Shapely

"A curve is the loveliest distance between two points."

- Mae West

This is the vest I dreamt of when I was sick with the flu.  Honest.  It's really a vest.  I'm not sure, but this could be the steek-y-est thing I have ever made.  So far there are 5 steeks, and I'm anticipating at least one more.  Cool, no?  Here's a flat view:

Now you can tell it's a vest, right?  I know.  Me either.  So the stranded part is kind of an Empire-waist deal, above which are some increases for fullness over the bust, and then just garden-variety stripes.  At the armholes, things go a bit wierdy, where I hold off some live stitches (why cast off if you're just going to pick up again right above them?) for armpits, then cast on new steeks, shaping the armhole curves with decreases at their edges.  After a while of that, I did the same stitch-holding maneuver for a neckline, with some more adjacent shaping.  Then last of all, I held off the back neckline the same way, and shaped next to it.  By that time I had to change to DPNs, but I'm pretty sure it will work out the way I hope.  For those who have taken my steeks classes, this is a perfect example of how thinking in terms of CUTTING for shape will change the way you approach knitting the shaping. N'est pas?

All of which returns me to my grounding premise:  We all are sculptors of string.  Think about it: what could be cooler than taking a single string and turning it into fabric?  Nothing, except turning that single string into an actual garment, with real live tailoring that causes it to fit around human body parts.  No mean feat, that. 

So do me a favor, will you?  The next time you find yourself at some coma-inducing social event where non-knitters are passing around their business cards (I think this is the non-canine equivalent of butt-sniffing), tell somebody what you really DO.  And by that, I don't mean highway patrol officer, patent attorney, or neurosurgeon.  I want you to tell the next dumbass who tries to define you by your occupation that you are a Sculptor.  If you have ever turned the heel of a sock, you know I'm right.  You are Sculptors of the highest order, my friends.  And your medium? 

String.
 

Muggle-Born

Thank you so very much, Gentle Readers, for your many enlightened words on the subject of my Monogram Problem.

As you can see, I Muggled it, and went with the Duplicate Stitch plan:

I'm waiting with baited breath for the last skein to arrive in the mail so I can make the other sleeve.  I know:  Will there never be a day when I estimate yardage properly?  

The fact that there will likely be a difference in color between the second sleeve and the rest of the sweater was one of the driving factors in my decision to Muggle Out on the initial.  This will be a play sweater, not a masterwork.  I elected to let go of the notion that everything I knit has to be some sort of statement about my proficiency, or my authenticity, or my validity as a knitter.  I relaxed and had fun knitting something quick and easy.  Well, easy if you don't count running out of yarn.  And I don't.  That was a direct result of my inability to recognize the actual size of my children until after I had ordered the yarn. 

I like the "font" of this L.  I think it has just the right sort of quality, and its scale & proportion make me happy.  I also was able to locate it exactly in the right spot on the sweater with a minimum of fuss.  In light of all that, I think I made the right decision this time.  The biggest trick has been finding moments to work on the thing, since both Smallies have been out of school for the last 5 days.  Late-nite knitting anyone?  I'm starting Campbell's next, before I lose momentum.
 

WWMWD?

What Would Molly Weasley Do?

To state that my children are Harry Potter fans would be the same as saying that I sort of like knitting.  Lindsay has poured through the cannon at least six times.  Campbell is just now discovering the series, which means that Lindsay is falling in love with it all over again, this time through her brother's eyes.

We came to the chapter when Harry receives his first Christmas present, in the form of a handknit Weasley jumper, and they both begged me to knit them their own.  One of the unparalleled delights of having Smallies is the opportunity of knitting for them.  And I know the day may come when they are no longer interested in sweaters made by "The Wooly Mom-uth" (Cam's name for me).  So without actually agreeing to the project, I have secretly begun work on two Monogrammed crewnecks.  Lindsay asked for Maroon, while Campbell requested Forest Green.  They're nothing if not specific.

Time being what it is, I elected to bang out the sweateres in bulky wool , on nice fat size 10 needles.  Imagine my surprise when I realized that not only are they are both wearing the same size, but it's going to be an adult size!  For the proper slouchiness (and longevity of wear), I decided the sweaters should have 36" chests, which means that the Smallies are officially No Longer Small.  I plan to remain in denial at least until the new year.

I asked a pal with kids about the same age as mine, and also hardcore HP lovers, if she'd like to knitalong with me.  Sure! She replied.  I sent her the first line of the pattern I'm making up, to which she replied in horror: "Whaddya mean knitting in the round?  How can you do the intarsia initial then?"  It had NEVER occurred to me to make the initials in intarsia.  I had reasoned that the only way to get the sizing and placement perfect would be to duplicate-stitch the letters on at the end.  Intarsia?  I don't want to work that hard.  "Isn't that cheating?" asked my pal.  I never even thought of that.  She raised the bar.

Here's what I have so far. If I were to do an intarsia initial, it would be time to start pretty soon.  But I really can't decide.  Accuracy in placement and speed of getting them done would decree that duplicate stitch is the way to go.  But what would I be sacrificing in the way of authenticity?  The pictures I've been able to find of the originals don't tell me for sure which technique was used. 

What Would Molly Weasley Do?  Well, she's the mother of seven children, so obviously she's got to be working with a thought to efficiency.  But on the other hand, she has a MAGIC WAND, that can probably save her at least a couple of minutes.

Kindly weigh in, Gentle Readers:  Do I Muggle Out and duplicate-stitch them, or work an incantation for the proper intarsia?  I'll wait while you decide.