Strickjacke

First of all, let me thank you for your incredible response. You are too good. And I am feeling bad because I said I would get back to you after the last posting and didn't. Especially if your are waiting for an email... please accept my apologies. At the moment we are all just suffering under the humid heat that finally set in, need so much time for all that has to be done, and in the evening I am too tired to think and write and instead just knit away and relax. We don't use air condition because we think it's so silly to cool down a place that's barely insulated, such a waste of energy, also eyes get dry and hurt. So it's really hot at home and I need so much time for everything because I feel so exhausted. What helps is to write down a list of little tasks, switch on some music that sets the right rhythm to stay in motion and work on that list in units of 30 minutes... If you have some great tips to get things done, please tell me.

The cardigan. Knitted, yes, but also a cardigan for knitting, therefore I called it Strickjacke - literally translated it would be something like knitting jacket like hiking boots or sleeping bag. I am knitting a lot in public, as I said before, throughout the year. Our winters here in the Kanto plain aren't very cold and nice sweater or cardigan are sufficient for most days.
And a cozy cardigan with short sleeves that don't interfere with your knitting sounded like a perfect idea to me. I liked the DROPS pattern 109-8 from the new Fall and Winter Collection 2008 as it was, but quickly imagined a version with short sleeves, just long enough to keep my arms warm.

The yarn I got only days before the pattern came out. It's Puppy Diffusion Alpaca Roving in a very nice heathery grey, soft, heavy, warm and shedding like mad. Courtenay of raptwithfiber had been warning me... the long alpaca hairs were all over the place once I started knitting. Time will tell if the shedding will stop at some point. I think it already got less, now that the yarn got knitted.

Once again I was happy about being on ravelry, because there I recently discovered Courtenay's gorgeous Buttony (here the ravelry link, knitted in a yarn I was coveting for months... found it in early spring, on sale at Yuzawaya, it looked beautiful, felt nice, but I wasn't sure how it would hold up... looked as if it would felt and pill quickly. So when I saw Courtenay's sweater I asked her about the yarn and she said it was fine. Besides the shedding. So I finally got that yarn. And I think it is fine, indeed.

Besides the sleeves I obviously did change, I did graft the hood instead of sewing which the pattern called for. Therefore I ended knitting the hood with 2 1/2 rows of garter stitch before kitchener stitching the halves together. With a half row of garter stitch a gap of stockinette stitch is avoided. Still some kind of seam is obvious. yet it is smooth and much nicer than an actual seam, I think.
The sleeves' length is a little bit on the boring side but it is decidedly above the elbow, so it seems like a good length to be short but also warm.

I would have liked a different hood, not such a pointy one but a round shaped, something I'd like to learn when doing a hooded sweater again, some day.

It was funny to knit with such a bulky yarn, I couldn't knit quickly, 7mm needles feel cumbersome to me. But despite of it it's so great how fast a piece is growing when using bulky yarn.

All in all I am quite happy how my Strickjacke turned out, an easy to folloe, simple pattern resulting in a simple cardigan.

So much for today.
Stay well and take good care of yourself!

PS: The next cardigan is already on the needles, I am making a Forecast in plain red merino.

Comments

[riker]

einen tip, was man bei einer solchen hitze in 30 minuten tun kann, habe ich leider nicht. hier brauch ich mir nämlich darüber keine gedanken machen... es ist ausgesprochen kalt und deine "strickjacke" wäre im moment genau das richtige für diesen deutschen sommer!
hast du diese bilder in dieser hitze gemacht?
eine schöne zeit! mit der "neuen" auf den nadeln.
wünscht rike.

[Sea Anemone]

what a lovely sweater! It looks so comfy and I love the sleeve length. I'm constantly pushing my sleeves up on sweaters so it seems like the perfect length. At least to me. :)

[monica]

We don't use an air conditioner either, and I think you're taking the same approach that I do - I just try to do things slowly and methodically, so that I don't get too hot. We just fake a breeze by placing a very low watt fan in front of the open window to keep the air moving. It's so wonderful to listen to the crickets chirp at night!

[Emma]

That's such a lovely cardigan! I love the colour and the buttons, they are perfect! You knitting so inspires me to keep trying to pursue knitting, but so far I've barely mastered casting on...

[Rosie Graham]

Try putting your yarn in the freezer for a 20 minutes to stop the shedding, it works well with mohair so should work with alpaca. Great cardi by the way.
Rosie

[Tania Ho]

oohh, how I love this ! That Drops pattern didn't look so appealing to me before, but your version is so much better. One more to add to my ravelry queue ;)

[Asiye Ivedi]

Schoen!
Love your jacket. How do you shorten the pattern of the sleeve?
I find that shorter sleeves jackets are really practical for a mild winter like we have here too.

[Anita]

Your sweater is beautiful! I love the idea of a knitting jacket - much like a smoking jacket. All your handwork is so inspiring. It calls to me to slow down and enjoy.

[georgia]

When we lived in Singapore we didn't use the airconditioners either-just the ceiling fans. And I knitted there too. I had to for the children for trips home in the winter.

I love this jacket. I have joined ravelry thanks to you, but I have to say I find it a little overwhelming. I feel like I could get lost in there. I have already found 2 DROPS patterns that I'm really keen to try (haven't made list of projects there-it feels like it's tying me down).

Can't wait to see what you knit next....and how is that liberty leaves quilt going???

[Péitseoga]

schicke jacke!!

[anilia]

All the knitting in the heat is just amazing! I have put my little quilt on the side because I can't stand the weight of it in the heat. We use the a/c just for sleeping if it is too sticky in the bedroom and we are lucky enough to have a unit that just cools each room individually. Funny enough, setting it to 80 degrees is plenty cool! We are also lucky to have a nice porch to relax on in the shade with a bit of breeze.
I don't get anything done when I am too hot. I have to rest or risk passing out every time I stand up...

[josie]

Beautiful, as always.

[Cyn]

I love your cardigan is really well made as always, and the color is fantastic. I admire you because even with this hard hot weather you are working so hard.
I suggest have a lot of lemonade with a little salt it is great to not loose minerals and keep you energetic!!!
Have fun with your new projects I fallow every day :)

[bethgem]

What a beautiful cardigan. I've had cardigans and sweaters haunting my mind ever since I got a Rowan "garden style" booklet of patterns.

[Steph]

Love!!! Erstaunlich was fuer einen Unterschied Farbe macht. Ich fand die Jacke auf der website schoen aber nicht umwerfend, aber Deine Version in hellem grau finde ich fantastisch!

[melissa]

Lovely cardigan! I love the collar and sleeves.

[ulli]

wunderschön! die jacke sieht so weich und kuschelig aus. und ich liebe die farbe.

[Sonya]

Oh how you suffer for your craft! Modeling all these amazing woolens in the heat. I love the sleeve length.

[Paula]

Beautiful jacket and great knitting! congratulations!.
I completely agree with you when you say about the long sleeves and knitting needles.

[yarnsnob]

What a stunning sweater! Another one to add to my list!!! Wonderful, your knits are always so beautiful!

[lucy]

You're on a sweater roll! I love this one too. It feels warm and cozy and it's simplicity is just flattering on you! As always, I enjoy your photos of projects!

[Kirsten]

Love it!! That Strikejacke is fantastic!!!

[Vanessa]

I would SO like to touch that lovely soft-looking strikejacke!

[sue]

It is absolutely beautiful. What a perfect cardigan for you to wear, especially in the warmer weather too.

[Sara]

Here's two tips for staying cool.

1) Get a plant mister that will mist a very fine spray. Put cold water in it, lie on the bed, and every 10 seconds spray a fine mist toward the ceiling. The water will slowly fall down on you. It feels very cool. You don't get much done this way, but it feels good when you are desperate.

2) EVEN BETTER! Make some of these: http://www.instructables.com/id/Sew-Very-Useful-Neck-Cooler/
They are fantastic!!! Don't fill them too full with the beads, because they swell when wet. They help for a long time, then you just wet it again.