It began with the yarn this time, which for me, is very unusual; beautiful Rowan Felted Tweed DK mostly in navy and a variety of other colors that were in my stash. I have quite a collection of this yarn due to sales, left over from projects, and some from projects that have been reconsidered. And recently, I’ve made a concerted effort to deal with some of these balls of yarn that have been hanging around now for some time. So, I set out looking for a pattern that involved multiple colors and, of course, would work up to gauge. Figuring it was Rowan yarn, I set upon looking for a Rowan pattern predicting I would have quite the choice. And, I suppose stripes were on my mind as I have been noticing an abundance of striped projects recently flowing through on Ravelry. Of course, fair isle lurked as a possibility, as well. When I saw Julia Frank‘s short row pullover with a 70’s graphic theme, I knew that my search was over.
So, began the fun part, the choosing of the four colors. I love red and thought that the red would brighten up the color scheme beautifully and so I purposely set out to place that red in the most conspicuous stripes.
Well, I was so excited, changing the needle size and stitch count a gazillion times to get the right gauge and was off and running. I completed the back, blocked it, and left it to dry. Upon returning home after work ready to begin the front, I stopped short. It looked exactly like:
Three of the four colors were in my lovely British Flag sweater and somehow, the striping (at least the way I had worked it up) looked identical to the above. As much as I love my “Jack and Me” jacket, I did not want another so I ripped the entire back out and set out again to configure my color scheme. Hubby to the rescue with his amazing sense of color, and we came up with the below replacing the red only with a teal green:
So soft in hue, I thought the colors were really pretty together. And, admittedly, the redo also gave me more practice at getting the short row skill down to a science. Back redone, front knitted, sleeves solid, I felt I now had a beautiful work of art with its own identity.
I will admit I again stopped short upon getting to the front neckline. There was no shaping to it! Shape the front neckline, not shape the front neckline, that was the choice. I read what others had done at this conjuncture and most had done some kind of improvising. I chose to make it like it was figuring I like boatneck style and could see how the boat neckline did compliment the swirl-like nature of the pattern. I am pleased with the effect.
The pattern itself is written clearly enough with some differences in terminology from American published knitting magazine(s) but those differences can easily be interpreted. However, I never realized how much I have come to rely on the schematic of a design until I saw this:
Well, first off, how wide was the armhole and how wide were the shoulder seams? How wide was the neckline and how wide were the cuff of the sleeves? For such a gorgeous book, such magnificent photography, highly respected designers, and lovely patterns, I was sorely disappointed. Yes, I was able to complete the schematic by hand writing the measurements by utilizing the gauge and stitch count given within the directions. It was just the fact that I had to. Check out a schematic below from Vogue Knitting of a similar shaped garment and you will clearly see the difference. Such a time savings having all the measurements at a glance!
What can I say, I’m just spoiled knitting mostly from those Vogue Knitting patterns. With no other hardship, this project moved full throttle and here I am at one of my hubby’s fishing holes with a work of art I will have for many years to come.
Hollyknits 
12 responses to “A Fashionable Fishing Hole”
Holly, I must repeat the praise I gave this project on Rav. And while I’m here, let me say how much I share your dissatisfaction with Rowan’s useless schematics, which have discouraged me from using Rowan patterns in the past. If I have to do the math to figure out how the pattern fits, I might just as well devise my own pattern and not use Rowan’s at all!
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I was very surprised, actually, when I came across the lame schematic. I guess because Rowan is such a mainstay for so many knitters. How can that be? I also noticed how so many of the shapes of the sweaters are quite the same. Look carefully at Magazine #54 and you see one boxy shape after another. hmm…..
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Lovely! Hey, Rowan has recently provided some free patterns with excellent schematics after some major demands. I’m desperately hoping this trend will continue in the Mags and pattern books! Check out Cambern, for instance. http://www.knitrowan.com/designs-and-patterns/patterns/cambern
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well, quite frankly Dayana, I could not believe the lack of specifics in the schematics. Good that the voice of careful and critical knitters is being heard.
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I admire your knitting, Holly! And both your projects look very nice, though I find the “Flag-Jacket” quiete amazing! It is my favourite.
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well, I might agree with you. The flag jacket is in my top five of favorites. I just love Brandon Mably (designer) and Vogue Knitting and it looked so great in the magazine. I was hoping to do it justice, too. Thank you for your nice comment.
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Holly, you do such beautiful work! I’m truly inspired! It looks great on you! The colors are awesome! I always love reading how involved your hubby is with your knitting and he isn’t jealous of your yarn or the the time you spend with it. How’s his vest coming along?
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no, no, not jealous at all in fact he knows that when he sees me knitting, I am most relaxed so he wants more of it. He is the oldest of 3 sisters, this helps as he “gets it”. Also, he watched me sew for years and years for him, his mother, and his father. That has helped. Knitting also keeps me at home, he likes that. We have our issues, knitting is simply not one of them. If I were dating, I would look for similar attributes for sure regarding yarn and knitting. His sweater will begin in July. I will likely work on it through the month and intersperse some short 2 day type projects in between to keep my interest. And, the photo shoot will most likely be at the local zoo! We seem to already know that! Always fun talking with you, Margaret and hoping you are well!
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Absolutely stunning knit! A very happy coincidence of a project! It all works perfectly together. The original picture actually put me off this sweater however as I got down to the pics of your shades of blue version I was smitten. A light bulb moment occurred as you were mentioning the schematics and lack of meqsurements. That’s how you get well fitting knits! Of course, you leave nothing to chance and measure as you go! As you can probably tell, up till now, I would choose my size, plunge in and hope for the best. Doh! Thank you for that light bulb moment! Hilary
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Hilary, I knit with a crochet hook to pick up dropped stitches, a dull embroidery needle to examine in between stitches to make sure the yarn is never split, and a measuring tape to measure as I go along. Odd to say, but after the knitting needles are chosen, these other tools are my ‘friends’. Nothing is ever to chance, yes you are right. You also measure BEFORE you begin your project by working up a gauge so that you know exactly how many stitches YOU are getting to the inch (or centimeter). And, then you examine your fabric to see if you like it… too loose, too tight and alter. It is a science. Be willing to rip out. ok, Hilary… remember also to have fun and thank you for your nice comment.
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Very pretty! It is interesting to see how you chose your colors, a problem quilter also face.
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thank you, Nancy. Well, wished I didn’t have the ripping out step. Quilting is a beautiful art form and yes, colors make such an impact.
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