Jon's Knit Blog

An Introduction

Hello, knitting bloggers who have actually found me.

I'm Jon. I've been blogging for a while, and at some point, I realized that there was a community of knitting blogs with wonderful writing and gorgeous photos and information on stitches and patterns and passions and all those good things.

And since I'd taken up the needles in June of '03, the few knitting bloggers with whom I had been in touch asked where my knitting blog was.

So here it is.

What kind of knitter am I? Well, I really don't know yet, even though I've been knitting for about 8 months now. I do know that I prefer smaller needles to large, and while I can enjoy great expanses of stockinette, I much prefer to have a pattern of sorts to play with. I seem to like making an interesting thing out of simply (luxurious!) yarn a lot more than I like making a simple thing out of elaborate yarn. That said, two of my current WIP's are with a multi-color variagated yarn. One is a sock, though, so that's ok, and the other? Well, I should probably just give you the list of WIP's:

1) Top down one-piece raglan from this free pattern in Colinette Prism in the "Jamboree" colorway (though this dye-lot is exceptionally green for Jamboree) on 10 1/2 Addi Turbos. I am not sure that I love the pattern, and thus far the sweater appears to be on the big side, but we'll see. I've finished the (yoke?) and am now about 6 inches onto the body.

2) Cabled crew-neck in Filatura di Crosa Primo (100% wool superwash) in Royal Blue on #8 Addi Turbo's. I'm 2/3rd done with the back. This sweater is for a colleague of mine.

3) Luckenbooth Brooch, an extremely complicated Fair Isle by Ron Schweitzer that I probably started before I was quite ready to do so, although it's not my first Fair Isle project. I've done the bottom 2-color garter stitch band and the first 8 rows of the cardi - but it's on a sort of hold right now while I just try to finish a few of the other projects I have on my pile. It's on 2's and 3's, and I'm using Addi turbos.

4) Seed-stitch scarf in Colinette Prism - in the Cardinal colorway - on 10 1/2 Brittany rosewood needles. It's a beautiful scarf, but seed stitch just grows SO slowly. It's over halfway done, though.

5) My first sock: I'm using Sockotta - Rose Garden colorway on #2 needles (Bamboo). I'm on the first sock of the pair, top down, and I have succesfully turned the heel (well, there's a couple little holes that I have to figure out from whence they came), and making progress when I can.

6) The intarsia scarf on the cover of Vogue Scarves Two. This is in Filatura di Crosa's Zara (100% merino) on 4's (Addi turbos). About 1/2 way finished.

7) The Sister Cardigan. This is simple pattern (sweater design) that the yarn store and I came up with for a crew neck cardigan - also in Filatura di Crosa Zara - but in a multicolor (I think there's 8) stripe - and it's random, single or double row stripes - which means millions of loose ends to sew in. I have the fronts and the back finished on this sweater, but when I showed the WIP to the intended sisterly recipient, it appeared to be way too small. So it's on hold for now. I should probably finish it just to see if it fits someone. And stick to more "legit" patterns from books or magazines rather than "store-made" in the future. (My mom, who used to knit, switched entirely to knitting afghans after the umpteenth expensive yarn sweater with patterns from her LYS and hours and hours of knitting didn't fit anyone at all)

8: Another "on hold" project - a shawl-wrap-something-piece of knitted fabric that uses a modified entrelac pattern (from a Vogue baby-knit book that I can't find a link for) in a totally different yarn - a novelty yarn called "Stuff" from Prism. Very fun yarn. Very fun project. Forced hold by me until I finish at least two sweaters and a scarf (though I'll probably finish both scarves in progress before I finish two of the three sweaters).

9: An easy one: An afghan square for Ann & Kay's Afghan Square project. Only my square, which is supposed to be 8" x 8" is so far only 6 3/4" because the cable stitch I picked is much narrower than I expected it to be. So I guess that means I'm doing a swatch for an 8" x 8" project.

10: A hat, out of strange yarn I picked up in store in Cleveland. It's a funky pattern I invented myself (I think hats are fun!), and it will probably be my next F.O.

So, in other words, I seem to like to start projects a lot more than I like to finish them. (And don't even ask me about my stash for future projects. And don't ask why I bid on that yarn on ebay either. I thought it was pretty. I don't even know what I'd do with it. And don't ask me about the books (like Cheryl Oberle's "Folk Shawls") or magazines (like the Spring '04 Interweave Knits) where I have found patterns (like the kimono shawl or the Stella Blouse) which I would love to knit. And please don't ask me about the Kaffe Fassett pattern (Icon, if you must know) for which I have yarn (bought on ebay) ready to go in the other room of my small Manhattan apartment.) I need some self restraint. And some more yarn, please. Cromarty, anyone?

Posted by Jon at March 4, 2004 12:12 PM