I have been playing with this stitch pattern for quite a while before I reached my final version.  The first time they were toe up socks in stripes for my 6 year old.  While they were cute the stripes didn’t really add to the design (and the combination of cables and a short row heel was tight to get on) I wanted to keep working on the the pattern.

I redesigned it to be cuff down and  knit a version for my husband.  Second time round I really like how they work.  The cabling is interesting enough to keep you alert but not too taxing!

The brown version was knit by my friend Sue for  her husband, I just love the color of the Krafty Koala yarn.

Casadh

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Two of the old favourites that detail different methods are Barbara Walkers ‘Knitting from the Top’ that shows the top down method and in Elizabeth Zimmermann ‘Knitting Workshop’ (and I’m sure several more of her books) she describes the bottom up method.

For a sweater I made my husband last winter I tried the top down method.  It is actually a very intuitive and straightforward way of doing it – you begin by knitting a strip for each saddle starting at  the neck, for both the back and front you pick up stitches along the side of the saddle (plus extra between them for the neck).  Next you work some short rows to slope the shoulders and knit both front and back down to the underarm (adding some shaping around the armhole).  Then you cast-on your underarm stitches and work down the body.  For the sleeves, if you have ever worked set-in sleeves from the top down it is the same method – you have live saddle stitches at the top, and you pick-up stitches around the armhole.  Working from the saddle around the armhole you work short rows (usually adding 1 st at a time) until you reach the desired length of your sleeve cap.  From my own experience you need to be careful to keep the saddle a little shorter than the shoulder or you end up with a ‘puff-sleeve’ effect.  Now while this is sometimes desirable for my husband’s sweater not so much!

I was all set to do top-down saddle construction for this design until I picked up the knitting workshop and I’m fascinated by the bottom-up method.  The way Elisabeth Zimmermann has worked the shoulder decreases in this is really fascinating.  Both the body and sleeves are worked in the round from the bottom up.  Then they are all joined at the armhole level (after removing underarm stitches) and worked for around 1 inch together without shaping.  Next each of the start and end body stitches are marked, and for every round body stitches are decrease each side.  After the shoulder width is reached it switches to the arm stitches being decreased – but the reason that the decrease lines work so nicely is that both of the body end stitches are effectively your seam lines and are always included in your decreases.  So even though you are alternating between body and sleeve decreases all that seems to change visually is a change in the direction of the seam line.  Very pretty.  Next you decrease a few more body stitches and finally the top of the saddle is worked.  This is effectively like turning a heel – except you’re turning a shoulder.  You are working short rows across the top of the saddle, at each end decreasing and turning until you’ve decreased enough stitches to reach the neck size you need.  I’m going to have lots of fun designing this saddle shoulder!  With of course the added benefit that you can easily carry your stitch pattern all the way up the sleeeves to the neck.

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Difficulty: Intermediate

Description

Create a unique neckline with this twisted rib neckband that is both elegant and cosy.  The sweater is worked from the top down starting with the ribbed neckband.  Short row bust shaping and a gently curved waistline create a streamlined, flattering sweater.

SIZE

Bust size: 28-30 [30-32, 32-34, 34-36, 36-38, 38-40, 40-42 / 42-44, 44-46, 46-48, 48-50, 50-52] inches

0-2 inches positive ease recommended.

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS

Chest : 30 [32, 34, 36.25, 38, 40, 42 / 44.25, 46, 48, 50, 52.25] inches

Length: 24.5 [24.5, 24.75, 24.75, 25.5, 25.5, 25.75 / 25.75, 26.25, 26.25, 26.5, 27] inches

Size 36 inches modelled with 1 inch positive ease.

MATERIALS

Artesano Aran (50% Alpaca / 50% Wool; 144yds/132m per 100g skein); Color: Sunset (C805); 6 [7, 7, 7, 8, 8, 8 / 9, 9, 10, 10, 11] skeins

1 set US 8/5mm double-pointed needles

1 set US 7/4.5mm double-pointed needles

1 US 8/5mm circular needle, 24-inch length (or longer for larger sweater size)

1 US 7/4.5mm circular needle, 24-inch length (or longer for larger sweater size)

Cable needle; tapestry needle; stitch markers; waste yarn.

GAUGE

17 sts/21 rows = 4″ in stockinette stitch on larger needles

22 sts/28 rows = 4″ in fisherman’s rib on larger needles

Here are the photos:

Anna Maria

Quimper

Cinnamon Bay

Siesta

This pattern is knit from Debbie Bliss ‘Prima’ which is really beautiful to knit with (even it it does have a few knots in the balls!).  It’s a top down raglan with a cable detail running down the neck and front and has waist shaping.  I knit this when I was visiting my in-laws in Sarasota last Christmas, the photos were taken on ‘Siesta Key’ – hence the name ‘Siesta’.  Not very inventive I know but it does evoke happy memories for me!

There are some wonderful patterns in this issue, I’m especially fond of Emma by Janine Le Cras.  Having recently begun knitting with laceweight yarn I’m in awe of her knitting a full cardigan in laceweight!

I don’t have time to add them now, but I have got some more photos to show you later from ‘Knitting in the Sun’ which is now in the shops!

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$4.50

My two favourite methods of joining are a Felted join and a Russian Join.

The felted join can only be used with an animal fibre.  You need to split the end of the old yarn and the new yarn into two pieces for a couple of inches.  Then layer the two sides together like a yarn sandwich and give it a gentle twist.  Now wet your fingers (if you aren’t too squimish you can spit on them!) and dampen the yarn making sure they are all a little damp.  Beware of getting stray hairs in your mouth.  Then roll them quickly between the palms of your hands and the friction will felt them together.  Truely magic.

The Russian Join can be used on all sorts of yarn, animal and plant based.  However if the yarn is very splitty it won’t work very well (if the yarn just unrolls in your fingers).  Thread the end of the working yarn through a tapestery needle and work the tail down onto itself in the working yarn.  Try to keep it towards the center and work for around 2 inches.  Before you pull the needle through pull the start of the new yarn through the loop created.  Now do the same with the new yarn.  Pull the yarn flat, trim any loose ends and keep knitting.

If the yarn you are using is very thick you may find that the Russian Join creates too big a lump in your knitting.  In this case you can try splitting each end of yarn in half and cutting half of the yarn.  This means that there is less bulk being woven through.

My camera battery is dead right now so I can’t add photos but you can also take a look at the russian join here Russian Join.

I have a pattern coming out in Issue 12 of Yarn Forward.  Now I realise that as my last post was of the Necco Wafer Hoodie that it must seem that I’ve been doing nothing but knitting for the last few weeks.  However this top was actually knitted last year so it has been with me for a while!  For anyone here in Ireland/UK/Europe this yarn is easily replaced with any DK (22 sts and 30 rows per 4 inches) cotton yarn.  This yarn was mercerized cotton, meaning it went through a chemical process making it hold the dye better.  It does tend to make for a shinier slightly stiffer yarn.  In fact I think Wendy ‘Supreme’ would be very similar.

For anyone who lives in Cork you can get Yarn Forward in Eason’s on Patrick’s Street – however you might want to wait a few days as I’m not sure if this issue is in yet.  I think that Kerrie Allman’s plant-dyed tank Brazilwood has me tempted to get knitting.  Unfortunately that is one of the downsides of spending most of your knitting time designing – you don’t really have much extra time left over for knitting all the other wonderful patterns out there.