Mrs. McSwatchyPants

Some yarns require more whispering than others.  When you start with one named "Quite Contrary" it should be evident that you are in for a challenge.  I know that I want this to become a sweater.  And I know that I want it to have lots of texture.  Beyond that, I don't know what I'm going to learn. Join me on my journey of Swatchitude!

Swatch 1

I started small.  This is the same cable I just used on my Japanese pullover, so I thought it would be fun to see what it would look like at a smaller gauge.  I could tell immediately that the scale was too little for a sweater, and the cable definition was totally lost in the complicated yarn.  But I did like what the holes were doing for the yarn.

Swatch 2

So then I made more holes.  Still combined with cables, and still too small, but more holes were even better.  This would be great for a sock.
 

Swatch 3

Then I went for acreage.  I wanted a better feel for how the stripes would repeat, and since they are horizontal, I introduced a strong vertical influence, both with arrows, and with fatter cables.  I also played with letting the cable splay be part of the design, which effect I always love.  After blocking this, though, it felt like there was too much space between elements, and the textures were at war with the pattern in the yarn, rather than working together.

Swatch 4

I decided I needed to bend those horizontal bands of color.  The stitch pattern is still obliterated by the yarn pattern, and the scale is still not robust enough, but it felt like I was getting closer.  I really liked the wave effect, and the holes, and the scallopy edge.

Swatch 5

This one combines cables and lace and bendy stripes, Oh, My!  There's a lot going on here, but it seems more cohesive to my eye.  I like the way the purl bumps highlight the sparkly silk, while they also seem to hold the holes open.  If only I didn't dislike knitting Garter rows so much.  And the scale is still not quite there.

Swatch 6

Here's one without the garter rows, and at a larger, better scale for a sweater.  The sparkle is not as great as with the garter bumps, and the holes are not as open, but it is a lot more fun to knit.

Weigh in, Gentle Readers!  Which is your favorite?

String + Color

I went over to play at a friend's house last week.  Now, taking time out to play is always a beautiful thing, and doing it with a great friend is even better.  But when the friend is Tina Newton, well, let's just say that Tina knows how to play on a whole other level from most:

"Let's go to the barn and play with dye!" she said. "Okay, if you're going to make me!" I said.  "Go pick out a yarn base."  Were more beautiful words ever spoken?  I pinched myself.  I surveyed the choices:  Socks That Rock (in three wonderful weights), Woobu (wool + bamboo), Marine Silk (seacell with wool and silk)...There is no end to the wonder in string.  I felt like I might have to lay down.  And then I clapped eyes on Silkie Socks That Rock.  It has everything:  The crazy twist of my beloved STR, plus a strand of pure Bombyx silk.  The fluff!  The bounce!  The sparkle of that silk!  I was smitten.  Tina threw piles of it into a bucket to soak...

And then we got out "practice" skeins.  Guess what you get to "practice" on when you play with Tina?  MORE STR.  Lightweight this time.  Tina went straight to the dyepots and picked out three or four, without any hesitation.  She knew exactly what colors she wanted for me.  First we made this:

It's deep, and vibrant, and more than just a little sassy.  But Tina wanted it to be more layered and complicated.

So then we made this one:  

It's moody and mysterious, and super-sexy.  But I said I wanted it to be sparkly, which meant that it needed more light areas.

And this happened next:

This one has just the right balance between depth and sparkle.  And then:

Tina pulled out the Silkie STR and we squirted and squished all the right colors onto all the right places.  I felt a little faint.  And a little bit of what it must be like to be the fabulous Ms. Newton:  This kind of power should not be wielded lightly.

I'm pretty sure the Dyers are going to take over the world.  And when they do, we will all happily do whatever they say, because they know how to make the string beautiful.  And they do it with such generosity and magnificence that the rest of us are just blessed to know them.  

Oh, and in case you're wondering, my very own Blue Moon yarn color is called "Quite Contrary", and you can have it, too.  Just call up and ask for some, on whatever kind of string you like best.  Lucky, Lucky, Lucky Us.