The Boyfriend Jumper - Or Why Do All Male Knitting Patterns Look the Same?

In late 2009 I knitted a jumper for David. He wanted a warm, cosy jumper that he could wear all winter round and I was happy to oblige. The only problem was that men's jumpers are generally written for men of a very different body shape to David. I had never really thought about men having similar clothes shopping problems to women, but they do. David is very, very slim - and so I ended up calculating a jumper based upon a women's 36" jumper. However, David has much broader shoulder (and slimmer hips) than an average woman and so I was never really happy with the fit. I knitted the jumper out of New Lanark Aran in the Bramble shade with the yoke details in Noro Kureyon sh 124. David wanted deep, intense colours and that is what he got. Over the years David has worn the jumper a lot - essentially every single day between September and May for four years. It has become his trademark uniform for every knitting show he has attended (and he gets recognised now because of it: look, Mr Bookish in his beetroot jumper!). I have reknitted the ribbing twice - the neckline and the hemline have been particularly prone to fraying - and I have also reinforced the neckline as the yoke has grown over the years. Now the elbows need mending as they are this close to wearing out.

I think we have come to the point where I am happy to mend the elbows, but I should perhaps knit David a new jumper so he has another one he can wear day-in/day-out.

The discussion went something like this:

Me: "You know, I'm really busy with samples but I was thinking that maybe I should try to kni.."

David: "YES! I want a new jumper and I want it to be deep teal but not in a solid way but maybe with a tweedy or heathered feel and then I want red and orange details at the yoke. And then the fit should be slightly different. It is a bit too relaxed around the body and I'd want it to be more fitted too. Look, here's the sort of colour I want but actually a bit darker.."

And at that point David showed me a ball of Rowan Fine Tweed he had found in my stash. Not that he had been waiting to tell me about the jumper he had been plotting in his head. Not at all. We started looking at online yarn shops for the perfect deep teal yarn but eventually we decided upon yet another jumper in New Lanark Aran. David loves the feel of his current jumper and my stash came up with the Raven shade (limited edition shade!).

Now we just have to find a pattern for a men's jumper - and this is where I will probably have to sit down to calculate my own pattern. The choice of mens' pattern has improved immensely since I last looked in 2009 but the vast majority of jumpers are still in the "plenty of ease" category and the smallest sizes would simply drown my boyfriend. It's also startling how many men's patterns include cables - unfortunately David loathes cables. Still, I am heartened by designers like Todd Gocken and Josh Bennett who both think men deserve something a bit more modern looking. My good friend Ben Wilson has long been hinting at a men's collection with a modern silhouette - his We All Play Synth pattern isn't quite what I need for David's jumper, but it is much closer than 99.9% of men's patterns on Ravelry. There is definitely room for more patterns of that ilk. Get on with it, Ben!

A handful of modern men's jumpers (and how interesting that all bar one are designed by men!):

• Drangey - Stephen West.
• Hell's Kitchen - Josh Bennett
• Brigade - Todd Gocken
• Leviathan - Drapes & Robertson
• Svethninge - Vithard Villumsen (I once sat behind Vithard on a train in Denmark and wondered if I should introduce myself. Awkward.)

Apropos of nothing, John Lewis Oxford Street is offering men-only knitting classes - maybe that's a sign of a possible sea change? Maybe next time I have to knit David a jumper (2017!) I'll be able to do what's so easy to do with women's patterns: go to Ravelry, type in a few key words and have 500+ patterns to choose from. I hope so. Men deserve better.

Something About Lace

I am working on a series of blog posts - hence the silence. For now enjoy this wonderful little video about Shetland lace (via Snàth Handspun):

On a similar note, I am running a workshop on triangular lace shawls in Edinburgh's Be Inspired Fibres later this month.

Be back soon with that mammoth blog series ..

Wardrobe Project #1: The Stevie Cardigan

. When my friend Paula first knitted her Stevie cardigan some two years ago, I was somewhat jealous. Paula had frequently worked on the cardigan at knit night and I had been struck by just how fun it looked. Then Paula started wearing her cardigan and I loved the finished item. I coveted it. It looked put-together but had a certain quirkiness to it too. You could dress it up and dress it down. Paula kept wearing and wearing her cardigan - in fact she began calling it her "go-to cardigan". Aaaghr. Earlier this year I got hold of some Rowan Wool Cotton for a project that didn't pan out for various reasons. I looked around for a pattern that would suit the yarn. And, you guessed it, Paula turned up at knit night wearing her Stevie cardigan. Three months later I finally have my own Stevie cardigan and I absolutely freaking love it.

Fact box:

Yarn: Rowan Wool Cotton DK in French Navy. 10.5 balls. Pattern: Stevie by Sarah Hatton from rowan Studio 24 Needles: 3.25mm & 4mm

Stevie is knitted top-down (which I have to admit still really appeals to me even if I know why pieces knitted flat are structurally sounder in many ways). The yoke is the most involved piece of knitting as you have to work some short rows across ribbing and you also increase in a specific matter. Still, it is not more involved than I was able to do it whilst at knit night.

The rest of the cardigan is very, very plain sailing - especially if you have done any other top-down garments. Pure stocking stitch, some waist shaping and then ribbing.

The ease of knitting Stevie meant that I made some - ahem - involuntary modifications. The biggest difference is in my choice of ribbing. I used 1x1 ribbing rather than the 2x2 ribbing prescribed by the pattern. I actually think it looks just as nice.

Other mods: I shortened the body by a few inches (I have a short waist) and lengthened the sleeves (I have monkey arms).

I began knitting this in early June. If I hadn't had other things on my needles - specifically four shawls, a scarf, two cowls and four hats - I might have finished Stevie within a fortnight or so. It is a fast, easy knit and I enjoyed it immensely.

Would I do things differently, though? I would probably add another two inches to the sleeves. Even with the added length they are .. well, "bracelet length" is what I have seen some people call it. I would also move the waist shaping a few inches north.

And I'd also do some rather severe waist shaping.

It has been so long since I last did a top-down cardigan that I forgot a few basic rules: I am very top-heavy and if I knit something that will fit across my bust, I need to adjust the fit around my (much smaller) waist. The cardigan is too big around my waist, alas. If I had more time on my hands, I'd rip back and undo it. Maybe I still will - though it is a tiny cosmetic flaw that few people will notice beside myself.

Some words about the yarn: I had worked with Wool Cotton before but mainly for small projects. I am very, very pleased by how it knitted up and how much I enjoyed using it. The yarn is a 50/50 mix of merino wool and cotton - which makes it a perfect yarn for Scotland as it will take me from spring, through summer and into autumn. The stitch definition is excellent and it feels lovely against my skin. Having seen how Paula's cardigan wears, I am certain this cardigan will last me years as well. I can see Wool Cotton become yet another one of my go-to yarns - I do try to use a many different yarns as I can but there is something to be said for good, reliable workhorse yarns.

I am also very taken with the deep inkiness of the navy blue.

Buttons. Let us talk briefly about the buttons. I was dithering between a couple of options.

First I ruled out using red buttons although I am a big fan of combining red and navy. Using red buttons would have limited the appeal of the cardigan. I wanted a basic go-to style rather than a bold "here I am" statement.

Then I was looking at some small bronze buttons that I had bought at Woolfest. I liked the matte surface of the buttons and how the red-brown colour played with the navy. Eventually I realised that the buttons would be too small for the cardigan.  I have this silly idea that the size of the button should correspond to the thickness of the yarn used - and the bronze buttons were destined for a 4ply project rather than a DK one.

And then my Other Half dug out these shell buttons. We both liked how the pattern on the buttons called back to the shaping of the yoke. The size was right too - as was the natural colour.

So here we are. The first cardigan in my ongoing project to knit wardrobe staples. It is incredibly comfortable to wear, it works with so many things in my wardrobe and it was a joy to knit.

Don't forget to leave me suggestions for wardrobe staples - I am always on the lookout for more patterns to add to my queue!

Botanical Gardens Shawl

Welcome to new visitors brought here by Knit Now and Yarnwise magazines! It has been a bit of a bumper week in terms of media coverage, it is fair to say. I have a pattern in the latest issue of Knit Now. The Botanical Gardens Shawl was a lot of fun to design: it starts off as a standard stocking stitch triangular shawl and then moves into a striking flower pattern which gives way to softly falling petals. I really enjoyed designing something that just flows organically from one stitch pattern into another and which  looks clean & non-fussy.

The shawl also served as a master-class in how magazine work actually works. It is not a designer having a definite vision: it is always a collaboration.

I designed this shawl for Knit Now's Garden Party story in December or January. I first envisioned the shawl knitted in lace-weight yarn and in soft pastel colours - a very soft sage green or a pretty primrose. The Knit Now team suggested the gradient SparkLynne 4ply yarn from The Knitting Goddess instead - the chosen colourway ran from a cool white via pale lavender to  a dark violet. It was a completely different direction but the graduation works perfectly with the way the stitches travel and a 4ply makes far more sense too. The ombre yarn meant that the shawl was moved from the Garden Party issue to the Colour Graduation issue as well - and the shawl works so well within the context of the other designs in the issue.

(I know that Joy of The Knitting Goddess is planning on restocking her shop with more colour-gradient yarns, so if you don't see a colourway straightaway - keep looking!)

Both Knit Now and Yarnwise focus on my Doggerland collection - Knit Now has a wonderful interview with Fiona of The Island Wool Company and Yarnwise has written an entire feature about the collection(!). I know a lot of people are still trying to catch up on knitting from the collection, so I am slowing things down a tiny bit. The next pattern is a unisex pattern and it should be out by mid-week next week.

So, it has been a bumper week - maybe it is more like a bumper year, really. Apart from the Doggerland collection, I have more 'things' in the pipeline. I am working with Old Maiden Aunt on a special project which will be unveiled in November, I'm collaborating with The Yarn Project, and I am also busy swatching for other 2014 work. I can show you a tiny, tiny glimpse of what I worked on yesterday - any guesses?

Autumn/Winter 2013 Knitting Plans - the Rowan Edition

I do love this time of year. It is still warm outside but there is a hint of autumn in the air. A faint promise that one day I can wear my tweed skirts, my woolly jumpers and my favourite coat once more. This is the season of new autumn/winter yarns too and I had a go at swatching some colourwork in the new Rowan Angora Haze yarn. Unfortunately I think I am allergic to angora (lots of sneezing plus some red blotches on my hands) but my swatch is very, very pretty. The yarn has a great handle and blocks beautifully.

I had planned on knitting myself a 1950s angora jumper in red (think  Ed Wood and, yes, that is Johnny Depp) but that plan will have to change. Also, I think I shall revert to my stated intent of knitting wardrobe staples rather than throw myself into some flights of fancy. I have limited knitting time for myself and I need to get clever about what I knit. Incidentally, my Stevie cardigan is one sleeve away from being finished and I'm very excited about the fit. More on that when it happens!

In my books, wardrobe staples & sensible knits do not need to equal "boring knitting experience". I have learned that I need projects that I can work on at knit nights and patterns heavy on stock stitch deliver that - they just need to have some little detail that makes for some knitterly fun too. Onwards for a look at the Rowan autumn/Winter 2013 patterns, then.  My favourites in no particular order:

Tabatha is on my short list - stripes never go out of fashion and it looks like a great layering piece. Colour choice will determine just how versatile it will be. I can see this knitted in shades of grey or a navy/cream. A less classic look would go for black plus shocking pink - or maybe red and pink like my Angora Haze swatch?

Land Girl's Moving Cable Sweater needs long sleeves but then it'd work perfectly for the Bloomsbury Librarian look I tend to work every autumn/winter. Rowan Felted Tweed has a gorgeous colour palette - deep burgundy? dark green? camel? dusty brown?

I love, love Monyash. It would, however, not be a great knit night project nor is it a sensible knit. It is just gorgeous. Wicken is designed for Rowan Alpaca Colour, a self-striping DK alpaca. I'm thinking it could look marvellous in a solid colour too. I just adore its shape - could it work on me, though?

Anatolia is another "not that sensible but just look at it" pattern. I'd change the colour palette subtly to make it look even more like a faded kelim rug. It'd work like a charm for the Bloomsbury Librarian look too - and I could knit it in the round! (I feel like I'm persuading myself here)

And another colourwork project: the Bodrum jumper. I'm linking to the men's version, though there is a free ladies' version. I just prefer the male colour svheme with its deep browns, reds and mustard yellows. I recently finished a small project in Rowan Fine Tweed (one of those I cannot talk about just yet) and I'm rather keen on knitting something for myself in Fine Tweed. It blocks like a dream.

Funny how I started out all "yay! sensible knits in stocking stitch!" and ended up writing about intricate colourwork. Happens every year..

Made by Hand: The Gillean Wrist Warmers

The fourth pattern from the Doggerland collection was released today: the Gillean wrist warmers. I am slightly perplexed how we have managed to hit the halfway mark already - but I am also proud of how the collection is coming together. I was so nervous that I wasn't going to be able to do justice to the ideas in my head but somehow it is all working out. The Gillean wrist warmers are all about my fascination with hands.

Since I began knitting again, I have been aware of my hands in ways I had not been before. There is an element of inhabiting the craft with your body and being conscious of how your body influences the craft. Sometimes I get into a creative flow: I no longer notice what my hands are doing and how they are moving. I am knitting and yet I am no longer knitting. My hands have taken over and they work the stitches, carry the yarn and hold the needles while I am doing something else. My body occupies another space to me. It is a peculiar feeling.

But then the flow is interrupted. A stitch is snagged on the needle, I need to change colour or the yarn has fallen underneath the chair. And that is when I start to contemplate my relationship with my hands.

My hands are fragile and sore today but they fascinate me by being so capable and strong. They are marvellously complex and marvellously versatile.  They ache sometimes, oh yes, and I can see an indenture on my finger where I carry the yarn, but my hands is what makes creation possible for me. I write, paint and knit. My hands turn my ideas into reality - these 54 bones enable me to articulate and transform my thoughts.

Our hands hold, break, give, take, make, mould, and change things.

Humans have been employing their hands since prehistory and we can read the past through the traces of their hands: a crushed hazelnut shell, a crafted tool, smears of paints on a cave wall. I look at my knitting and I know I am leaving behind my own traces, however ephemeral. These wrist warmers did not exist before my hands made them. They will shelter my hands; they are my crushed hazelnut shells and discarded flint flakes.

I have long considered taking on an art project regarding crafters' hands - how our hands interact with our craft, how our chosen craft have a physical effect upon our hands. Hand-spinners often see their drafting hand take on a different appearance to their non-drafting hand, I have an indenture on my finger from carrying yarns, and needle-workers can develop callused fingers immune to any needle-prick. I am sure there are many other examples. The question is really if I have enough time to take on such a project - and so I leave the idea here (though comments with examples of crafters' bodies changing due to chosen craft would be appreciated).

Halfway through Doggerland. Next pattern will be an actual journey into Doggerland itself - we have just been visiting its periphery so far.