Hourglass v2.0 is a misleading name.. this sweater is actually quite different from the Hourglass sweater in . Hourglass v2.0 is constructed in-the-round with Cash Iroha, but the similarities end there.

My goals for Hourglass v2.0:

1. Design from scratch to gain an understanding of sweater design in general. Use existing BR sweater and my own measurements as a template for sizing.

2. Work entirely in the round, from bottom up. Distribute yoke decreases around neck (not raglan decreases).

3. Consult Elizabeth Zimmerman's percentage sweater directions(from Knitting Without Tears). Consult the original Hourglass pattern, but only for comparison purposes.

4. Use short rows to shape the front neckline lower than the back.

5. Wear it when its done. daily.

Should be easy enough, right?

The two sleeves are done.

They are straight sleeves, with minimal shaping and a wide wrist.

I've been using a provisional cast-on because I am not entirely sure about the edge treatment. A slightly rolling edge may be the best match.

My Turtleneck shrug from the SYNO swap arrived safely back in Brooklyn this week after its vacation in London.

The Specs:
Pattern: Turtleneck Shrug by Teva Durham, from Scarf Style
Yarn: Joseph Galler Prime Alpaca in Nutmeg, 2 strands held together, 2 skeins
Masterful knitting by: Amelia

Its an interesting, and quite cute garment. I love how long the sleeves are...perfection!

And, as a bonus, Amelia sent along a scarf kit from Touch Yarns and chocolate from Green and Blacks. Those chocolates sure are good.. I am going to have to check on the availability of them here in the US. And I just love when yarn comes in a kit... its like it already has a purpose :-) I am looking forward to working with this laceweight.

Thanks Amelia! And Thanks Jac and Kris for organizing the Stitch Ya Neck Out swap - it was great fun!

Long long ago, my third knit project ever was a pair of fingerless mitts for my friend, Karen. She calls them "hand socks". After a fine season or two of use, through an unfortunate turn of events, one hand sock was lost. Luckily, I had more yarn! (note: one skein of Cascade 220 will make 3 fingerless mitts in the smallest size, with yarn leftover)

The pattern is from . I added a little crochet edging to clean up the garter stitch edge. This is slip stitch crochet done with a hook a couple sizes larger.

I tried it on to make sure it fits. Karen's hands are smaller than mine, so it will actually have more room. I promise I didn't stretch it out!

Get this. My sister, SQ, decided she wanted to learn how to knit a braid cable. Did she consult a pattern book or the internet? nope. She sat down with yarn and needles and *figured it out*. The resulting chart is probably unlike any other cable chart you've seen. Its color-coded!

Since SQ is on cable kick, we've decided to knit Demi together. Would anyone else like to knit along? Guaranteed cabley fun! The pattern is from Rowan Vintage Style (aka "") and calls for an Aran weight yarn (16sts/4" in st st). I'm knitting with Peace Fleece, and SQ is using Harrisville tweed. Leave a comment or drop me an email if you're interested. We plan to start next week, but its casual, you can start anytime in the next couple weeks.

The NY marathon is this Sunday!!! In case you're out watching the race, I'll be number 15823, going at a 10min/mile pace...or faster if all goes well. 26.2 miles, here I come!

Yesterday, I ran the marathon in 4:30:49. This is *one minute* faster than last year. one minute! Man, it sure felt like a stronger effort. It was a great race overall. There is something magic about the marathon, maybe its the energy of the crowds, or the running masses trying to accomplish this goal.. Whatever it is, I am already thinking about next year. I really want to finish in the 4:20s!

Thanks for all your wishes of good luck! I so appreciated it.

One of the best parts of marathon training is the post race knitting! Today I took the day off work, rested the legs, and started a Jaywalker sock.

The yarn is Mountain Colors Bearfoot in the Firestorm colorway. The colors are sooo rich, and the yarn itself is soft. It is rivaling Koigu as my favorite sock yarn. At first, I thought it was going to pool in a very unfortunate manner, but after a couple inches into the pattern, it seems the result could be quite nice!

*the double decreases in the above photo are wrong.. I was slipping the two stitches to be decreased separately instead of together. but its fixed now!

The only consideration is yardage. Bearfoot comes in a 350 yd skein... and the Jaywalker pattern calls for 465 yards. So the cuff will be shorter. and maybe the toes will be a different color. hmmmm.

Get ready for lots of knitting and purling through the back loops!

*Please save the button to your own server before displaying proudly on your blog*

Here is who's knitting along:

SQ - started a sleeve with Harrisville Tweed yarn.
Elli - has turquoise Rowan Magpie Tweeed at the ready from a sweet deal.
thuy
jnovgirl
Nancy - impulse purchased her way into a bag of lovely Rowanspun aran.
Cirilia

Let me know if you want to join in the cabley fun!

I am going to list everyone in my sidebar and post occasional updates. All the members have blogs, so no need to start one just for the KAL, right??

PS. Jess found someone who actually made this sweater - Saltwater Purls - She's wearing it in her 'About' photo.

I started on a sleeve for Demi. I began with this because, well, its less daunting than the front or back.

If you follow the pattern stitch for stitch, the edge stitches create a garter border. I much prefer seaming slipped stitches, so I slipped the first and last stitches on the WS purlwise. On the RS, I knit these stiches (the pattern says to purl them I think). This shouldn't affect anything, because these stitches are going to be in the seams anyway!

I am making the XS size Demi, which is a 36" sweater. And if it turns out smaller, that's cool too. I went down a needle size to get gauge, to 7s.

There sure is a lot of knitting and purling through the back loops in this pattern. Its a 1x1 twisted rib, where the knit stitches are knit through the back loop on the RS, and then on the WS, the same stitches (now purls) are purled through the back loops. Not sure if this is serving a purpose. It does mean that the WS is softer because the knit stitches aren't all twisty.

A couple nights ago, I was happily not running, and instead working on Hourglass v2.0. I had just attached the sleeves and formulated a plan for the yoke. All was good.

Then I counted the stitches. I should disclose here that I hadn't counted the stitches in quite some time. Probably since the initial cast on. This is not a recommended practice. Its good to count stitches. Count early, count often.

The bad news: There were 69 stitches for one side, and 61 for the other. The origin of this disparity is a mystery.

The good news: The sleeves were doing fine at 46 stitches apiece, and the front+back total was 130 stitches, as it should be.

As I am fortunately not a hunchback and unfortunately not large-chested, there was no need for extra stitches on either the back or front of the sweater. Only one thing could be done.

The solution was quite simple.. I just moved the location of the sleeves two stitches back on each side. The side increases and decreases will now be located just a little bit more towards the back of the sweater. I can't imagine this will be noticable or have any implications for the fit.

Hourglass is now almost ready for the first yoke decrease, which occurs 2 inches after the sleeve attachment. Of course, I've already woven the underarms.

Cash Iroha is a tricky yarn. Its thick, then its thin, then thick again. Maybe its supposed to resemble handspun. Whatever the reason, it does not make a great edging. I know, because I tried a number of them..

I looked for an edge treatment that could be applied uniformly to all edges of this nearly-finished sweater: sleeves, neckline, and bottom hems. Since I started with the provisional cast on, there are live stitches to work with.

My original thought was to let the edges roll. However, I wasn't thrilled with how this looked at the neckline, and what with the marathon over and all, I had time to take on the find-an-edge challenge.

Applied 2-stitch i-cord.
I thought this might be most similar to a rolled edge, but cleaner. It did look really nice on the sleeve edges, but along the neckline, it looked strange. Not the one.

Kitchener 1x1 rib bind off.
This had strong potential to look very clean and even, but the thick/thin nature of the yarn yeilded a messy edge. I tried a couple different versions, binding off after 1, 2, or 3 rows.

Nope. The normally very clean Kitchener bind off looks ragged in Cash Iroha. Hourglass v2.0 should be more refined...

Kitchener 1x1 rib bind off in Cotton Glace.
Faced with 2 failed methods, inspiration struck in the form of Cotton Glace. What about using a different, smoother yarn for the kitchener bind off?

It turned out too loose-looking. Maybe a smaller needle size, or maybe...

Mini-hemmed edges in Cotton Glace.
Inspired by both Lori's contrast-trimmed hourglass and the mini-edges on the Union Square Market Pullover from the Fall 05 IK. I worked six rows in cotton glace, then folded it over and sewed down the live stitches. This could totally work.

Compared to the kitchener rib bind off, its no contest.

In an extreme stroke of yarn luck, the LYS had a shade of cotton glace that matches the green much more closely than the one pictured, which was just scraps leftover from my summer crochet bag. It is still a different shade, but in a subtle and intentional way.

Hourglass the second is getting there... Today I am on the search for some elastic to thread through the hems. Cross your fingers that it works!

Ah Jaywalker sock, what wonderful things you do to this yarn..

well, on the cuff that is. Once past the heel, the yarn gave up its nice striping and broke out in all sorts of pooling.

Pooling, side A:

and side B:

70 stitches on size 1 needles is apparently the *perfect* number for pooling with Bearfoot. or maybe just this skein of Bearfoot. Whatever the technical details, all the blues lined up on one side, and all the reds on the other. Then, just before the toe, the pooling mysteriously up and moved.

I thought about undoing it, and finding a non-pooling pattern, but the nice cuff striping is so lovely, its enough to excuse all later color convergence.

The Specs:

Pattern based on: The yarn was always meant to be a variant on the Hourglass from . Add a dash of Elizabeth Zimmermann, one perfect model top from Banana Republic, and the yoke decreases from Ann Budd's Seamless Yoke sweater. Plus I made it to fit my measurements. Can we say that its my own pattern at this point?

Yarn: Noro Cash Iroha in lime (#77), about 9 skeins. Rowan Cotton Glace in Shoot, 1 skein (for edging).

Needles: Size 6 bamboo needles for gauge of 18.5 sts/4". Size 5 and 4 needles used for the edges.

Cash Iroha.
Its cool, but I probably wouldn't use this yarn again for a plain sweater. It kept doing this thick/thin thing, which I understand is all part of its character, but I'd prefer a more even yarn. For example, around the neckline, it got thin for long stretches, which made the yoke decreases more visible.

The sleeves got about 2-3" longer after washing/blocking. The sweater body probably got longer too, but I didn't notice it in particular. Cash Iroha does have wonderful post-blocking drape. I have to give it that.

Making up the pattern.
Totally the way to go. I felt much more invested in this sweater than other projects because I made it to fit. I knew that I had the ability to make it work, and it was just a matter of effort. Plus the fit turned out *perfectly*.

Edges.
I threaded 1/4" flat elastic through the neck and bottom hems. Its not tight enough to be noticable, but hopefully will help those cotton edges keep their shape.

Overall, its a super sucessful sweater. I am really happy with how it turned out.

Updated to add:
Short Row Neck Shaping.
This was so easy to do that I forgot to mention it! By following the instructions in The Knitter's Handy Book of Sweater Patterns, I did two short rows for the back neck. This resulted in 4 extra rows of height for the back neck. I added them at the very end, right before switching to the Cotton Glace. Basically, this is done by working 2 (or more) short rows across the back neck, the second short row a bit narrower than the first. Then, one row knit all the way around, hiding the wraps.

Before taking the leap into demi bobble-dom, I had to do a little testing.

11 bobbles, all 3, 4, or 5 stiches in width, differing in execution in various subtle ways:

The patten calls for a 5-stitch bobble, seen on the far right in my bobble test swatch. However, in the model images, these bobbles appear quite large.

Knowing that bobble size is inversely proportional to the likelihood of me wearing Demi, I set out to choose one *just large enough* to hold its own in the pattern.

The winner was a three stitch bobble (4th from the right above):
row 1: knit into the front, back, and front of the next stitch.
row 2: turn, and purl across the three stitches
row 3: turn, and slip 2 stitches together as if to k2tog, knit the the 3rd stitch, pass the first two stitches over the third. bobble created.

Its working quite well.

I am really getting into knitting Demi.. although it requires my full attention and doesn't allow any distractions like TV watching or conversations. This sweater is going to take awhile, but I think it will be a good time.

The Demi knitters have been hard at work, casting on and interpreting cable charts. Here's where we're at:

Elli - is making mad progress on the back piece, and has come to an agreement with the Chart.

jnovgirl - knitting with very soft-looking pink chamonix (which may or may not run out), has started on a sleeve.

Diana - after conducting scientific tests of the best bobble possible, I proceeded with a 3-stitch version and finished the first sleeve.

Nancy - this is Nancy's first cable sweater, and since she's a lefty knitter, she's had to reinterpret all the cables!

SQ - Completed a sleeve after being saved from extra-long shoulder decreases by a visit from Captain Obvious.

Ann - just joined us!

Ingrid, successful knitter of a lovely Demi, shared the story of her sweater over at Saltwater Purls.

SQ has thrown down the gauntlet - Christmas is when we are aiming to finish our Demi sweaters. This way we can wear them in unison and um, swelter, because we'll be in sunny San Diego for Christmas! Maybe it will be cold enough at night...

I've got a sleeve and a half done so far and am happy to report complete chart memorization! I no longer have to reference the chart, and knitting through the back loop really seems like the only way to go. In other words, Demi has fully taken over my knitting consciousness. Its cool, no complaints.

There's been one notable error thus far: a miscrossed cable. Maybe you can see it.. its the first cross of the right cable, right next to the little blue stitch marker.

The 2-stitch side of the cable is always supposed to cross over the 1-stitch side. I reversed it by accident, and noticed it pretty much right away. I thought it was kinda cute though. 10 rows later, its cuteness wore off, and it had to go! I dropped down the stitches and recrossed the cable without undoing all the rows. That area is a little loose now, but I am the only one who knows.

I am almost to the point where you bind off stitches for the armholes on Demi.. but then I started to wonder about it..

You know how on cable sweaters, the back is often the same as the front for ease of sizing? This is what the Demi pattern says to do. But would it look nicer if the back was simpler than the front?

Theoretically, this piece could be the front and I could do some less bobble-heavy cables on the back piece. I could repeat the side cables in the center of the back instead of the bobble diamond. This would require some figuring out. Is it worth it? It *would* be easier to proceed as planned with matching front and back pieces.

The sleeves do both have the diamond bobble patterns on them, and the bobbles aren't all that obtrusive. Though it might be more comfortable without them.

Its quite possible all the baked goods this weekend have led to overthinking. Any thoughts on this?

Turkish cast on*, I am so sorry for having neglected you in the past. Purly and Anna both mentioned your greatness in entries past. You just looked rather complicated, and I was busy running. Had I known you were such a superior knitting technique, I certainly would not have delayed in learning your secrets. Because you produce such. nice. toes. I may be unable to go back to regular toe knitting.

I planned two new pairs of socks. and dyed up some sock yarn. I couldn't decide what colors to dye this yarn, so in an ultimately quite nerdy move, I dyed them Christmas colors.

The red is destined to be a pair of Elfine socks, which I hope will look pointsetta-ish. The green is going to be Cascading Leaves socks (pattern available by joining the ).

The beauty of this plan is that apart the socks don't connote Christmas necessarily, but together they do. What can I say... the Christmas season is known to provoke seasonal knitting. At least I kept the red and green in separate skeins.

Kool aid recipes:

Red: 5 packets Flavoraid Cherry, 4 Kool-aid Black Cherry, 5 Kool-aid Grape Illusion, 1 Kool-aid orange, 5 Kool-aid Cherry, 1 Kool-aid Wild Watermelon Kiwi (green). This was a way saturated solution, and the yarn did not absorb all the color.

Green: like 11 packets green (some Flavoraid, some Kool-aid), 1 Kool-aid Grape. This was all the green I had on hand. I was taking no chances with muted green. The yarn pretty much absorbed all the color.

* the Turkish cast on method can be found in the Fall 2005 Vogue Knitting, or on this internet tutorial. I followed the directions from Vogue, and found that this can indeed be used with magic loop. This makes me happy because using two circs for one sock just seems excessive.