knitting during the Tour de France, and it seems I’m getting the hang of it. This is the first year I’ve actually underreached and not had to grit my teeth and knit like George Hincapie riding a time trial with a broken collarbone to finish my project. I’m late on the wrap-up because I took a little vacation to visit my family and other beloved people in the Northeast, but I did manage to press my husband into service for a quick photo shoot while we were waiting for a train in Reading, Massachusetts. So here’s Daisy Daisy!
Note to self: Good idea to take pictures after a transcontinental red-eye, eh, genius? Despite the fact that I look like yesterday’s toast crusts, I love this little jacket. The improvised back shaping and the set-in seamless sleeves worked out perfectly. The yarn is lovely to wear, and I’m just not bothering myself about the really obvious color change at the shoulders. I did decide the bicycle wheel/flower design on the front needed a little more punch, so while I was frittering away a couple of hours in the Long Beach airport yesterday afternoon, I revised it comme ça:
Just doubling the outer rim gave it the extra weight I wanted. All this embellishment is just me drawing loops of yarn through the fabric with a crochet hook and binding them off, by the way. I think that’s probably obvious, but I wouldn’t want you to think I’m capable of anything fancier than that when it comes to surface design. As you can see, just making a straight line stretches me somewhat. Oh, and the sweater closes with an i-cord button loop:
When all’s said and done, I needed more than 5 and a half skeins of the Louet MerLin Worsted, about 860 yards. I have learned respect for the appetite of the daisy stitch and its relatives.
If people are interested in a pattern, I am willing to work on one, but I have to tell you I’m nervous as a cat about trying to size this thing properly for anyone who isn’t built with proportions similar to mine. It would be really straightforward if it weren’t for the back shaping, which, as you can see, turned out very fitted. If your curves are closer together, you’d have to space the decreases and increases more closely from bottom to top. If they’re shallow, you’d want less shaping. If you don’t really have curves or just favor boxier silhouettes, you could scrap the shaping entirely. The beauty of knitting is that, with practice, we can learn to easily tailor designs to our own bodies, and I’d really want to encourage that for anyone knitting Daisy Daisy, but I know many aren’t comfortable working outside a pattern and as a designer who aims to please I cringe at the thought of someone following what I did and then finding it doesn’t fit her at all. I think if I do write this up it will have to be á la Zimmermann, asking knitters to do a bit of calculating to find their own best fit.
But hey! A sweater in three weeks! Let’s stop with the designer’s insecurities and open a bottle of Hendrick’s in celebration! Because it’s hot here in Portland. Apparently I missed the worst of it, but I still bought a cucumber at the farmers’ market this morning with an afternoon G&T in mind. I think it’ll go well with the sewing activity I have planned. (More on that later.)
Posted: August 1st, 2009 at 1:35 pm
OMG, I love your jacket!!! It’s gorgeous and it looks great on you! You are very talented!
Posted: August 1st, 2009 at 3:04 pm
Beautiful sweater!
Posted: August 1st, 2009 at 3:07 pm
It’s wonderful. The daisy stitch is such a nice pattern – and you look terrific in the photo!
Posted: August 1st, 2009 at 4:14 pm
I, for one, am definitely interested in a pattern/guide. It would definitely make sense that the shaping on the back would be something people would have to adapt for their own shapes.
Beautiful work.
Posted: August 1st, 2009 at 5:32 pm
Oh my goodness – I love it! Would be very interested in a pattern, but suspect that there would be a lot of work in scaling up from your size to mine.
You are so talented! I hope that I get to see it in the flesh at the Sock Summit. I also have not felt the MerLin, I must do that while in Portland…
Posted: August 1st, 2009 at 5:53 pm
Love it! And the G&T was delicious–thanks!
Posted: August 1st, 2009 at 6:29 pm
Gorgeous! Stunning! Elegant! I love this sweater on you, Sarah. It’s just perfect for you.
Posted: August 1st, 2009 at 6:52 pm
Oh my goodness, I LOVE it. The design is so clean and neat, but the details make it really stand out! I love the back shaping details. Gorgeous!
Posted: August 1st, 2009 at 7:36 pm
This is so lovely! I hope you do write up the pattern, so I can optimistically queue it for the day I depart from socks…
(I’ve been reading for not too long, and may not have commented before– if not, hello!)
Posted: August 1st, 2009 at 7:37 pm
i haveno words. howoften does that happen?
Posted: August 1st, 2009 at 7:37 pm
Your jacket is fabulous! Sophisticated elegance softened by being a knit garment. Such fun with the wheel embellishment. You must be very proud of yourself!
Posted: August 1st, 2009 at 7:48 pm
Absolutely fabulous! Definitely interested in having the pattern.
It’s classic and edgy at the same time.
Posted: August 1st, 2009 at 8:01 pm
The sweater looks great!
Posted: August 1st, 2009 at 8:41 pm
This is gorgeous and I would be delighted if you chose to write up the pattern!
Posted: August 1st, 2009 at 9:26 pm
Beautiful sweater!!
Posted: August 1st, 2009 at 11:44 pm
it’s beautiful, and the shaping at the back turns out really well : both decorative and useful
congratulations !
Posted: August 2nd, 2009 at 12:05 am
It’s really beautiful – what a wonderful job you have done! Enjoy the well-deserved G&T (and what a great choice of G, by the way!).
Posted: August 2nd, 2009 at 4:48 am
Absolutely gorgeous cardy! Now I know I have to lose 50 lbs…because that pattern would not look the same on me 🙁
Posted: August 2nd, 2009 at 5:02 am
It’s gorgeous! I absolutely adore it. Congrats on (easily!) finishing within the Tour, a feat I could not come close to managing this year!
As far as pattern-writing goes, I felt the same way when it came to writing up a pattern for Stripes!, and what worked for me was framing it as more of a tutorial than a pattern. Like you, I’m all for people learning how to make stuff that fits them perfectly.
Posted: August 2nd, 2009 at 5:18 am
This is gorgeous! I would add my name to the list of those interested in a pattern/template, and I wouldn’t mind doing a little math!
Posted: August 2nd, 2009 at 8:02 am
That turned out so well! Excellent shaping and flattering fit, and love the little details.
Posted: August 2nd, 2009 at 8:18 am
FANSTASTICO! What a beautiful and flattering sweater – I love the icord button loop and the lovely back shaping.
I was thinking of you as I was watching the end of the le Tour – so glad you were able to make the finish line!
Posted: August 2nd, 2009 at 8:57 am
Beautiful sweater! Wish I’d discovered the Tour de France KAL sooner — did a lot of knitting while watching this year. It was great, wasn’t it?
Posted: August 2nd, 2009 at 9:12 am
Wow!
Absolutely gorgeous – it is such a beautiful cardigan if it had taken 3 months it would a stunner but all of this in 3 weeks whilst shepherding the rest of us through the tour? Amazing. So many congratulations and yes please on the pattern front!
Thank you so much for the tour organisation, I’ve really enjoyed it again this year :o)
Posted: August 2nd, 2009 at 9:13 am
Sorry that was a 🙂
Posted: August 2nd, 2009 at 9:14 am
I would love the pattern. I think we are similar in build.
Posted: August 2nd, 2009 at 9:15 am
Absolutely LOVE it!!
Posted: August 2nd, 2009 at 11:12 am
It’s nice to see a sweater with some real shaping in it. So many designs are very boxy. If you do write the pattern, I like that you would do it ala EZ. More challenging that way!
Posted: August 2nd, 2009 at 12:28 pm
Awesome!!! I would definately be interested in the pattern.
Posted: August 2nd, 2009 at 6:22 pm
Lovely! The back shaping with eyelets is gorgoeus!
Posted: August 2nd, 2009 at 8:58 pm
I love the match between daisy stitch and decrease stitch. It is very elegant. I’m also interested in how the shoulders are attached.
Posted: August 3rd, 2009 at 3:23 am
It’s a beautiful garment…. I love the edgings and the detail of the back waist shaping is stunning and very desireable…
Posted: August 3rd, 2009 at 4:06 am
LOVE! and so love the fact that the photo shoot was at our little train station! We wish you guys could have stayed longer…hope NYC was good to you. xoxoxox
Posted: August 3rd, 2009 at 8:54 am
Gorgeous! I’d definitely be interested in a pattern and could help test-knit.
Posted: August 3rd, 2009 at 11:59 am
Wow. It’s gorgeous! I’d be more than happy to try and upsize it for myself and write up notes and what nots. I love the back shaping, so I would do the work for it.
Posted: August 3rd, 2009 at 12:21 pm
Beautiful! I’d be very interested in the pattern/guide. You certainly are talented!
Posted: August 3rd, 2009 at 4:47 pm
That is so beautiful, and it fits like a glove. Would love that pattern as the Daisy stitch is so pretty.
Posted: August 4th, 2009 at 8:28 am
What amazing work! And in only three weeks! Congrats on a most beautiful design!
Posted: August 4th, 2009 at 9:31 am
I love it! So chic and so feminine. And she looks awesome on you!
Posted: August 4th, 2009 at 11:09 am
Fabulous finished project – and in only three weeks! Great fit.
Posted: August 4th, 2009 at 11:45 am
This is AMAZING! I would totally pay for this pattern….LOVE LOVE it
Posted: August 6th, 2009 at 8:43 am
I would LOVE this pattern! Even if all you do is write up how you knitted your size and offer some suggestions for alternate sizes/shaping, that would be fabulous!
Posted: August 9th, 2009 at 6:38 am
i love love LOVE this! it’s such a great fit. the shaping on the back is just perfect.
Posted: August 10th, 2009 at 4:55 pm
Love love love.
Posted: August 17th, 2009 at 11:39 am
Beautiful!
Posted: August 26th, 2009 at 6:26 am
Wow.
That is amazing. Just beautiful!
I love the back shaping. I love the button… everything!
I would be one of those knitters who would be scared to try shaping something to fit me, but hopefully with time and practice I can do that as well.
Posted: September 1st, 2009 at 8:30 am
Just stunning! I love that stitch pattern and the way you did the waist shaping in the back. Hurray!
Posted: September 10th, 2009 at 9:52 am
It’s a lovely sweater – the shaping is terrific. I’d love to have a guide to help me create my own. A pattern would be even better!