Freebie: BMG's Footies

Two posts in a week! Three posts in a month! You people must be ready to fall over. As a reward for your patience I offer these fun, funny-colored footies. Go forth. Make little socks that Bob Marley's Grandma would be proud to call her own.

Want a more descriptive photo?

BOB MARLEY’S GRANDMA’S FOOTIES

To Fit: Shoe size 5-6[7-8,9-10]. Photographed in size 7-8.

Materials:
2 skeins Koigu Painter’s Palette Premium Merino (KPPM) (100% washable Merino Wool), 170 yards/skein. You will have plenty of leftovers.

Size US2 (2.75mm) double-pointed needles, set of 5, or size to make gauge. Pattern knit on 4 needles, with 5th spare needle used to pick up gussets.

Stitch marker to mark round (optional)
Darning needle to weave in ends

Gauge:
14 sts per 2” in stockinette stitch on US2 (2.75mm) needles or size to make gauge.

CUFF
CO 44[48,52]sts, and distribute sts onto three needles as follows:

Needle one (N1) (half of back of sock): 11[12,13]sts,
Needle two (N2) (top of sock ): 22[24,26]sts,
Needle three (N3) (half of back of sock), 11[12,13]sts.

Join work and pm to mark round, if desired. Begin working in k1p1 rib as follows: *k1, p1* to end. Repeat for 8 rounds. Next round begin working in stockinette. Knit 5 rounds total.

HEEL FLAP
On the next round, using N3, knit sts from N1, so that all of the sts are on only two needles, with N3 (back) containing 22[24,26]sts and N2 (front) containing 22[24,26]sts. For the rest of the heel flap, you will work only with the stitches on N3, working back and forth. Begin by flipping the work around and slipping the first st, then purling across the row. On the next row, slip the first st, then *k1, slip one with yarn in back* to last st, k1. Repeat these two rows 11[12,13] times, for a total of 24[26,28] heel rows.

SHORT ROW HEEL
Still working back and forth, on the next row, sl1, k12[13,14], k2tog, k1, turn work, leaving remaining sts on left-hand needle. Sl1, p5, p2tog, p1, turn work leaving remaining sts on left-hand needle. Continue in this manner, knitting and/or purling one more stitch on each row as follows:

Sl1, k6, k2tog, k1, turn work
Sl1, p7, p2tog, p1, turn work
Sl1, k8, k2tog, k1, turn work
Sl1, p9, p2tog, p1, turn work
Sl1, k10, k2tog, k1, turn work
Sl1, p11, p2tog, p1, turn work

GUSSETS
Resume working in the round. Knit sts from N3 onto spare needle, then knit the remaining sts onto N1, so that the sts are once again distributed onto three needles. Using N1 pick up and knit 12[13,14] sts along the heel flap. Knit the 22[24,26]sts from N2. Using N3, pick up and knit 12[13,14]sts from the heel flap and then knit remaining sts from spare needle onto N3.

Work one round even, and then dec on the next round as follows:
N1: k to last 3 sts, k2tog, k1.
N2: knit
N3: k1, ssk, knit to end.

Repeat these two rounds (one round without shaping, one dec round) until total stitch count is 44[48,52]sts, with 11[12,13]sts on N1, 22[24,26]sts on N2, and 11[12,13]sts on N3.

Work even until foot measures 6.5[7.0, 7.5] inches.

TOES
On the next round, begin toe decreases as follows:

N1: Knit to last 3 sts, k2tog, k1.
N2: k1, ssk, knit to last 3 sts, k2tog, k1.
N3: k1, ssk, knit to end.

Repeat this dec round every other round until 20[22,24] sts total remain. Then work dec round every round until 12 sts remain. Using N3, work sts from N1 even, so that all sts are once again on two needles. Kitchener live toe sts together, and weave in loose ends to finish.

COPYRIGHT 2005, Julia P. Trice This pattern is protected by copyright and available for personal use only. It is not available for sale or distribution without the author's express permission.

Where I've been

Things have been hectic here in MindofWinter world, so as a little treat and retreat, Moxie and I decided to head back to the Lake House for the week and enjoy some quality R&R and much-needed together time. Much knitting was accomplished. I was able to polish off the second of Bob Marley's Grandma's Footies in the car on the way up, and came close to polishing off my book submissions during the week. When those are done I should be able to return to my former blogging schedule. If you check out the sidebar you'll see that much knitting has been done, though little could be shared.

Once the book stuff is off my plate I'll write up the footie pattern. It's easy and fun. I can't get enough of the koigu footwear. It's cute, and perfect for lounging:

Depending on who you are at heart, either the background or foreground of this picture will peak your interest.

As much as I love knitting, I have to admit that the background has my heart, so here's another view of the dock, taken last fall when we were at the lake.

Here's another shot from the fall, to give you an idea of the bigger picture.

In my mind, Lake George is rivalled only by the most splendid of landscapes, such as our lovely Margene can claim. As soon as my world stops spinning, I'll have to gather my LG pics into an album for everyone. There's nothing I love more than seeing the wonderful places you knitters live and go, so one of my future goals is to share more of the beautiful places I've been with all of you.

Also, for those who might be wondering (::cough:: Marnie::cough::) we are also the crazy kind of people who are afflicted with the need to take our animals everywhere with us, so Moxie and I weren't the only ones who enjoyed the beauty and wonders of the lake. Here's a shot of Townie and Caia on the dock:

We brought Tuna as well, but she is more suited to the pleasures of the couch...

Believe it or not, Caia is "fishing". One of the many unique things that our sweet Caia does is spend hours on end staring into the still water at the striped bass that live beneath the dock. When one comes close, she growls menacingly, though I doubt that the bass notice this. Since the lake is still in the early morning, it is a ritual of ours to spend at least the first hour of every day on the dock watching Caia as she watches the fish. Townie does it as well, though I don't think he actually recognizes the bass for what it is. His philosophy on such things is that if Caia is involved, he'll be there participating, whether he really gets what he's participating in or not. He's an odd little cat, but nothing if not loyal. Since we're speaking of the Townie, here's another picture of the little boy:

Be vawy vawy qwiet... I'm hunting dwagonflies...."

I'll post more soon - I just wanted to let you all know that I was thinking of you and to share a bit of the joy that is a lake vacation. xox

Maniacal Harlot Poncho

Modeled on "Long Island" in Lake George with my beloved girl Caia

Maniacal Harlot Poncho, Yarn Harlot Free Pattern,
designed by Stephanie Pearl McPhee
Knit with 7 skeins (120 yards/skein) of Berroco Suede (100% Nylon) in Zorro! (Black - 3729) on Clover bamboo circulars in size US 10 (6.0 mm), 24" and 32" and Addi Turbo brass-plated circulars in size US8 (5.0 mm), 16", at a guage of 4 sts per inch.

Pattern Notes:
This fun little knit is available for free on the Yarn Harlot's site. If you haven't come across it yet, you must live under a rock! Nonetheless, here's the link.

My poncho is a little different from the original - different yarn, different guage, and slightly different neckline. If you want to do the poncho in Suede, or another yarn that gets the same guage, cast on 100 stitches and follow the Harlot's pattern for 92 rows. For the neckline, I simply picked up and knit 100 stitches on needles two sizes smaller than those used for the body and used paired decreases with a knit stitch in between them at the front and back V's. Voila! This would have been a very simple and quick project if I hadn't taken a little detour. I had fun anyway. I was on vacation and had plenty of time to experiment. But for this detour, I was going to dub it the traveling harlot poncho - it was knit in 8 states - California, Arizona, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Illinois, New York and Vermont. I'm pretty sure that's a record for me. I've crossed the country five times, but I've always driven, so it takes effort to wrack up the knitting states. On this trip, I made use of lunch breaks. In the end, the poncho became maniacal, despite the traveling, for obvious reasons.

The Harlot Poncho is a great pattern. Easy, fun, flowing. Maniacal is optional. I wear the poncho a lot. In Suede, it's more of a fall/spring piece than a winter one, but the slinkiness of the suede transcends the season. On hot days in Lake George (hard to believe those were 6 weeks ago), I wore it as a cover-up on the boat, and I'm guessing if I put a hardy enough sweater on under it, I can take it into most of the winter. It models particuarly well in an enchanted forest on a magical lake island. It's also an excellent housecoat. Not, perhaps, the most attractive thing in the world - sweats, bunny slippers, hair in a bun, glasses, and poncho - but ooooh! comfy! My own traveling fort. Who says I can't camp in my living room?

Impressions of Berroco Suede:
Love it! (I feel like I'm saying this a lot lately. Do I choose well or do I just frog it if the yarn isn't smokin'?) If my desert island needs a nylon yarn, this is it. Springy, squooshy, fun to use. If you are looking for a soft yarn with loft and stretchiness, look no further. Light and luscious describes Suede perfectly. To get a very suedey effect, one of the other heathery colors is a better bet, but I liked the black just fine. That's the other great thing about this yarn. The colors have wonderful names. Black is Zorro! Blue is Wrangler! Green is Maverick! Get me my boots!

Possible substitute yarns:
GGH makes a suede called "Velour". 100% nylon, also. The yardage is substantially less (around 60 yards, I think) and the yarn isn't as squooshy. It should work just fine as a substitute, but for most things I'd prefer the Berroco. (I say this despite never having worked with the Velour, it's merely a gut reaction.) Try the Velour if you want a finer knit.

Tips for Others Making the Harlot Poncho:
There's not too much to say in the way of tips as this should be a pretty fool-proof pattern. (It is not maniac proof!) Check out Stephanie's extra help post if you're confused by the yarnovers. Avoid seams, steeks and inserts at all costs! Have fun.

More cool photos...

On the boat...

In the forest with the Pup and the Kiddo...(the sister-in-law's kiddo)

To Purl or Not to Purl? (The overly long story of a very simple poncho)

Pants? Who needs pants?

PART I: The Purl

Every few months I seem to go through a rotation with the knit blogs out there and find a new favorite. For the most part, my list of blogs changes very little, but the favorite, for one reason or another, seems to shift. Lately I've found myself glued to the Yarn Harlot's site. I've been drawn to this particular blog partially for the wonderful projects and great writing that Ms. Pearl-McPhee is known for, but also because I like the way that she takes random knit-musings and crafts them into a post. Several of my favorite blogs do this. They take a knitting thought or philosophy that we all have strong subconscious feelings about and put it out there for discussion. And discuss we do. (I think Stephanie had about 80 comments to her most recent post.) It stimulates us out here in blogland (lurkers too!) to think about our craft and what it says about us. We get to know the knit and the person a little better. I like it.

During my recent hiatus, I did some thinking about the direction that I want to take with my blog. I am still pretty self-conscious about posting and am struggling to find my "voice". This may sound silly and overly dramatic for a knitting blog, but if you write one, you know that no matter what the subject, it is part blog and part journal, and though perhaps one-dimensional, it is a representation of yourself, out there in cyberspace, for all to see. Personally, I want my blog to be the kind of blog that I would like to read. I have these random knit thoughts all the time, and write about them in my head, but I rarely post about them because they lack a certain polish and perfection that I have recently realized I am all too attached to. I like people who are imperfect and I am a person who is imperfect, so I have determined that when random things come up, I am going to write about them.

Hence to purl or not to purl... The other day, the Yarn Harlot gave us her two cents about the best way to teach beginners to knit. (Go ahead, read the whole thing, including comments, and get totally engrossed. Just don't forget to come back!) The short story, if you're not up to following the link to read the long one, is that Stephanie taught her 13-year-old daughter's friend to knit on straight needles so that she would go back and forth and learn to purl right out of the gate and not be afraid of the dreaded purl stitch in the way that people who learn it later sometimes are. She wanted to instill fearless knitting in this intrepid young knitter from Day One, so that she would go forth and cable someday soon without worry. The controversy, (and I believe that it was a controversy of one) was whether this was the best idea given that the girl's first project was a pair of legwarmers, usually done seamlessly, in the round on circular needles.

Despite the fact that I have taught many, many beginners to knit, I have never really given the approach much thought. I teach people to knit the way my grandmother taught me - garter stitch on straight size US8 needles. I throw in the purl stitch after the person has gained a certain level of comfort. The theory behind this is that few people have good short-term memory for mechanical movements and that it's best to get one stitch movement to the point where it is automatic before introducing a second concept. I also think that it is easier to keep an even tension during the oh-so-crucial cast-on phase on straights. (Me of little faith...)

Although I hadn't given this much thought previously, I found myself to be very opinionated about the subject when it was brought to my attention. Here's why: I am drawn to the Yarn Harlot's explanation for why she teaches on straight needles. I don't think it really matters whether you teach someone to purl on Day One or not. I learned to purl about a decade after I learned to knit and it didn't affect my feelings about the stitch. Knit or purl, it's all the same to me. I don't favor one over the other. More importantly, I doubt it will affect too many new knitters to learn to purl, earlier or later, either. (Though hearing from other knitters that one is easier than the other might - ah, the power of suggestion!) BUT! I like to think of myself as a similarly intrepid knitter. I fear no stitch, no fiber, no construction! Onward! It shall be knit!

In contrast, I was also drawn to the controverter's plea that legwarmers should not have seams and are properly knit in the round. The idea that there is a better way to knit certain things also holds great cache for me, and in this case, had I given it much thought I would have been on the fence as to whether to have Meg's friend learn the purl stitch or do the legwarmers seamlessly. It is a knitting conundrum if I ever saw one.

For me, the importance of a teaching approach may be what it imparts about the teacher. We are fearless, and if we can teach fearlessly, our students will be, too. If we teach better ways to do things, our students will learn to search for the better method in each situation. Great thoughts, and ones that I will spend some time ruminating and blogging on, as I prepare to teach my next beginner class.

PART II: The Poncho

Which brings me to the not-so-clearly related second part of my post. This is where I illustrate why it is important to know both the out-of-the-box way and the better way to do something and be discerning enough to choose which method to follow in a given situation. As an extra-special treat in line with my new policy of showing imperfections, I will illustrate by telling you all about one of my own recent knitting misadventures.

Enter, the poncho. Interestingly, this garment was also inspired by Ms. Pearl McPhee, and mimics her Very Harlot Poncho in everything but yarn, guage, and neckline. I'm changing the name to the Maniacal Harlot Poncho, and here's why:

Right before leaving California I became totally enchanted with some black Berocco Suede yarn. Suede is fabulous stuff. It contains not an ounce of natural fiber, yet has a wonderful, springy feel to it and manages to pretty well approximate actual suede in it's feel. I had exactly 7 skeins of Suede and knew that its perfect use was a slinky, stretchy poncho. I also knew that ponchos can take up quite a bit of yarn, and that fringe can easily eat up a skein or two all on its own. You can tell where I'm going with this, yes? I was concerned about yardage.

To assuage my fears, I sat down, shoved the Chevron Tank aside, and knit an entire skein of yarn in one sitting. (This is impressive for me. I am not a fast knitter.) I then figured out exactly how many square inches of fabric one skein of suede produced. (Sadly, I did not write this down and have since forgotten the number.) I then set about trying to figure out exactly how many square inches of fabric I would need.

This was not something I could do precisely. I could not find a single poncho pattern in my collection (stunted collection - we were traveling and didn't have much) that gave a finished schematic or dimensions. I think the thought is that a poncho is a sack and how long you make your sack is really up to you - no schematic needed. This is all fine and well for those of you with an overabundance of yarn in a single dyelot. For me, it sucked.

What I did decide was that it was likely that I would be cutting it close. I also decided that I didn't want to knit the whole damn thing and then run out while I was fringing it. So I did some simple math. At a guage of 4 sts per inch, with 4 yarnovers every other row, my poncho would grow at a rate of 1 inch every 2 rows. That is a lot. It sounds practically exponential.

So, I got out my measuring tape and measured my circumference with my arms at my side. This is yet another number that I have failed to document since, but I think it was about 42-44". My goal was to figure out how much the poncho had to grow in order to accomodate my arm movements, so I added somewhere from 6-8" (the ease allowance of a really baggy sweater) for a total of 50" in circumference. This number, strangely enough, I do remember.

My plan was to go on my merry way, knitting and yarning-over until I hit the 25th row, which was the point where my poncho would be 50" in circumference. At that point I would introduce 2 pairs of decreases at each side down the midline of my arms to counteract the growth of the yarnovers exactly and keep the circumference at a steady 50" until the end. The result would be a trapezoidal shaped poncho. Somewhat closer-fitting but workable. Brilliant!

For those of you considering writing down this great wisdom or printing it out - DON'T! It doesn't work. 50" is way too small a circumference for anything other than a mummybag, as I can sadly attest. I have no finished pictures, but here is a picture, on the dock at Lake George after my third skein, showing the "seam" created by my funky decrease pairs:

Feel for me, for later I frogged all the way back to the top of this seam...

I continued past this point and knit another skein to finish my mummybag. Because I tried the poncho on when it was on circulars that were too short to give it full volume, I was totally unaware of the mummy quality until after I had cast off.

This is where things got really interesting. I knew that I could not leave the poncho as it was, and I was now fairly certain that I had at least very, very close to enough yarn to make it full-sized. I was also in a rather intrepid mood. I knew that the right thing to do would be to rip back to the 25th row and take it from there. I am not sure why I did not do this. I don't have any problems with a good frog if it's necessary (it was!), and I had plenty of time to rip and re-knit while sitting around at Lake George enjoying myself. Perhaps it was an overabundance of time that lead me to make my decision. I'm still not sure.

At any rate, I determined that rather than rip back my poncho, I would teach myself to steek on the diagonal with a crochet hook. (I doubt anyone will question that this plan was an intrepid one.) Armed with determination, a crochet hook, and a computer I set about to conquer the diagonal crochet steek.

As a starting point for my quest, I used a wonderful tutorial by BlogDogBlog on my steek's nicer cousin - the vertical crochet steek. This tutorial was indispensible, and if you ever wish to steek somthing that should be steeked (say a fairisle, or the front of a cardigan - NOT a poncho), I would highly recommend reading it.

All that remained after the steek tutorial was figuring out which stitches to bind together on a fabric with bias. (Again, no pictures - we had limited card space and were staying in a scenic area, so Moxie made it clear that an overabundance of knit photos was verboten.) The short story is that I did it. I steeked diagonally, I cut, the edges disappeared, and everything was beautiful in the world. The fabric held! (I promise to repeat this trick at some point, with photos to boot, for those who are interested. Just not now.) I was elated!

I then set about making a triangular insert which I planned to sew into the void that the steek had created. This, too, was a thing of beauty. Harmoniously designed with a row of double eyelets down the center to mirror the eyelets which run up the front and back of the poncho. I knit two inserts to make sure that I would have enough fabric before I cut the second steek. I did. (Here's where I made my first truly intelligent move. I didn't crochet and cut the second steek. I wanted to be sure that the first side gave the effect I wanted before cutting the yarn into ever smaller pieces.) I sewed the insert into the seam. My sewing was beautiful too. But the seam wasn't. It was just too honking big, and the poncho which should have draped instead clunked out at the side. I can't think of an analogy to let you know what it looked like. You'll just have to trust that it was unweildy and ugly.

My husband, who is often not quite as supportive as I would like when it comes to my knitting, chose this strange juncture to be unusually supportive. He thought that perhaps if both sides were steeked, it would look better. I should just try it and keep moving forward. Also strangely, I took the opportunity to resort to my better judgment. I ignored him completely, despite wanting to believe that he was right, and un-seamed my inserts, frogged my inserts, ripped out my beloved, perfect-except-for-being-too-clunky diagonal crochet steeks, and frogged back to round 25 of the poncho.

I then took the 2 full skeins of Suede that I had left and the longest pieces of yarn from my frogging adventure and knit the full poncho as intended. I used the remaining strands (and there were lots, from the steeking) to fringe it. It's a wonderful, maniacal, harlot poncho and I love it. I'll probably get more wear out of this one silly piece than from all my Alice Starmores put together.

The moral of the story? Ponchos shouldn't have seams, and sometimes intrepid knitting is overrated. How's that for random and imperfect? Project notes to follow.

Chevron Tank

I'm still pre-occupied with unpacking boxes and job-hunting, so for the first time in months I find myself with very little current knitting news. I received my Cotton Glace in the mail from Jill and finished the last sleeve of my Peace Cardigan last Friday. It is now sitting in a plastic bag waiting for me to find the time and space to block it and add the collar and buttons. Maybe next week? I've done very little knitting since Friday, but when I have I've been working on the Knit Cafe Baby Binky that I'm going to eventually finish and send off to my now not-so-new nephew. When the cardi and the binky are done I'll be down to three projects. Pretty impressive, yes?

Luckily, I did lots of knitting on the way here, so I have some FO's to show off to you. Here's the Chevron Tank, photographed in Lake George. Excuse the "lake hair" I've got going on. It's too relaxing a place to be concerned with appearances...

Chevron Tank, Interweave Knits Free Pattern, Spring 2004, designed by Ann Budd
Knit with just under 3 skeins (150 yards/skein) of the recommended Blue Sky Alpaca's Organic Cotton (100% Organic Cotton) in Bone (80) on my Addi Turbo brass-plated circulars in size US 8 (5.0 mm) at a guage of 16 sts and 24 rows per 4 inches.

Pattern Notes:
First things first: IK has kindly offered Ann Budd's wonderful pattern for free to all who are interested. If you haven't checked it out previously, you can download the pdf pattern here. IK has several really wonderful free patterns on it's site, including the beloved Marilyn from it's sold out Spring 2004 issue, so if you haven't yet looked at what's on offer, you should.

Now that that's out of the way, here's the skinny on the Chevron Tank. It's fantastic. My only criticism would be that for someone of my size, it runs a little big. I thought it would be big going into the knitting, so I compensated by re-writing the pattern for one size smaller than the small size. I essentially knocked 6 stitches (1.5 inches) off both the front and the back and shaped accordingly. If you find that the pattern is not sized for your porportions I would highly recommend tweaking it. Despite its complex appearance, the Chevron Tank is a really straightforward piece that is very easy to re-size or to re-guage. So easy that I would also recommend this as a second tank to someone who is just beginning to knit shaped garments. You can learn a lot of techniques without getting into any trouble with this tank. It's a true Ann Budd classic - simple and timeless.

My down-sized Chevron Tank still turned out to be a little loose, mostly because I am small-chested. This is yet another knit that is greatly enhanced when you put a wonderbra on under it. (I have yet to find a garment that isn't.) In this case (unlike Pia) the looseness doesn't really matter. Armed with my wonderbra and a pair of close-fitting jeans ("stretch" is a wonderful thing), it's perfect.

If I made it again I would down-size it yet another time and try a finer guage yarn like Cotton Fleece or Cotton Classic. The effect of the chunky Organic Cotton is suprisingly wonderful, but I think it would be very slinky in a finer guage and will give that a try the next time around.

Overall, this is a very special, unique piece well worth making. I knit it in a week, and for those who are wondering, yes, I did finish it in California. I did the seaming on our front porch as I watched the movers take the last boxes down our stairs. It was a very peaceful way to say goodbye to our awesome view of downtown Glendale and the hills of Griffith Park.

The Chevron Tank made it's debut in Chicago, where we stopped along our cross-country journey to stay the night with friends and visit some of our old haunts. (Chicago is where Moxie and I first met. I lived there for 10 years and he lived there for 6, so it's a place that is close to our hearts.) The night we rolled into the city was still summery, with just a little evening chill, so I put on the Chevron Tank for our walk down Clark Street to the Red Sea, our favorite Ethiopian place. Good stuff. It was too late to take pictures, however, so the photoshoot took place on the boat at Lake George, which was also the perfect climate for tank wear. I'm guessing that unless we get a warm snap in D.C. I probably won't have the opportunity to wear the tank again until spring, but I was happy to get even a few weeks wear from a tank that I started in September.

Impressions of Organic Cotton:
I am a long time fan of Blue Sky Alpaca's yarns and have coveted them for years, but surprisingly, this was the first time I had ever actually knit up any of their offerings. I can now verify that my love of their fibers was well-placed. The hand of Organic Cotton is, admittedly, a little odd. There's something a little rough and fibrous about it - definitely organic. Not bad, just earthy. Hand is very important to me, so when I started knitting the swatch I was a little concerned about this "feature". However, this feeling transforms when you simply pick up the skein or when you wear the final finished project. Organic Cotton feels wonderfully soft against the skin and is a real luxury to wear. It's one of those fibers that can feel cozy and sexy at the same time. Not bad for a single yarn. I'm hooked.

If you read my earlier post on the Chevron Tank, you'll remember that I had some concerns about the chunkiness of this yarn (knit on US8's) for this particular project. In general, I think that I would be more likely to use Organic Cotton for a big cozy winter sweater than for summer fare. That said, I think in this particular case Ann Budd's choice to use it in a tank was nothing short of brilliant. Mind you, this is not the best fiber for the tank for those of you in Louisiana or Alabama in the heat. You'd find yourself damp and sticky in no time flat in this tank in the course of a humid summer. But for dry climates like California, Chicago, etc. where there can be a bit of a chill in the air or for transitional seasons like early fall or spring, it's perfect. The effect is a truly organic, almost Asian-inspired piece (think Habu), that is really incredible.

Possible substitute yarns:
Organic Cotton has a noticeable texture to it that gives it a natural sophistication. I honestly haven't seen this exact effect in another yarn, although I am sure some natural fibers company out there must make something like it. For the tank, you could substitute any 100% cotton and either double it to make guage (since most cottons on the market are finer) which would give you some of the texture that you'd lose from substituting a less organic yarn, or re-guage the parttern to make a slinker tank with a little more drape. Depending on the pattern (not this one!) wool could be a more appropriate substitute for this particular cotton. It has a loftiness that reminds me more of wool than cotton.

Tips for Others Making the Chevron Tank:
My best advice is to know your measurements. This tank requires about 2" of ease at the bust because it is long in the front and is going to need swing to clear your hips properly. An overly-clingy Chervron Tank could be a bad thing, so go a little big rather than a little small. (I'm a 31" bust and mine is a little roomy at 34" - 33" would be perfect). Don't be afraid to re-size the pattern or to re-guage it. It's a quick simple knit that will afford you a good opportunity to hone your customization techniques.

Other than that, there isn't much to say. Although the pattern involves decreases and bias knitting it's otherwise very easy and well-written. It's a happy knit.

More cool photos...

All vacations must end...

Luckily, ours won't for several more days. I know that's mean of me to post for all of you who are working and returning to school, etc., but I can't help it. This is the most relaxed I've been in years and I'm flaunting it. Courtesty of the cell phone cam, here is the setting that I am posting from at this very moment:

Thanks to the never-ending wonders of our wireless internet system, I can happily post away the afternoon while sitting on a boat in Lake George. The only thing that stands in my way is the late afternoon sun filtering through the trees, which occasionally obscures my view of the screen. Life, my friends, is good. (Lest you think that I have lived my entire life this way, dear readers, think again. I married into this world of lake house luxury and technical mastery. I feel I've done well.)

During this time of blogging hiatus I have pretended to have no connection to cyberspace, in an attempt to purge myself of some of my bad internet/knitting habits - continual blog surfing, knitting too many things at once, knitting to feed the blog, joining too many knit-alongs, etc. - you know the territory. And I must say that I feel much better for the exercise. I've been knitting like crazy, but I've only been working on one thing at a time and I have truly savored each project the way I used to before blog madness hit. The only reason that I have been as productive as I have is that I don't have to do much other than read, make an occasional dinner, go for lakeside runs, and play in the water. (I told you life was good.) I only have five projects on the needles and two more of them should be done soon, so I'm staying within my goal range of 3-5 WIPs (though honestly I have several projects that are hangers on which I need to complete and be done with).

I have snuck onto the internet a few times here and there to see what all of my blogging buddies are up to. There have been certain goings-on that have proven somewhat irresistible. I had to check out MDK's Sew Up Bee in NYC to see how that went. (So close and yet so far away. It kills me. There was a moment when I thought to myself that we'd be moving to DC, and DC is in the South, and Nashville is in the South, so I could maybe drive to the Sew Up Bee at Ann's house, right? I mapquested it. It's ten hours from DC to Nashville. The South is deceptively large.) I was teased by a beautiful Noro Afghan, but never really got what I truly longed for - the real story of how Ann and Kay got together for the blog. These two knitting soulmates who are a freakishily perfect match in technique and interest found eachother on the web? All I have to say is that if I don't get an entry from them with the real skinny soon (and I mean a real meat and bones entry, folks) I will be forced to make one up. Don't tempt me. Have boat. Have sun. Have Mac. Will write.

I also stopped in on the Yarn Harlot to follow her thrumb along (I have resisted joining per my current knit-along purge, but will doubtless try this technique later this winter) and her Rhinebeck Caper in which she attempts to design and knit an aran sweater in something like 10 days, so that she can wear it to show off to other knitting/cyberspace geeks. Despite my current purge and all instincts instilled in me as a small child about not being too competitive and showing off, I must admit that I am following the progress of the Rhinebeck sweater with great relish and have not just a little admiration for the utter bull-headedness of the entire endeavor. And, since Stephanie started her sweater the same day that I started mine, I've been sort of knitting-along. (Yes, I know I'm not supposed to.) I realize this is unfair. I'm on vacation and knitting a 3/4 sleeve cardigan while she is working and knitting and designing an aran. But I've decided that the fact that the cardigan I'm making is knit on US3 needles with cotton glace and requires miles of endless stockinette levels the field a bit. As it is, I'm not sure I'll make it. The pieces should be finished this weekend while we're visiting Moxie's family in Boston, but I don't think I'll be able to block and sew in time. We move into our DC brownstone next Tuesday and I'm just not sure that I'll be able to find blocking space before the weekend.

Oh, wait, what is that I see? Our neighbors are sailing...

Sorry, I got a little sidetracked there. I guess the only other thing I was going to mention about blogworld is that I discovered yet another great site: Another Knitting Blog when I was looking up the address for Stitch DC. The blogger lives in the DC area and has written about several cool area things that are knitting-related, including a review of Stitch DC. Very cool. Which leads me to the best part. Somehow, in all the chaos of the move, I neglected to take note of exactly how close we are going to be to Stitch DC. It is less than two blocks away from our house. And, with very few omissions, it carries almost all of my favorite yarn lines, which is pretty impressive. I think that I may have stumbled upon Nirvana....

Well, I should be off now, since technically I'm not supposed to be blogging yet. I will see you again in about a week to a week and a half when we get settled into our nation's fine capital. You'll just have to hold on a little longer before I trot out all my cool cross-country and Lake George FO's. (That will require something we packed accidentally - the USB cable to the digital camera). Be good.