Love your current project. It is a beautiful pattern and can't wait to see it on you. Looking forward to the next installment. I always enjoy your planning and knitting thoughts and projects.
I learned something about bridge stitches recently that I thought was brilliant. That is to purl the central stitch- assuming all the other bridge stitches are knits, what you get is a very clear runway up the middle of the bridge. When you cut, you just cut through that runway.
Thanks so much for answering my question Roxanne! Fascinating answer and I look forward to reading about the experiences of others in the comments. Cheers, Kristin
Love that you admit to bone-headed mistakes! I am famous for them myself, thank you Roxanne, you have taught me to rip back and start over or reknit a section and to take time outs from projects.
This technique would be great to use with gradient yarns where you don't want to interrupt the yarn colourway in your front and back panels. I'm really interested to see how it withstands wear.
I tried knitting a very popular sweater that includes many different stitch patterns in the yoke. I hated the process of that and then the body (stockinette) just seemed to take forever. I finished that and was most of the way through the first sleeve when I realized that I didn't like the pattern and I loathed the yarn color that I'd actually bought to do something else for someone else. I ripped out the whole thing which took ages since the yarn was held with mohair but what relief when it was done! It was definitely the right thing to do. Normally, I just take breaks from projects to limit tedium. Thanks for another great podcast!
I enjoy watching your fixes and your challenges. You have helped my confidence greatly. To know that thing I taught myself are done by someone else is validation of my ability. Thanks again
This 70s sweater project has been so interesting from the onset. It's helping me through the thought process of what to do with some sweater quantities of my handspun that I've had stashed for far too long. I've found it daunting to adapt existing sweater patterns to use with handspun, as all the desired characteristics of the intended yarn don't necessarily translate. Not least of which being gauge. Building a sweater plan to suit my yarn with this approach is likely to yield a better result than adapting a published pattern to the yarn. Thank you for your clear descriptions of the what, how and particularly WHY of what you're doing. Also, I can't believe how quickly this one has come together. That also gives me hope!
A knitting SLOG, what a good way to describe it. I had a gorgeous pattern and some expensive gorgeous wool/linen blend yarn that I really wanted to knit into a beautiful sleeveless top. I started it three times and kept having the same problem. It had a complicated yarn over lace pattern that I kept messing up and I couldn't figure out how to fix. After the third time I told myself that although the yarn was expensive and surely would knit into this gorgeous top I probably wouldn't wear it because in actuality it was very scratchy. So I ended up crocheting a gorgeous cape instead and the yarn is perfect for that garment and I will wear it on our next cruise. I was so relieved to find a better purpose for this yarn and it was a dream to crochet. Only problem is that I have three more skeins. It is too scratchy for a scarf and too much yarn for a hat, but it could be a great purse lined with satin. And I could crochet that which I think would be a beautiful statement piece.
I have also used steeks with only 3 stitches before (non-superwash wool), especially in armhole steeks. I ended up just using crochet and never had any problems, but one of the reasons might be, that I always sew the pieces together (or knit the button band) before cutting the steek. That way, the rough handling of the edge happens before cutting.
Those projects that cause me problems I may hate at the time, and may get put aside until I can face them again, but when I finish, the negative feelings just vanish and I feel so proud that I actually finished this despite the incomprehensible instructions/the number of times I had to start again/the dropped stitches and mistakes/the tedium/whatever!
I love your 1970's sweater. I really like that technique of the kangaroo pouch with steeking. Someday... I was really happy to see your video today. Thank you Roxanne.
Thank you for this podcast. I enjoyed seeing the neck and armhole steeks, most videos only show a center steek for cardigans. We all make mistakes, and it is helpful for folks to see that seasoned knitters do as well. I use crocheted steeks as well, but recently bought the needle felting tool and plan to use it on my next steeked project. I have been knitting 42 years and still learn from these videos. Love your choice of patterning.
Another great learning podcast. You are a wonderful knitter and solve so many problems for all us knitters. A neighbour of mine just lent me Elizabeth Zimmermann’s Knitting without tears, Knitter’s Almanac and Knitting workshop, after I was telling her about the project you are currently working on. Great information in these books and love the way she explains the problem solving on anything about knitting. Did you ever met her? I have acquired her Knit one knit all, also a good resources book with many patterns still current today. Thank you again Roxanne.
I never hated a finished object even if it was tedious or boring to knit, but there is one yarn I would not knit with again, it was a Shibui paper and silk fiber: Vine, that was very hard on my hand. I knitted it twice, once for me, ended up giving this summer sweater to my friend Sophie, and knitted her a Poncho with the same yarn, out of pure friendship. The fiber gets much softer once washed, but I hated knitting it. Sophie loves to wear it, she says it is so fresh and cool. She is now knitting another poncho for herself and understand better the nightmare it can be. I've also given her a summer Ranunculus I knitted for myself in green, trying to get out of my favourite colors for once, but the green (bought on line during Covid) really didn't suit me. I'm not too sure Sophie wears it either. But I loved knitting that bamboo fiber, even the color was fun to knit just not good on me.
Hello, Roxanne, and thank you so very much for your last two videos. Exactly what I needed to distract myself while tinking back 300+ stitches of stranded colorwork. How have I heard so little previously about the Hailuoto sweater, I wonder? It's not that far from where I was born (in American terms, at least). Probably another one of those parts of craft culture where I find out how much bilingualism has shaped Finland. For example, I know far more about the Korsnäs sweater* than I ever knew about the ones from Hailuoto. (The pronunciation is closer to HIGH-lwoh-toe, in case you wanted to find out.) The buttoned shoulder looks interesting. I'm glad that these kinds of sweaters receive some love as well - the covid knitting boom has led to everyone and their grandmother knitting the same kind of Icelandic-type yoke sweaters now, and I'm a little worried that people are going to lose sight of their own textile heritage. *Aside about the Korsnäs sweater: it's become famous because it combines crochet borders at the bottom and top with a knit main body. Apparently the knitted part was produced by a team of three women sitting in a circle, each knitting a third, while the crochet borders were made by a single and more skilled craftswoman. These were Sunday and feastday garments for the men, while the Hailuoto sweater looks much more like a working sweater. Now back to my tinking...
Tinking now accomplished. I've learnt to divide my knitting into quarters with stitch markers and checking over each quarter as they're completed, especially if I'm establishing rounds of colorwork or lace on a large project. It's when I get cocky and skip checking over my work a little at a time that I end up having to tink back 300+ stitches, lol. The parts of a project that I struggle with the most are weaving in ends and seaming parts together. I've taught myself to handle ends finish-it February style now, setting a timer for half an hour every week, listening to an interesting podcast or my favorite music, and focusing on the ends. Even if it's still a slog, it's only half an hour. I've given up on seamed garments for now, mainly doing top-down, seamless tops. Looking forward to your video on Barbara Walker next week. At the moment wondering if there might be a way to cast on all stitches for the back and then shape both shoulders and neck with short rows, or if it looks weird. BW seems to have done one shoulder at a time.
Hi Roxanne. I must say this is such a beautiful sweater pattern. The color is gorgeous too. I can’t honestly say I understand all of the construction but I find it fascinating. I’ve always wondered about Steeking. Thanks for showing us how you did it. I’ve only seen the crochet method. I have seen needle felting though just not with steeks. Well done. Looking forward to see your progress. I have many projects I get bored with and struggle to finish. I believe it’s due to grief. I have one sweater I started a few years ago but haven’t been able to finish due to the pandemic. Soon hopefully my teacher will get classes going again come the fall. Thanks for another great episode!💕
Hi Roxanne, when watching your videos, I would love to know what needles you're using. And would love to see more videos on your favorite tools and needles.
In technique videos, I usually include that information in the video description. Not so much in a Casual Friday video. I have a few different brands I use. Some of my tools are decades old and have been changed since I bought them.
As I watch this I’m knitting a one-skein shawl, and I doubt I’ll finish it. How do I get starry-eyed about shawls when I never wear them??!! They start out with just a few stitches, but as they grow I get increasingly bored, and again, I’m not going to wear it! Give me a fingering weight , stockinette sweater that I will wear all the Texas winter any day. I have a bunch of them☺️ I am totally entranced with your steeks (including a neckline steek!) and that gorgeous sleeve cap😍 Can’t wait to hear more. Thanks, Roxanne🥰
I’m currently knitting a blanket…using a beautiful #5 wt. yarn in shades of blue, purokd, green…and # Us 23 needles. I love this cozy, warm blanket.. it’s all garter stitch, and is so soft and squishy.. Working on a project using yarn, and/or colors I’m not crazy about is depressing.. and usually gets frogged… or..takes forever to finish… I love color ab=nd simplicity… No garnets… I also crochet, and the same “rules” apply. Color, simplicity, and easy. I have serious vision issues, so complexity doesn’t;t work for me.
@Roxanne Richardson, why didn’t you just start the sweater right before (or after) that chunk of moss stitch fabric in order to avoid pattern jog and minimize the visibility of the height jog of cast-on row?
For me, I get the most frustrated when the sweater pattern is a slog AND the final outcome isn't what I wanted. If a garment was a quick and easy knit and the outcome is meh I'm okay with that. But I don't want to wear something that I worked so hard on and there are major flaws. I can't always blame the pattern for those flaws but I will never knit a non size inclusive sweater pattern again. The work that goes into figuring out the formulas to upsize something just isn't worth it for me.
Never knew of needle felting steeks. You've changed my steeking life. I have a repetitive motion injury(shoulder) which makes crochet painful. BTW I have very successfully knit a set in sleeve from the top down using a technique I discovered in Priscilla Gibson Roberts "Salish Sweaters".
Wow! That was a brave move with the steeks, great that it worked out! And I learned something I never heard of(steeking) till a few yrs. ago when I started watching you and Suzanne Bryan. I would like to try that on a "doll-size version" before braving a large project. Thanks for the inspiration to try this technique on a future 'replica' project I'm planning. 💖😺
This year I knit a single skein kerchief type scarf from a subscription box. I enjoyed learning the stitch pattern but by the time I forced myself to finish it, I put it back in the box without blocking it. It was tedious. With all the varying YOs & twisted stitches, every mistake had to be frogged back to a lifeline. I don't even want to reclaim the yarn.
I’m still brain dead on the steeking process I guess. I can’t get how poking those needles through the yarn can make it stick together enough to be able to cut it. I would never trust it to hold together through wearing the sweater. Just me. 😁 Interesting to see what you are doing though. Thanks for the video. 🧶
Regarding steeks, can you also use a 7 needle needle? I would also love to know how to deal with threads of different colours changed in the steek itself.
I have a 5 stitch steek, but regarding the actual felting tool, my supplier currently has a 7 needle punch. Trying to find the brush and 5 needle tool. Thanks
@@NancyJWay I would think a 7-needle punch would work fine AS LONG AS you have a wide enough field of stitches to work on. (You don’t want to felt the body-fabric that will show.). As I recall, in Meg Swansen’s video, she started with a wide punch and then switched to a narrower one to go right up the center column.
I am currently also knitting a sweater with a steek. Do you have a video about the reinforcing crochet method that you used? I have only seen where the two legs of two adjacent rows are crocheted together. It looks like yours is just up the single row. I hope that makes sense.
The felting is only on the back and you can push a crochet hook through. I would PU and knit, using another strand of yarn to make loops and catching them onto a small diameter cable needle.the new sti
You’re anything but bone-headed, but thanks for describing how you feel! I feel knitting is very personal, most of us are subject to particular mistakes, mine is not planning and writing it out (& ticking it off as I go). But whatever mistake I/we make, we blame our poor brain. The more I learn about knitting, the more I understand it takes a decent brain to get it right. Perhaps not so much for those who stick to the one pattern though eg., those who only knit tiny teddies, beanies, scarves.
