Author Archives: Karen Templer

New Favorites: Vintage cardigan jackets

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New Favorites: Vintage cardigan jacket knitting patterns

When Dianna pointed out to me that the motif used on that mysterious and enticing Delta promo sweater was common in Cowichan sweaters, while that sweater is clearly not Cowichan, it got me wondering if Mary Maxim might have had something to do with it. You know, Mary Maxim — the Canadian company famous for the sporty, brightly colored, pseudo-Cowichan sweater jacket patterns of the mid-20th century and beyond. (Such as this and this and this.) Which of course sent me down the rabbit hole of their vintage men’s knitting patterns. Variously questionable Cowichan derivatives aside, there’s some really great stuff — from cardigans fit for Darrin Stevens and Mr. Rogers (honestly, that could be the pattern his mom used) to all kinds of great cable sweaters and so on. And these men’s sweater jackets I want for myself:

TOP: No. 1434BV reminds me that I’m always saying I want to knit a little bomber-jacket style cardigan; and I love the slant pockets on this

BOTTOM LEFT: No. 1449V has the Cowichan-style collar and zip front, but what I most love is the scale of the diamonds on this, or …

BOTTOM RIGHT: No. 1448V is even more graphic, and with just the little bomber collar

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PREVIOUSLY in New Favorites: Way back to school sweaters

Hot Tip: Allow for adjustments

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Hot Tip: Allow for adjustments

Sometimes the finish line of a project is not a bright line — you can ease your way across it with finesse, as needed. Take this sweater, for instance, which I bound off on Labor Day. This was a classic case of why knitting top-down is great and also why some people rail against top-down: To wit, A) yes you can try it on as you go and get it exactly how you want it, but B) only if you take into account what happens when you block it. My unblocked gauge on this sweater was 7.25 rows per inch, whereas after a wash it came in at 8.25. That’s substantial shrinkage! Had I simply tried on the sweater and bound off when it looked done, it would have been way too short once it was washed. Here again is why it’s critically important to count rows rather than measuring fabric. But that said, I wasn’t 100% sure how I wanted it to fit or how long I wanted the cuffs and waist ribbing to be — those are all little fit and design details that I like to let the sweater dictate as it takes shape. Part of trying on a top-down in progress, for me, is letting it tell me what it wants to be.

So in this case, I did my math to calculate total rows and decrease placement for my projected lengths but also left room for last-minute adjustments, just in case. A few rows before what I thought would be final, I put the cuffs and body on waste yarn, washed and dried the sweater (this O-Wool Balance is machine washable, but you always want to treat your swatch and your WIP however you’ll treat the finished garment, whether that’s hand-washing or whatever) and put it on again to make those final decisions before binding off and seaming. (I knitted the sleeves flat, as usual, so yes there was seaming.)

It’s all about being the master of your own knitting! I’ll show you the whole sweater as soon as I can get photos.

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PREVIOUSLY in Hot Tips: Don’t panic

The talented and the brave: Summer of Basics Grand Prize winners

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The chic, the talented, the brave: Summer of Basics Grand Prize winners
The chic, the talented, the brave: Summer of Basics Grand Prize winners

LAST SUMMER, I was smart enough to invite other people to do the final-round judging for Summer of Basics, and I’ll be sure to do that again next year because choosing winners from the 140-ish submissions on the #sob18finisher feed was beyond difficult. (Y’all, in two Summers, we’ve racked up over 5000 posts on #summerofbasics!) In the end, I could only narrow it down to 6 Grand Prize winners (instead of 5) of a $100 Fringe Supply Co. gift certificate*, pictured above and listed below in order of appearance, top to bottom. Make sure you click through and check out each one’s reflections, pattern details and additional photos —

– @lana_and_lino Such gorgeous pieces, and the way that she has styled them all into a micro-capsule speaks to just how effective they’re sure to be in her closet. If you only read one caption out of any of this, please make it this one! I’m applauding every word. “I bought my sewing machine in January and I could only sew straight lines …”

– @the_german_edge was a front-runner and crowd favorite from the word go, with her ambitious and stylish plans, and following along with her has been pure delight. And yes, she made her clogs.

– @francespaki contributing from down under, challenging herself to make some more tailored garments and hitting all three pieces out of the park. “I really feel they are true basics that reflect my style and will be worn winter after winter for years.” If you don’t wear them, Frances, I will!

– @nomadiccharacter made six things for herself and three for her daughter, all of which demonstrate that basic doesn’t mean boring. And come on with that toddler lopi!

– @teamajwarren Her whole recap is just pure joy, which is how I would love for us all to feel about the clothes we’ve made ourselves.

– @aunthoneysestate I feel like she manages to convey so much about herself and her personal style with these three lovely garments, which she describes thusly: “Each fills a specific gap in my summer wardrobe. 1) A pretty embroidered top that goes with everything. 2) A dress that I can “put on and go.” 3) The camisole that I need at least two times a week but never made!” This is also one of many instances like this throughout the feed, which melts my heart every time: “The embroidered center panel is a vintage piece that I’ve been saving for a long time.”

Also, the 5 entrants drawn at random for a $25 Fringe Supply Co. gift certificate* are @tania.ho @hellomister @larosemarymakes @fieldwonderful @emilywools — all of whom also did a magnificent job!

Congratulations to all of you! Job amazingly well done. Please email me at <contact@fringesupplyco.com> to collect your prizes!

If you missed the round one and round two winners, do go take a look at those, too, and click through to see how their plans shook out!

. . .

Through it all, I was blown away by @ninaninawhy’s attention to detail; @blakandblanca’s jet-fueled output, tremendous style and willingness to just go for it (and omg that personalized Field Bag to match her tote); and just how many people made SHOES this year! I loved @hobbsfunk’s striking mirror selfies; melted at @clairemadeit’s mini-capsule for her baby on the way; and cheered @reddamzel’s attitude about her white-for-now sweatshirt. Then there’s @notaprimarycolor who is in a league of her own. And I want to give a special shoutout to @thestoryclubpdx, one of our first-round winners, just to say that I so enjoyed following along with her efforts all summer in such depth, and appreciated how generously she shared both her struggles and her victories.

If I could borrow garments, there’d be a lot of them: @sv_azimuth’s Twigs sweater, @malinerogne’s slip dress, @jessandhen’s back-pleat box top, @mwmmpls’s little yellow top, @megthegrand’s cheerful yellow pullover (I know: I keep saying I’m craving some yellow!), @rachelbeckman’s cardigan, @maloriehall’s … well, everything, but especially the knee-length kimono jacket, and so many other killer clothes!

As I was methodically combing through the finishers, I also made a folder for posts I wanted to refer to or quote from — so many incredible remarks and insights!. When I was done and went to see how many there were, though, I’d saved 35 posts! Which is a bit much to try to cull and link. So what I really want to encourage you to do is go read through the #sob18finisher feed — it’s truly so remarkable and inspirational, and I think every single one is a winner! Along with everyone who finished even one garment. As I’m always saying, it really is the clothes you make, the friends you meet, the skills you build that are the real prize in all of this.

Thank you all so much for making this another exceptional event! I can’t wait for 2019.

*Shipping fees will apply. Non-US winners will be responsible for any duties or taxes on their shipments. Packages cannot be marked as gifts. No substitutions, and prizes cannot be redeemed for cash value.

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PREVIOUSLY: Round 1 winners (the planners) and Round 2 winners (the WIPs)

Do yarn and fabric breed when we’re not looking?

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BEFORE: sewing room makeover

Partly in avoidance of the Herculean task of picking winners from the epic field of #sob18finishers and partly from wanting to cut out next sewing projects and having to face the fact that I literally can no longer function in my out-of-control sewing room, I made the decision over the weekend to hit pause on EVERYTHING and begin the other Herculean task I’ve been avoiding: dealing with my mess.

Almost two years ago, I posted a little tour of this room of mine. We’d been in the house a little over a year and the wall-sized shelf I had vowed not to exceed capacity on had started to fill in. Soon thereafter, piles began forming — on the table, the floor, the ironing board — because there’s nowhere to put everything. It crept into other rooms of the house. When we tore up the middle of our house for our bathroom remodel this spring, as I’ve mentioned, everything got dumped into the guest room, and the piles of things that had overflowed from my workroom into the guest room got moved into our bedroom. It was, as they say, a shitshow. With the bathroom finished and sparkling and magnificent, I could no longer bear that our bedroom was a storage room. So with most of the contents of the bathroom and coat closet having gone back where they belonged (with lingering piles that needed dealt with and the guest room still in disarray), I once again pushed the giant pile of fabrics and the enormous basket piled high with yarn and abandoned WIPs and who knows what into the guest room, and I spruced up our bedroom (for the first time ever, basically) while extending the guest room’s status as wholly unusable. And still there were the piles on every surface of my sewing room.

Enough.

So Saturday I opened the can of worms and began to face the contents. I cleared the guest bed of everything else, removed all of the fabric from the shelves and its other hiding places, then laid it all out of the guest bed for sorting. And so it began. Already I’ve made a world of progress! And in the meantime, I’ve continued to mull my narrowing of the SoB prize contenders. So I’ll have that for you tomorrow. The room will take longer to sort out, but I promise to let you know how it turns out!

Happy Labor Day to those of you for whom that is relevant!

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PREVIOUSLY: Me in Our Tools, Ourselves

Time for the Fringe Marlisle Knitalong!

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Time for the Fringe Marlisle Knitalong!

Yay, today’s the day! Or, well, technically tomorrow is the day, but it’s time to kick off the Fringe Marlisle Knitalong, aka #fringemarlislekal! I’ve been obsessed with Anna Maltz‘s clever technique — as explored in her book Marlisle: A New Direction in Knitting — since her pre-book Humboldt sweater pattern hit the airwaves, and I’m so excited to finally cast on. Anna is traveling all month but will be following along and co-judging with me!

I’m also excited to have Fancy Tiger Crafts on board as a prize donor, as noted below. Anna is teaching several classes at Fancy Tiger this month, which you can see and sign up for here.

Here’s the complete rundown on the challenge and the prizes:

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FRINGE MARLISLE KNITALONG
September 1-30, 2018

The challenge:

Simply knit one of Anna’s Marlisle patterns — Humboldt sweater, Zazie cowl, AIA mittens or any of the 11 patterns from the book — or make up your own using her technique!

The prizes:

$75* Fringe Supply Co. gift cert:
– best rendition of an Anna pattern (could be use of color, beautiful knitting, suits you beautifully, etc)
– best modification of an Anna pattern
– best original use of Marlisle

$25* Fancy Tiger Crafts gift cert:
– 5 winners chosen at random from qualifying entries

To be eligible for a prize, you must do the following:

1) Post on Instagram declaring your participation by using the tags #fringemarlislekal @karentempler @fringesupplyco @sweaterspotter in your caption and telling us what you’ll be making.

2) Make at least one additional post about your work in progress along the way. Be sure to tag all of your #fringemarlislekal posts, for all to see!

3) Make a final post of your finished object with the same tags as above, stating which category you’re entering by including whichever additional tag is appropriate: #bestmarlisle #bestmarlislemod #bestoriginalmarlisle

Anna and I will begin judging on Sept 30 and the winners will be announced here on the blog shortly thereafter!

NOTE: For your posts to be visible and thus eligible, they must be made from a public account. If you have a private account, either switch it to public or make a new account to participate.

*Winners are responsible for shipping fees and duties

. . .

For my part, I’m making the Hozkwoz hat! In the spirit of Anna’s text in the book about how she chose the yarns all for personal reasons, I dug into my stash and I’m using luscious wools made by two good friends: Sincere Sheep’s Covet (CA Rambouillet/alpaca/silk) and Kelbourne Woolens’ Scout (100% wool). Black-and-natural is always my favorite marl, and this duo will make a fantastically soft and warm hat for the coming winter, so I’ve decided not to think of this so quite literally as a swatch for my sweater idea, which will call for a different mix of fibers.

What will you be making? I can’t wait to see.

Happy weekend!

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RELATED: Learn more about Anna Maltz in Our Tools, Ourselves

New Favorites: Way back to school sweaters

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New Favorites: Way back to school sweaters

It’s in the nearly-Fall air anyway, I know, but there have been some sweater patterns hitting Ravelry lately that are highly reminiscent of my school days and are giving me that back-to-school feeling in an extra big way—

TOP: Breakwater Beach Vest by Irina Anikeeva would have had me pleading with my mother to buy it for me then, and has me twitching to cast on now

MIDDLE: Varma (Unicolor) and Varma (Three Colors) by Sari Nordlund — do I have to choose?

BOTTOM: ボーダーセーター from Daruma is Japanese, alas, but so perfectly 1980s meets French navy sweater (and I love the allover aqua/white stripe version as well)

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PREVIOUSLY in New Favorites: End-of-summer Sayer

Elsewhere

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Links to love: Knitting, sewing, slow fashion

Don’t adjust your dial, it’s not Friday yet, just Wednesday! (Remember when I used to do Elsewhere on Wednesdays? Hump-day distractions ftw.) Since Sept 1 is on Saturday, I’m actually kicking off the Marlisle Knitalong here on Friday, so I’m doing a little mid-week Elsewhere today!

– LAST REMINDER: Summer of Basics ends Friday, so if you want to be considered for the Grand Prize(s), get your final post into the #sobf18finisher feed ASAP! Details on entering to win are here

– Admirable Kickstarter aimed at increasing awareness and income for Peruvian alpaca farmers (photo above left)

– “… monetizing a hobby changes our relationship with it, shifting it from play to a job. And our society undervalues play, even though it’s an important component of health. …” (photo above right)

– I don’t know why histories of colors and pigments are so fascinating, but they are! (thx, DG)

– I think I could live happily all summmer if all I owned was what Martha McQuade packed for Portugal

– (Speaking of: Do hand-drawn packing lists make anyone else think of “Sara Midda’s South of France”? Just me?)

– Current style muse: @ebonyh

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PREVIOUSLY: Elsewhere