January 2012
I thought I’d frog it and make something else, but a friend has paid for more of the wool and is having the vest. She is so generous to me I’m happy for the exchange. In fact, it’s only that I desperatey want to try it again (and have no money for even more more more more wool) that I didn’t just give it to her. I’ll use Eunny’s pattern and might do a buttoned opening like Maggie’s (in the picture).
November Update
OK, I’m going to shorten it! IDIOT! I’ve done it again! It looks too scrunched up and… really… it’s not the greatest shape. I should have superimposed my patterning over a tried and true pattern like Eunny Jang’s Ivy Vest. So, I’ll lose a green patterned row and a red row. One day I’ll learn and do it the easy way.
September 31st 2011
FINISHED! For me, a major event. Using the armhole edge as a guide, I managed to get the beck ribbing right the first time. Yay! I’m not terribly happy with the “V” bit, but OH WELL! I did read a lot of books but obviously didn’t copy the right one.
So, for the final run-down… I copied Maggie’s vest, but hers is a smaller design or ply or both. I so love mine (and hers). It suits my jacket and feels lovely. Even if the One True did say it looks lovely but a little bit matronly! Cheeky brat! He doesn’t mind the boobiness during afternoon delight!
I did a dot in the middle of the green and peach lozenges. It looked better.
And, our initials on the back turned out just fine! Fun time! Thanks yellowpinkpsarkley! Thanks Maggie!
September 30th
I should be finished later today!!!
I had to do the first of the armhole ribbing edges three times until I got it right! But that’s ok. Now I’m half way through the neck and won’t know how it is until it’s cast off. Not sure I’ve done the V very well, but we’ll see. I looked at a lot of books but think I could find a better way. However, I love it! The colours are so lovely and it’s old-fashioned and traditional as well as scrummy and pretty! Go me!
I’m such a slow knitter that every finished item is a major win. HoZaaa!
July 1st
Evening: STARTED AGAIN!
I have printed out some suitable graph paper from Knit On The Net and will re-work my pattern tomorrow. I did a swatch and arrived at the tension(ish) suggested on the yarn label, but prefer my slightly tighter cloth. The looser seems to feel too loose. Wish me luck! The saga continues. Secretly, I love making patterns and fussing with things, so it’s nay bother!
P.S. The colour on the photo is bad, ala flash. Notice the different row of green and soft peach? The one with the stitch in the middle is a goer. I did intend to embroider a centre stitch on the other row. Didn’t like it otherwise.
Morning: Well, well, well… I pulled the needles OFF! I have persisted, disregarding my doubt, ignoring my inner sensible voice… listening to those who don’t like to see my time wasted… But, today, rather than go into recouperation mode, I have decided to start again!
This garment will last for years, so why compromise.
NOTE TO SELF: Bother to make an appropriately large tension swatch.
June 23rd
The tension is wrong and it MAY BE TOO SMALL! So, I may need to frog and start again. I’ll try it on again tonight, without the rose coloured (hopeful) glasses I had on last night (when I tried it on). Grrr! Measure ten times, knit once!
This is because my swatch was too small. Lazy!
June 21st 2011
Right! After knitting and frogging the green lozenge part 3-4 times, I’m finally happy. Happy enough anyway. No matter how many times I look through the samples (and buy extra colours) I come back to the same choices. My gut feeling…
The Fuchsia looks amazing! I’ve always liked a slight clash of colours, i.e. drabs and brights. The Peach is the clash here.
It looks good next to My Jacket.
June 11th
My proper coloured wool has arrived and yes, it was a faulty batch. Just to be on the safe side I ordered a pinker version from Jamieson & Smith’s. Of course, to make the order worthwhile I added two shades of yellow. Which won’t suit. Now I have 2 x grey, 2 different yellows, 2 x mint and 2 apricot balls of Spindrift for no good reason! Ha ha ha!
But I’m on my way.
May 22ndYes, well, while the colour on the chart is perfect… the actaul colour of the balls here (Peach) are WAY too bright. Phew!! Now I have either to bleach my peach, or wait for another couple of balls that are as in the chart! It really is too bright and I’m so frustrated. I was just into the red… Grrr!
May 16th
OK, I’ve ordered another 2 balls of wool. I know. But this one is the right one and I don’t know why I hadn’t realised. It’s an old pink, otherwise known as peach. I had a ball of other and it’s right for all of my clothes. Sigh!
April 26th
I’m getting there. Struggling with the fourth colour (shown as lemon/yellow on Maggie’s vest), but it’s gonna be decided by the end of the day, I’m determined! Probably orange tips and pink middle, with green outline like our Maggie’s.
April 6th
I’ve used good old Knit On The Net again, and drawn out my pattern, life size. I know it’s a bit mental, but I want to see how to fudge the designs at the side seams and well, I like to make patterns as much as I like to make stuff.
March 30th 2011
I’ve been sent a link to yellowpinksparkley’s version of Maggie Gyllenhaal’s GORGEOUS vest! How perfect is that? I’ve figured out a bit of a pattern in Spindrift ply, rather than 8 ply as in sparkley’s version and I’ve sampled various colour combo’s. The thing is, my original colours don’t work. I don’t like the purple, it’s too cutsie. Don’t like the green with the eggshell either. I had to order the Mint green.
Now I’m thinking of going back to the original idea of using one of the vintage patterns and save this beauty for another day (soon, please), using a warmer background colour. It was all I could do not to order a whole new lot of wool today. Grrr!
March Sometime
So, the wool is from Jamieson’s of Shetland… Which REMINDS me! I found some amazing old films to download from the National Library of Scotland, about the Shetland Islands in the 1930’s. It makes my heart come close to breaking. They knit like mad people! So fast you’d think it was sped up, only I’ve just been reading about them.
The patterns I’ve been liking are mostly from here.
And while I’m at it, my favourite books at the moment are:
Mary Thomas’s Knitting Book,
Alice Starmore’s Book of Fair Isle Knitting,
Traditional Fair Isle Knitting by Sheila McGregor,
Patterns for Guernseys, Jerseys, and Arans: Fishermen’s Sweaters from the British Isles by Gladys Thompson,
Michael Pearson’s Traditional Knitting: Aran, Fair Isle, and Fisher Ganseys,
and
Mary Thomas’s Book of Knitting Patterns, which hasn’t arrived but I know it will be good too.