Projects
Crowberry Sweater: Catching Up
Dear Kay,
Yeah, that was me, running behind the Bang Out a Sweater bandwagon, yelling “HOLD UP WAIT UP!”
I’m happy to report that catching up on the Crowberry Sweater is easy to do, considering it’s worked at a large gauge, and it’s a cropped silhouette. It happens fast, this one.
And I benefitted enormously from the virtual class that Lorilee Beltman has been teaching here on MDK in the past month. She has taken us through this project with so much care—I’ve learned a lot.
Casting on my Crowberry Sweater was such an exercise in delayed gratification. I was late to the party because I kept dithering about what colors to use. My indecision evaporated once I looked at all my favorite sweaters and acknowledged the fact that rain or shine, gray is a color that I really love to wear.
This Plotulopi in Grey. It’s held with laceweight Love Story Einband, in Natural White. I could have gone with Love Story in Natural Grey or Basalt Grey, for a low-key, tonal look. But I thought the white marling looked like maybe an Icelandic lava field with a dusting of snow on it.
Or something!
The yoke on my Crowberry Sweater is actually the same colorway as the one specified by Hélène Magnússon’s pattern, though I reversed the background color and the leaf color.
I made the dark green the background color so that the yoke would stand out against the pale gray. Here you can see the original colorway—the pale green would have washed out had I used it for the background color.
My bobbles are a work in progress, kind of wobbly, wonky, lumpen, odd. Gonna keep working on them—I have two more rounds with bobbles to go. Am hoping for a triumphant blocking moment.
Bobbled out, I decided to pivot to sleeves for a palate cleanser and also something easy to do while watching Break Point, the Netflix docuseries about pro tennis. I always forget that tennis is the worst sport for knitting—you look down and all of a sudden somebody just won a set.
I started cranking on a sleeve, thinking that would hold me for the weekend. But no! The sleeves happened so fast that I got to the end of the second sleeve before I could get to MDK World HQ for another ball of Love Story Einband.
So I subbed in some leftover Camellia Fiber Co. Fuzzy Yak Lace. Interesting! All of a sudden, my sleeve blurs a little, softens, is a different fabric.
I may just keep it. It’ll remind me of the night that when I watched all those brilliant tennis players play brilliant tennis. I was so invested, so fast. The thrill of victory, the agony of defeat!
Really fun to see all the conversation in the MDK Lounge as everybody works on their Crowberries. And the projects on Ravelry reveal all sorts of color ideas. So much glorious knitting.
Love,
Ann
Ann, at least with tennis they will show replays between points. I discovered during the 2022 Winter Olympics that, in fact, ice dancing is the worst to knit by. Nothing is stopped or replayed lest the flow of the routine be interrupted. The rewind button on my remote was used heavily.
Oh, my goodness, Ann! I love what happened with that different yarn on your sleeve. It’s so subtle. Like a yarn poem. That just has something about it. Hugs!
I really miss that phrase. When is ABC going to take back the Olympics? It seems like NBC has negotiated an infinite contract for it. I think you will look great in the gray/grey and loved your description of the change in the marled effect. How lucky we are that we get to play with color.
Your bobbles look perfectly bobbly in the photo Ann! And the dark color definitely smooths out any potential odd bob effect. Lorilee’s method for slipping the bobble recipient stitch and making another pass, or bobbling and weaving as I came to think of it, was brilliant and a bobble game changer. It was very fun seeing you during class and so glad you got to catch up, it looks great!
Yes! Slipping next-round bobbling is so clever! Game changer for me too. Bobbling and weaving, so funny!
The color combo on the yoke gives balanced color and every color is seen. I am poking along on mine, vest colors but long sleeves and I’ll work some colors at the ends of the sleeves. I may cut to the sleeves today and leave the yoke for later. I like the white einband with the gray. Very like a lava field with bits of snow, I’m sure.
Ann, tell us the whole truth — you really love to wear gray sweaters because gray hides loose cat hair better than any other color!
If you were a sweater you would be this sweater.
I’m running behind yelling ‘wait up!!’ too! Loving the knitting though … hoping to finish mine this month!
I love color, but gray is my favorite, go-to neutral! Love the sweater!
It’s amazing the difference between those haloed threads, I love how you go with the flow, Ann!
This piece made me so appreciative of your candor and generosity to share because I, too, am one of those in the back originally saying, “Hold Up Wait Up” but now rationalizing that it’s good to hang back and learn from others experiences. heehee
My excuse for pausing after two rows of bobbles is/was March Madness and in particular the underdogs on the men’s side and the fabulousness of women’s bball overall!!!
This is MY kind of sweater and it doesn’t have to be heavy !
So I’m off to find the perfect yarn combinations in your perfect yarn choices !
I, too, am playing catch up. Same reasons. But now I”m ready for the color work yoke and still undecided on the color for the bobbles. Eeeny, Meeny, Miney, Mo,,,,,,,,
Very fast knit. LOVE your colors, ANN!!
Beautiful! I finished my sweater a day late, on April 1st, in a lovely for the main color. Before seeing this post, I’d bought a nice medium gray to make another for my mom for mother’s day. I’m looking forward to knitting this one again, except for the dreaded bobbles.
Finished my Crowberry sweater and made short sleeves as I didn’t have enough for long, but I really like it except for the neckline. No short row shaping , I find it a bit too high front. Thinking of taking it back and just making a little rolled edge.