Monday, November 24, 2014

Anchors Aweigh

Within a few days of our 19 week ultrasound, I placed an order on Knit Picks -- I had restrained myself from placing an order any sooner, which I was sorely tempted to do. But while I'm all for gender neutral newborn clothes (why not be able to use a garment for multiple children regardless of gender, especially considering how short a time they fit?), I knew I'd want to celebrate the gender reveal with a little "specific" knitting.



Not sure why the left neck/shoulder area looks a bit wonky in this photo -- while it's 
not picture perfect, it's not quite as "off" as it looks in this snapshot!

I incorporated the motif from the free Anchors Away (do they know it should be "aweigh?") dishcloth pattern to give it a nautical, masculine flair. Not to mention a little nod to the Navy! I worked up the anchor pattern in a scrap yarn first, and I am so glad that I did -- it was a bit tricky for me and included several new stitches (bobbles, for instance), so the practice was well worth the extra time and effort. I was just glad to find a raised anchor motif! I've never tried color work (and didn't have another color yarn, anyway), so this was actually the easiest option for me. 




Serendipitously, the anchor pattern fit nicely into the Pebble vest pattern. The only real change I had to make was to change the center body panels to purl instead of knit stitches. I actually rewrote the vest pattern with the anchor motif included, just so I wouldn't get confused. Quite honestly, I prefer the way it looks (I don't like the deep "recessed" look of the center area that I've seen in several finished Pebbles, plus I think the purl blends better with the borders), and will probably do the same on any future vests even if I'm not adding the anchor. Oh, I did also reduce the amount of border on the bottom edge, because I needed a few extra vertical rows to fit the anchor.




The shoulders were another area that I played around with -- I didn't think it would work as written, so I adjusted the number of rows. This was also my first time trying Kitchener stitch (joining two sets of "live" stitches), and while it didn't come out perfectly I'm very pleased. My only real disappointment with this project is that my edges are not *just so.* I tried a purl-wise slip at the beginning of each row, but either I forgot to do it on every row or something went wonky when I was taking out rows (which I had to do at multiple points!), because they're not as nice as I'd like. But overall the project turned out as I'd envisioned and the less-than-perfect edges are not very visible, so I'm not going to fret too much over that.




I can't say enough good things about the yarn I used! It's a mix of Tanguis cotton and linen, and has the most delightful hand. It's almost silky, in fact. The finished vest is relatively stretchy, so I think our little fellow will be able to wear it a bit past the newborn stage. The color is perfect -- not pastel, but not too "lively," either. Oh, and it was supposed to require two skeins, but ended up taking only one (with a smidgen left over). I went ahead and hand washed and blocked it, even though it's supposed to be machine washable and dryable. Is dryable a word? Hmm.




I'm so enjoying being able to knit things myself now -- my limited skills are gradually improving, and I feel each project teaches me something new. Even better? Finally learning the identity of the squirmy little one who seems to take delight in rearranging my insides. We can't wait to meet you, baby boy!

Raveled here.


6 comments:

  1. Shannon,

    Congratulations on your little boy!! The vest is adorable. I love the anchor motif. Your knitting is beautiful!

    -Sarah

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    1. Thank you, Sarah! I'm so glad you like the vest!

      Blessings,
      Shannon

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  2. What a sweet vest! I'm enjoying reading about your knitting projects. I feel exactly the same way: that each new thing I try is stretching my skills just a bit further :D Soon we'll be pros!
    Once you get your courage up, I would highly recommend stranded colorwork knitting. There's not a lot of use for double-thick wool knits in Florida, sadly, but it is so much fun! It's definitely my favorite kind of knitting.

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    1. Thank you, Laura Elizabeth! I've really been enjoying have a new craft to pursue -- while there's certainly much I could still learn about sewing, I feel my skills there are pretty much sufficient for the projects I like to do. Knitting, on the other hand, is offering me new avenues of creativity.

      I'll have to try stranded colorwork soon -- it's something I'd really like to do, but just haven't gotten up the nerve yet. :-) I've seen such beautiful examples, though, and would love to include patterns and such in my knitting.

      Blessings,
      Shannon

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  3. Beautiful handwork. I'm a crochetter but I would love to take up knitting too! I have so many crochet UFO's the transition is not likely to happen any time soon.

    Congratulations on your baby boy!!

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    1. Thank you for your kind words! I've dabbled a little with crochet, but my brain starts to melt after a little while. :-) I *was* going to be sooooo good about keeping current projects (and my yarn stash) to a minimum when I started knitting, but I currently have three knitting projects and far more yarn than I really need -- with more in the mail! At least my intentions were good. :-)

      Blessings,
      Shannon

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