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Dear Ann,

Happy New Year! And more importantly, Happy Fringe and Friends Logalong! The wait for this log cabin-themed knitalong/makealong, which Karen Templer announced last October, has been tantalizing. I did not want to start ahead of time, for fear of blasting through my project in secret joy, and then not having anything to talk about anymore.

Together with other members of the august panel that Karen Templer has assembled for this makealong adventure, I explained my general plan over at the Fringe Association blog.

The idea sprang from Karen’s very first post announcing the logalong. She posted this sketch:

I thought: A HA. Everybody will be expecting me, the self-styled Log Cabin Queen, to knit some major acreage of log cabin blanket, or perhaps a tiny house or other abode. I’ll fool them all!  I’ll make a garment! A dainty little slip of a garment!

Since submitting my swatch and my plans to Karen, I’ve refined the plan a bit.

Cracking open 2018’s brand-new Leuchtturm 1917 medium dotted-grid notebook, I sketched my first idea.

Thing to notice: I’ve added sleeves, and some shaping under the arms. This change was inspired by knitting my second Relax pullover, while wearing my first Relax pullover. Until you get to the underarm shaping, the front and back of Relax are two rectangles of stockinette. The underarm increases seem to be part of the magic of this favorite, much-worn sweater; they form partial dolman sleeves. I decided I would include simple underarm shaping in my Logalong top, along with the tiny, flipper-like rest of the sleeves.

Log Cabin mavens will notice that the arrangement of strips forms a Courthouse Steps log cabin, instead of the traditional spiraling strips. My goal: to create a flattering surface design that counteracts the blocky squareness of a typical log cabin. Courthouse Steps creates pyramid shapes (which I highlighted by shading on my sketch): sort of an hourglass effect. Instead of starting with a square, I elongated the center patch, trying to get more verticality.

Pressed for time when I was swatching, I stopped before the 4th (bottom) strip of the Courthouse Steps shape.

I kept looking at that swatch. I thought: maybe this upside-down U shape is actually better for my sweater than a completed Courthouse Steps. So I sketched that idea out in ye olde reliable Leuchtturm.

 

I liked it. But it still looked kind of funny to me. That wide triangle made the sweater visually top-heavy, and the horizontal strips dominated. What if I flipped it, to a right-side-up U shape?

Bingo! This, for now, is what I’m planning to knit.

What are the numbers? That’s the order in which I am knitting the strips.  (The vertical strips get repeated on the east and west sides of the block, hence two 2s, 4s, 6s, etc.)

Fun fact: until I get to strips 12 and 13, the only “pattern”  I need is the instructions for the U-shaped cloth in Modern Daily Knitting Field Guide No. 4: Log CabinPresent me is thanking past me for including the U shape in the Log Cabin Cloths collection.

So yes: this sweater is basically going to be a dishrag. A light ‘n’ luscious, wearable dishrag. A new frontier for dishrags.

I like the way strips 12 and 13 almost look like a yoke at the top of the sweater. Those two blocks could be just one block. I’ll decide when I get there.

Now, onward, to the knitting!  My yarn (Jade Sapphire’s Sylph, shade Eddy) is wound. I am going to become expert at picking up stitches in the thin strands of this linen-cashmere blend.

Look for me in the Lounge and over on Instagram, where I will be hogging and haunting the #fringeandfriendslogalong hashtag. I can’t wait to see what everybody is making.

Love,

Kay

25 Comments

  • Kay, I love uour plans for this project! The plans for my own project also is based on courthouse steps, but is not so well evolved as yours. I think that this is a wonderful idea for a knit along and can’t wait to see all tof the great ideas that folks will have.

  • This “walk thru” of the design process was very helpful and enlightening. Thanks for showing the power of sketching.

  • I appreciate your details about sketching. I always think I should do more of this yet don’t know where to start. The detailed, specific example will be generally useful. Plus, I think this would be lovely.

  • Oh Kay, this is just brilliant! I love how the Log Cabin and variants have laid so many foundations of creativity. I’m also using Courthouse Steps but in gradients of 2 colors. Thanks for the inspiration and encouragement, this is going to be so much fun. Happy New Year.

  • Love this. I have some other things planned before I log a long, but I might steal this idea one day.

    • I’m with you—other projects for now, but will benefit from the logalong for later projects. Kay’s middle sketch would be my choice—I’m small on top and need the enhancement of those horizontal strips.

  • Very smart of you to think about the placement of the verticle and the horizontal.I have both a large stomach and large breasts but no shoulders. I’d have to think a while on my placement. I think this sweater/dishrag is going to be a big winner.

  • I love it. “A light and luscious reliable dishrag.” is typical of your writing style. You have been cracking me on your blog for a good many years now – in fact, you “reliably” crack me up. I hope you’ll be cracking me up for years to come. Happy 2018.

    • Thank you dear Good Enough!

  • Yes, thank you for showing your thought process. Very helpful…

  • Thank you for sharing your creative process. But Kay, I really wanted to give you a giant thank you for sharing your Bullet Journal love and method! I have never been able to find a planner method that I would stick with-until now. I am hooked and love it. I did fall off the wagon for a stressful life month but then just opened it up and carried on. Mine is more simple-not much art or excitement but it works for me. I did go with a bit-o-bling and get the 100th Anniversary Copper Leuchtturm 1917 and got a gold one for my next go round. Dotted-grid of course!

    MDK-not just for knitting but for life! Raising my MDK mug that I got for Christmas to you both! My fella, Andrew, loved meeting you Ann!

    • The whole key for me is that after a period of neglect, when I really need to get a handle on things, I can pick it up again and not have all those blank pages staring at me that I missed! This year I’m looking into “printables” that have been cooked up by other Bullet Journal enthusiasts to help with the planning and list-making. But they are all optional!

      I’m so glad it’s working for you.

  • LOVING THIS!!!

  • The design looks great. You could also try using a slightly darker color for the vertical strips — it might give a slimming effect, but it might also make the sweater look like a maternity top! Even if you don’t try this idea, you’d always have something to talk about. Even if it is how you got the Big Floral Damask Thing down off the top of the Empire State Building ;-)!

  • Such a clever design! You are indeed the Log Cabin Queen!

  • Is that a copper or *rose gold* Leuchtturm?! The young ‘uns are going to steal that cutting-edge thing! My 2018 Leuchtturm is army green and somehow I’m so enamored with the idea of it that I can’t yet open the shipping box and actually touch it.

    • Copper. Just start. If it isn’t right you can change it up next week!

  • Mmmmm, I’m kind of liking your first sketch, too. If you make the verticals dark and the horizontals light, it looks like all my favorite swimsuits and bike jerseys. Very slimming!

    I’ll incubate the logalong ideas for a bit longer. Currently admiring the colors of the ocean and I may have to run with those!

  • Are you going to make a MONOCHROME log cabin?

    • Yes, that’s the idea!

      • Cool! (The first time I typed that, my left hand was misplaced and it came out Wool!, which is good too.) Lovely neutral.

  • As the maker (and constant wearer) of three Relax sweaters, I recognized the connection (in your plan) right away. (Honestly, I am tempted to make a fourth one, just cuz.) Anyway, on to my point, which is that I think those narrow sleeves are key to why such a voluminous, boxy shape is actually flattering. The more delicate sleeves, give it balance. Look forward to seeing this, Kay!

    • It’s a nice piece of stockinette to have standing by, and eventually it’s a really great sweater with very little fuss. I’ve had a bit of a pfaff because I am a bit short of yarn and it’s a discontinued yarn. But a friend has come to the rescue so soon I will put the little flippers on and get to wear my new Relax!

  • Kay your sweater idea looks intriguing will you publish directions when you get yours done? I have some Painted Sky that I think might look like a million bucks in that pattern.

  • I like the cascading-downwards effect of your first iteration. Seems more slimming… 🙂

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