Linden
For all the process knitters out there, I thought I'd share the knittterly aspects of Linden. (Linden was published last week in the new superstar mag Twist Collective; don't even bother reading the end of this post if you haven’t seen it! Go now! You can come back later.)Still here? Ok - Linden, which I had unimaginatively named 'trapeze cardigan' (I was tired; all these knits were designed around the same time, you know) was a departure. I usually draft my patterns using the flat pattern method using Garment Designer before converting them to a full chart. However, I was given a half scale dummy for christmas last year* and I felt like draping this time around - you can see my first attempts here.You can see in the photograph of the muslin that I considered a cocoon shape but was unsure about it; in order to keep my options open, I worked a provisional cast on so that I might decrease afterwards instead of working a straight hem. I didn't in the end, but kept the provisional cast-on because it allows decreases within the cables so that these wouldn't spread out unattractively and makes for a seamless garter st band. I'd be curious to see if anyone decides to opt for a cocoon shape, though.After the muslin was draped, a raglan shape emerged. As a side note, I think that loose fitting pieces are given a bad rap - I don't think that they are as invariably unflattering as they are sometimes reported to be. I think that it's all about the shoulder: consideration has to be given to where the lines of the garment falls. Furthermore, sweaters that are a true T shape often tend to produce extra bulk though the bicep and the underarm. For that reason, I've been playing of late with modifying the angle of the sleeve when I design raglan garments (such as Colette). Which is why the decreases on the sleeves differ from those on the body pieces.Other fun things** are the mirrored cables, short row collar and the little points on each front and sleeve. And double decreases (love those). Not to mention the fantastic yarn...*I had asked for it; my in-laws were perplexed and wondered why Mars was giving me a doll all of a sudden.**Fun for me. I may be easily entertained, but those details do keep me amused.