KnitScene Fall 2018 is now live in digital and print editions and in it, my Olivia Sweater. This sample was knitted by Tipsy Knitters co-founder Lauren G. and was her very first sweater. I think she did an incredible job! The challenge laid down by editor Hannah Baker was for bold, statement making cables and the goal was to build cable knitting skills making stronger cable knitters of all of us. It’s an incredible collection with some very unexpected interpretations of the theme.
What a statement a big, bold cable can make! In the Olivia Sweater, a jumbo triple ribbed cable is deeply etched into a field of stockinette tracing a serpentine path from neck to hem. This strong central motif plays off against a completely clean backdrop of flat stitches where seamless yoke shaping is worked silently in.
I’m very fond of the simple, stealthy look of shaping stitches and the motifs created by their almost accidental movement. I especially enjoy the pattern inherent in seamless yoke shaping. It’s amazing how the rhythm of shaping patterns can be manipulated simply by adjusting the type and position of increase/decrease stitches.
As cables go, this deceptively simple large scale twist is a doozy. It was developed by Norah Gaughan in her book “Knitted Cable Sourcebook”. Though it appears to be a single, giant cable, it actually involves a combination of smaller crosses. I found it really exciting to knit and particularly like the very high relief with which the cabled stitches stand proud of the reverse stockinette backdrop.
A real stand-out in the design process of the Olivia Sweater was the yarn. Sugarbush Canoe was really the only yarn for the job and I’m so delighted that Hannah and I saw eye-to-eye on it.
Sugarbush, a Canadian yarn company based in Listowel, Ontario, is producing some of the most exciting and innovative new yarns on the market today. I was pleased and intrigued when I discovered a skein of Canoe in my LYS in New Orleans when I began swatching for Olivia. The construction of Canoe is unique. It is a sort of mesh tube made of silky alpaca that is stuffed with fluffy, colorful wool roving. It is a bulky yarn that, when knitted, shows little dots of bright color against neutral or colored backgrounds. It is amazingly comfy and cozy for a sweater, completely soft without a trace of scratchiness, but would yield delicious accessories as well. And the color range is really yummy, too.
So…when you’re ready for fall knitting, Olivia might be just right for you. Because it’s worked in bulky weight yarn, it knits up in a flash with just enough cabling to keep things interesting. KnitScene Fall 2018 is an issue we can all be proud of, packed as it is with great projects, youthful, modern and on-trend with something for every knitter.
‘Til we meet again, happy knitting!
