The Two Rectangle Project

Part 1: Rectangles
So, I was working on the second rectangle (tartelette) while watching 35up and I kept measuring it and then measuring it against the first rectangle (sheepjes pompon), and it finally measured approx. 42 inches long so it seemed to be done. I bound off and then placed the two rectangles next to each other but I was disappointed (but not suprised, since I had suspected it) that the sheepjes measures a bit wider than the tartelette.


side by side

That wasn't so much an issue for me, but what was an issue was when I placed them in the 2-rectangle poncho arrangement, I really didn't like the way the two yarns looked, or perhaps it was more the arrangement of them, but anyway, it didn't look like it was going to work out how I wanted.



As I wrote in a previous entry, I have been thinking about shrugs being made out of rectangles, and I remembered how I had measured the sheepjes against my body and it looked like it would make a good shrug. But I decided to work on the tartelette first, because when I held it in front of the mirror and I pinched the two ends together to make a shrug, I saw something else, like perhaps a collar of some sort. So I went about sewing the tartelette together, and I think the seam came out decent, though I had a lot of trouble, because the needle kept going through the ribbon itself.


When I went back to the mirror to check it out, I started to imagine something else entirely and started shifting that seam to the shoulder and not at the chest. I folded over the left side of the collar to make one of those drapy collars I always see and admire but have none of (sort of), and before I knew what or why I was doing it, I was sewing the corners of the rectangle to make one arm hole for my right arm. I don't know how to describe what this is -- a one armed collar? a half-poncho? This feels kind of 80s to me, though I can't logically explain why, I guess except for the one arm thing.


hmmm...


a close up of my first seaming effort

Then I went to work on the sheepjes pompon while watching an episode of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, and what I did was fold the rectangle in half, lengthwise, and sew the ends 6 inches in on each side. If I sewed that whole seam, I would have had a tube.




close up of my seaming job (a little better, I think)

Aaron seemed to like the way this one came out more than the other, and I think I certainly can think of more opportunities to wear this one, but I do kind of have an affection for the tartellete thing I created, especially since it matches with my second scarf! I took some silly pictures of how these might work together. Now I'm wondering what the next project will be, but now I'm thinking, if I made the rectangle a lot wider, and sewed the seams longer, I could make a long sleeve shrug. Maybe I could then work on an edging collar for the neck or maybe a cowl like in the picture I saw in scarf style? I wonder how they made that?

Part 2: Following a pattern (or "Beyond Rectangles")

This was an intense knitting today. Probably because I'm supposed to be doing grades and planning lessons. I don't know what I'm going to do about all the stuff I need to do, but I don't think I can get to sleep too soon.

So, after I was "done" with the shrugs, I sat down on the couch to see if I could try out those edgings I had so much trouble with yesterday. I used the sheepjes with idea that, if it works out, I could use them as edges for the arm holes or around the neck as a collar. I still had trouble with having too many loops after the third or fourth row, but I kept going after two repeats, and on the third I figured out what the problem was -- after I p1, I was creating an extra loop by not bringing the yarn to the back! I remember reading about this in the Stitch N' Bitch book, but when I read it, I couldn't figure out how to solve this problem. That's why when I was trying to do k2p2 at Laura's house, I kept getting all tangled and confused. I figured out that if I pull the needle out of the loop, the yarn is then free to go to the back. I think this is the discovery that is going to allow me to knit a lot more things.



I ripped it, started over, knit 4 repeats of the pattern, 6 rows all knit, and then I bound off.


yeah!

I had some trouble sewing the edging to the arm hole since it was already sewn together, but it worked out ok. I plan to do the second arm edging on the subway so I have to copy the stitch pattern so I don't have to bring the whole book to school. So I'll copy it into here, too.

Garter Stitch Edging
CO 10 sts
1st row (RS): K3, {yo, k2tog} twice, yo twice, k2tog, k1
2nd row: K3, p1, k2, {yo, k2tog} twice, K1
3rd row: K3, {yo, k2tog} twice, k1, yo twice, k2tog, k1
4th row: k3, p1, k3, {yo, k2tog} twice, k1
5th row: k3, {yo, k2tog} twice, k2, yo twice, k2tog, k1
6th row: k3, p1, k4, {yo, k2tog} twice, k1
7th row: k3, {yo, k2tog} twice, k6
8th row: bind off 3 sts, k4, {yo, k2tog} twice, k1.
repeat these 8 rows

Tired...