Sunday, January 17, 2021

Petal Pink


If you are a knitter, you have probably come across this wonderfully whimsical design.  Kate Davies Designs published the pattern in 2010, and I suspect I found it soon thereafter.  I remember being very excited about casting on, but I didn't have the proper circular needles, and I am not usually a fan of bulky yarn so I had nothing in the stash that was suitable.

And then there was a decision to be made about color.  Should I go for something neutral and in a palette that is owl appropriate?  

I will say that I almost never use suggested yarns for knitting patterns.  In my early knitting days, it was a lack of access, I suppose, and with vintage patterns, the yarn is often no longer produced and/or very difficult to find.  For the vast majority of my knit projects, I simply find a similar weighted yarn in a color that I like, and make it work.

But for some reason, with this pattern, I went looking for one of the suggested yarns: in this case, Rowan Cocoon.  I found it for a great price, and I decided that pink owls would be lovely, whether or not they exist in nature!

I had my needles and my yarn, but for whatever reason, I never got started on the project until November 2019.

After finally casting on, the sweater was completed very quickly.  It's amazing how little time it takes to knit up a bulky weight yarn!

I definitely prefer working with lighter weight wool, but how could I resist these little owls!

There was always a question of whether or not I would add buttons for eyes.  In the end, I decided against it, preferring that the little creatures be a little more challenging to find.

And that just left weaving in a few ends.

Here are the little guys prior to a wash/blocking.

And after a gentle bath . . .

Here is the completed sweater.

I finally wore the sweater and took some pictures.  The only real issue is the yarn.  I paired this with a black wool skirt, and boy does that mohair fuzz get everywhere!!  I am used to having Tino fur hang around my wool clothing, but this is a whole new level of fuzz transfer.  I may just have to find a tweedy wool to make a skirt that won't show the pink mohair quite so well!


8 comments:

  1. Put it in a plastic bag in your freezer fir a while. That should reduce the moulting

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    1. I know that trick! Perhaps I will try that next time I wear the sweater, although I think this fiber is doomed to continue shedding like crazy.

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  2. Put it in a plastic bag in your freezer fir a while. That should reduce the moulting

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  3. Put it in a plastic bag in your freezer fir a while. That should reduce the moulting

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  4. Did you add the waist shaping in the back? I've had the pattern for a while but I prefer the nipped in waist rather than the loose, boxy fit.

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    1. The pattern includes that waist shaping, so you should be good!

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  5. I adore following your posts....the care, skill and detail of everything you make is inspiring....what fun to see you knitting this sweater. Kate Davies' posts are so well written. You queried buttons... if you picked just one owl to " button" with eyes... it might be just the tiny touch of whimsey you wanted.

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  6. La costura se te da maravillosamente y veo que tejer también, eres una auténtica artesana.
    Ha quedado precioso y me encantan los detalles tan bonitos del modelo.
    Disfrútalo mucho y BESICOS.

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