Linen Layers

I surprise myself sometimes, but that is neither here nor there.

When I was knitting the Elisabetta Shawl earlier in the summer, I noticed that it coordinated perfectly with a favorite summer linen dress.  The shawl works well with quite a few things in my wardrobe actually, but it does in fact coordinate perfectly with that dress.  And that coincidence, as neither the yarn nor the dress were procured with thought of the other in mind, prompted some mental plotting.

As I was finishing up Elisabetta, I was looking at the new Noro Knitting Magazine, #22, Spring/Summer 2023.  There were several projects I could see myself knitting and wearing, including the cardigan shown above, "Nantucket" by Deborah Newton which is knit in Noro's Asaginu, a fine linen/paper yarn.  

Much as I am intrigued by Asaginu, and I did buy some for another project, I decided that I wanted to knit this cardigan to wear as a topper over a particular green linen dress.   

Asaginu comes in many beautiful colors, but none of them worked with the dress I had in mind.  Instead I chose this fingering-weight linen from Quince & Co. called Sparrow.  The color is #215 Banyon.  Asaginu is classified as a DK weight yarn whereas Sparrow is fingering, although Asaginu is slightly lighter in weight due to its construction and materials.   I knew my sweater would be different, airier perhaps, perhaps heavier, but I thought I would like it nonetheless.

The knitting is fairly straightforward with a simple 4-row lace pattern and stockinette, although I admit that it took me most of the sweater to keep the alternating rows of the lace pattern straight.  I blame this on dyslexia and a lifetimes struggle with right and left.  I had to concentrate to remember if I was on the  K2tog, yo, K2tog, yo, K1, SSK row or the yo, SSK, yo, SSK, K2tog, yo, K1 row.  For some reason the SSK-dominant rows were easier for my mind to grasp than was the alternative.  Anyway I eventually got it.  I did have to knit the left front twice as I inadvertently knit two right fronts.  That too is a mental thing.  I can intellectually comprehend the idea of knitting the left like the front, reversing the shaping, but in order to actually do it, I have to specifically write the instructions out before progressing.  

Even as I knit the left front twice, I still made a mistake on that second knitting, one I did not pick up until I wore the sweater, even though it was right in front of my eyes the entire time.  I have no problem with deconstructing, ripping and reknitting projects, and have done it many times, but not this time.  It has been an emotional year, an even more emotional summer in some ways, as I transition from being a person who struggled with life-changing health issues, to being a self that is on a slightly different path than the one I was on before.  I left that little bump of mis-knitting as a reminder that life is never perfect, that there are always bumps along the way, and that perfection is itself an illusion an illusion that often holds us back.

I got the exact dimensions of the small/medium, which was my intention, although my gauge was slightly different.  Although I am not small, the smaller sized was plenty oversized for me.  The shapes are simple:  basic rectangles with a little bit of neck shaping,  The pattern does call for back neck shaping, which I like as it makes the cardigan lay more nicely, but I did alter the neck and shoulder shaping ever so slightly to accommodate my particular shape.  And yes, the fronts are exactly the same size, only the shoulder shaping differs, and that only slightly.

The sweater is wider than it is long, (27 x 22)and I think it looks somehow more appealing on the blocking board than it does assembled and flat.  This is not a garment I would necessarily find appealing sitting on a shelf in a store although I do think it is very flattering on the body.  Although the impetus for knitting this cardigan was narrowly focused, it will, in fact,  work with many things in my wardrobe. 

The finished cardigan is the perfect little summer topper.  Linen works for Tennessee humidity.  It is loose, light and airy, almost weightless even.  I used slightly less than 4 50-gram skeins of linen, or 194 grams to be exact.  I even found the perfect buttons in my stash.  

Summer is almost over, but warm weather should hang around for a while.  I can see myself wearing this with not only white but many neutral colors, and the sheerness will play nicely with contrast.    A happy knit.

When I was knitting the Elisabetta Shawl earlier in the summer, I noticed that it coordinated perfectly with a favorite summer linen dress.  The shawl works well with quite a few things in my wardrobe actually, but it does in fact coordinate perfectly with that dress.  And that coincidence, as neither the yarn nor the dress were procured with thought of the other in mind, prompted some mental plotting.

As I was finishing up Elisabetta, I was looking at the new Noro Knitting Magazine, #22, Spring/Summer 2023.  There were several projects I could see myself knitting and wearing, including the cardigan shown above, "Nantucket" by Deborah Newton which is knit in Noro's Asaginu, a fine linen/paper yarn.  

Much as I am intrigued by Asaginu, and I did buy some for another project, I decided that I wanted to knit this cardigan to wear as a topper over a particular green linen dress.   

Asaginu comes in many beautiful colors, but none of them worked with the dress I had in mind.  Instead I chose this fingering-weight linen from Quince & Co. called Sparrow.  The color is #215 Banyon.  Asaginu is classified as a DK weight yarn whereas Sparrow is fingering, although Asaginu is slightly lighter in weight due to its construction and materials.   I knew my sweater would be different, airier perhaps, perhaps heavier, but I thought I would like it nonetheless.

The knitting is fairly straightforward with a simple 4-row lace pattern and stockinette, although I admit that it took me most of the sweater to keep the alternating rows of the lace pattern straight.  I blame this on dyslexia and a lifetimes struggle with right and left.  I had to concentrate to remember if I was on the  K2tog, yo, K2tog, yo, K1, SSK row or the yo, SSK, yo, SSK, K2tog, yo, K1 row.  For some reason the SSK-dominant rows were easier for my mind to grasp than was the alternative.  Anyway I eventually got it.  I did have to knit the left front twice as I inadvertently knit two right fronts.  That too is a mental thing.  I can intellectually comprehend the idea of knitting the left like the front, reversing the shaping, but in order to actually do it, I have to specifically write the instructions out before progressing.  

Even as I knit the left front twice, I still made a mistake on that second knitting, one I did not pick up until I wore the sweater, even though it was right in front of my eyes the entire time.  I have no problem with deconstructing, ripping and reknitting projects, and have done it many times, but not this time.  It has been an emotional year, an even more emotional summer in some ways, as I transition from being a person who struggled with life-changing health issues, to being a self that is on a slightly different path than the one I was on before.  I left that little bump of mis-knitting as a reminder that life is never perfect, that there are always bumps along the way, and that perfection is itself an illusion an illusion that often holds us back.

I got the exact dimensions of the small/medium, which was my intention, although my gauge was slightly different.  Although I am not small, the smaller sized was plenty oversized for me.  The shapes are simple:  basic rectangles with a little bit of neck shaping,  The pattern does call for back neck shaping, which I like as it makes the cardigan lay more nicely, but I did alter the neck and shoulder shaping ever so slightly to accommodate my particular shape.  And yes, the fronts are exactly the same size, only the shoulder shaping differs, and that only slightly.

The sweater is wider than it is long, (27 x 22)and I think it looks somehow more appealing on the blocking board than it does assembled and flat.  This is not a garment I would necessarily find appealing sitting on a shelf in a store although I do think it is very flattering on the body.  Although the impetus for knitting this cardigan was narrowly focused, it will, in fact,  work with many things in my wardrobe. 

The finished cardigan is the perfect little summer topper.  Linen works for Tennessee humidity.  It is loose, light and airy, almost weightless even.  I used slightly less than 4 50-gram skeins of linen, or 194 grams to be exact.  I even found the perfect buttons in my stash.  

Summer is almost over, but warm weather should hang around for a while.  I can see myself wearing this with not only white but many neutral colors, and the sheerness will play nicely with contrast.    A happy knit.