Charts Up the Wazoo—There’s an App for That

by summersong Flickr

Right now, I’m working on Alice Starmore’s St. Brigid sweater from her Aran Knitting book. I’ve wanted to knit this pattern for about 10 years and have never gotten around to it until now. It’s the perfect pattern for me because cables are my thing. I love knitting them and the effect they have on others. When a new or non-knitter comments on how hard it must be to knit a cabled sweater, I just smile and tell them it’s not as hard as they think. Of course, they never believe me and that’s okay. I don’t mind if they’re overly impressed with the work I do. Even though I don’t find cables difficult, they can be time consuming particularly with an all-over cabled pattern like St. Brigid. With five separate charts, there are cable crosses on practically every right-side row. The trick is to figure out the best way to organize the separate charts.

My version using Knit Picks Wool of the Andes in Sapphire Heather

For me the solution to that is the Knitcompanion app for the iPad. This app transforms .pdf files into highly interactive knitting instructions. For St. Brigid, I simply scanned in the pattern, saved it as a .pdf, and loaded it into Knitcompanion, which then allowed me to easily crop and paste these separate charts into one big, integrated chart. With its advanced row maker marking row progress a breeze and much easier than using paper charts and highlighters or Post-it notes. I love Knitcompanion’s ‘gadgetiness’ perhaps even more than I love cables.

I don’t know why I’ve waited so long to knit St. Brigid but I’m glad I did.

The 14-Day Sweater

Cascade Cloud

On April 1, at my weekly knitting group at Apple Yarns here in Bellingham, a bunch of us got excited about a new yarn in the shop--Cascade Cloud, a worsted weight yarn that is absolutely perfect for sweaters. 70% Merino Wool and 30% Baby Alpaca it's super soft, and the chain-like construction gives it strength. It feels great against the skin and is amazingly lightweight! This "girls gone wild" moment ended up in a buying frenzy with several of us buying enough Cascade Cloud for a tri-colored sweater.

I designed my sweater using The Tailored Sweater method for top-down construction. With a gauge of 4 stitches per inch and 6 rows per inch, I used 7 skeins: 3 pink, 2 each of green and purple. (Each skein has 164 yards.) It took me exactly 14 days to finish. Talk about instant gratification! Woo Hoo! I'm wearing this baby everywhere.

The Result of a Yarn-Buying Frenzy

Welcome to my blog! I am an unabashed pleasure seeking, self indulgent person who makes fabric or garments by intertwining yarn or thread in a series of connected loops using a pair of knitting needles. In other words, I love to knit! I’ve been doing so on a daily basis for about 15 years. I also spin, weave, dye, and dabble with quilting. My other passions are wine, cooking, and running (check out my other blog, The Unlikely Runner). I am one those knitters who generally uses patterns as guidelines and began designing my own knitting almost from the first time I had a pair of needles in my hand.

Although “retired,” I’ve worked and taught in several knit shops for over 8 years. Now, I actually have time to knit and to share my knowledge, adventures, and stories with you. I hope you like my blog and I invite you to follow me; and comment freely. You can also find me, Hedonisticknitter, on Ravelry.