purlsandmurmers

Twist Collective: New Patterns

 I've been very bad about paying attention to the various online sources for new knitting designs and I was unaware that the new collection of Twist Collective was up until I saw this gorgeous sweater that Linda posted on Stitcher's Guild.  When I saw this I was in NYC and I just could not focus on my knitting projects, either actual (I had two with me) or virtual so I knew that I would need to spend some time with the new issue when I got home.

Needless to say I still love this pattern and it has made it to my shopping cart and onto my computer.

 It was not the only pattern I purchased.  I know, I know, my dream sweaters always knit up faster than my actual fingers can every dream of moving.  But still.

I love this one, also, although truthfully I cannot tell you if I actually love the design without any consideration of the colors used by the designer.  Obviously these are my colors, and I want this sweater just as it is; well I want it knitted for me.  And I think I would like it just as much in different colors, but I might go out of my way to make just as illustrated.

Those are the only two sweaters that caught my fancy although there are some mittens as well.   I am increasingly attracted to mittens but I haven't made the leap to actually knitting them yet so I am a little cautious about stockpiling a bunch of mitten patterns.

 I love the cable and texture of Véronik Avery's mitten pattern and I am intrigued by the idea of double mittens.  I wonder if they work to keep the hands warmer.  They might.  I have been known to double my mittens and gloves in the winter time as my hands are always cold and not much works.  I've tried almost everything.  I do know that thinsulate liners don't help keep the heat in if the hands are cold to begin with.  The closest I have come to warm hands is by wearing two pairs of gloves or mittens, well with the exception of a pair of neoprene gloves I had once, now unfortunately worn out, as they were the only gloves that kept my hands warm.

So I am very intrigued by these doubled mittens that are meant to be worn together.  They are certainly worth a try.

Inca Knits

Whatever happened to knitting on this blog?  Wasn't that the original purpose?  

I haven't forgotten.  I did go through a period when I wasn't knitting much partly due to having a small kitten who wanted to play every time the yarn came out of hiding and partly because I was just in a slump, another episode of the sartorial doldrums brought on by some weight loss, although not enough, and the reappearance of my waist, a celebrated event but one that also required rethinking the "what" of my knitting.

I have been knitting again regularly, almost every day, for a couple of weeks now.  I'm still not always knitting enough by my lights, and I'm certainly not sewing enough but I've renewed my determination.  I'm still coming to terms with the idea that my primary retirement role is "caregiver" not "knitter", "dressmaker", or "wanderer down the path of fiberly pursuits".    Unfortunately the job of caregiver leaves less room for personal occupations than my previous careers such as "Office Manager", "Production Manager", "Systems Analyst" and so forth, and I still have my petulant breakdowns.

Along with the resurgence of actual knitting I have been also rethinking much of my collection of knitting patterns in an attempt to be more strict about which designs I actually keep and store.  This has not meant that I have stopped buying knitting books however.

The new Marriane Isager book, Inca Knits, arrived this week.   I basically purchased the book for the pattern called Maize.  I still love this pattern and will be knitting it, although not perhaps this winter as at the moment I feel obliged to use up some stash yarn, especially as my yarn storage system has been reconfigured and reduced into cat-proof containers.  

Otherwise, the book is not my favorite of Isager's books and there are fewer things I would knit in this book than in either Classic Knits, or Japanese Inspired Knits, both of which I purchased this summer after falling in love with a few designs in each.  It is also not as inspiring as Knitting Out of Africa, which was published a few years ago, my first introduction to Marianne Isager's designs.

Most of the sweaters in the book are rather boxy but lovely.  That is not particularly a complaint.  They are perfect "country" sweaters to wear with jeans or cords and boots.  Perfect, actually, for my life.  I like the designs very much and believe that this is a book that will be used over the years.    

In the short run, I am also particularly attracted to Sucre, shown here, and there is a darling child's sweater called Labyrinth that may be perfect for grandson Owen when he is a little older, if, and it is a big if, he lives in a colder climate by then.   The labyrinth sweater also has a darling hat and I am inclined just to knit the hat.

But I have other projects on the needles and even more UFOs which have been abandoned in various stages of creation.  All of these must be addressed, although I will probably put the spring/summer weight projects off until the weather is more appropriate.

Updates on current knitting to come soon.