pepperknit

Finally, an FO! I looked in my archives, and I haven’t finished a damn thing since the Anastasia Socks. That was in July. July! But tonight, after some minor surgery, I finished something, for real.

That’s right, I finished the necktie. First, it was too short. I took the whole thing out and knit it anew, making it narrower and thus longer (I knit until I was out of yarn). Then after blocking, it was too long (which I found out in a sleepy haze this morning while the boy was getting ready for work; he’d planned to wear it today). We assessed the surgery that was needed, and I did an end-of-tie-ectomy this evening, taking scissors to stockinette for the first time ever (it was totally painless). The details:

Necktie
Pattern: Loosely adapted from Interweave Knits’ Traditional Neckties; find free patterns for other neckties by IK here. I basically used their measurements for length in the first part of the tie (11.5 inches until decreasing, approximately 11.5 inches of decreasing, etc.) and ignored the magazine for the last half, increasing when I thought I should and working straight until I was out of yarn.
Yarn: Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock in Denim, 1 skein
Needles: US size 3
Technique: Knit in a tube using magic cast on, magic loop, and a kitchenered end. Huzzah for no 5.5-foot long seam!
Gauge: 9 st/in
Stitches: At bottom front, 46 stitches; at end tip, 30 stitches; at narrowest, 18 stitches
Started: Friday, September 1
Restarted: Tuesday, September 5
Restarted Again: Friday, September 8
Blocked and Ready (or so I thought): Tuesday, September 12
Actually Finished, for Real: Wednesday, September 13 (Oops, needs a little band for tucking the small end through. Perhaps ribbon.)
Notes: Not much else to say. I enjoyed the miles of stockinette, though when the band was narrowest (1 inch wide), turning the work was rather tedious. I should have taken the opportunity to teach myself how to work backward, but I didn’t want to risk wonky tension. I’d originally planned to use the double knitting technique (k1, sl1 wyf to end; repeat) but my first stitches were a complete mess, so I started over last Friday and used magic loop instead.

Using sock yarn in a new way was nice–I feel as though neckties can offer you a nice blank canvas for playing with textures. Of course, the boy prefers nice plain stockinette best, so I may not get a chance to experiment much with knit/purl patterns on ties for him. He floated the idea of a striped tie next–self-striping probably wouldn’t work, since the height of the stripes would change as the width of the tie changed, but on second thought that might create a cool effect.

He seems to like the result a lot, and I’m happy. As they say, knitting is love. Of course, I just knitted him a little noose . . .

I’ve said it before and I’ll always believe it: I’m not afraid to take something out and do it over. But really? I’m kind of tired of always having to do so.

Before our trip to NYC, I looked for an easy project for the train ride. I started a knitted tie for the boy, who’d always expressed an interest in having a knit tie. I followed the pattern from Interweave Knits, doing some modifications to hit the gauge I was getting, and I merrily knt along.

I used up all of the yarn, one skein of Lorna’s Laces in a color that I’m not sure of (denim?). I blocked the devil out of it, and spent the last few days meticulously sewing up the end with thread. I finished it up and just asked him to try it on.

Too short.

It essentially matches the measurements given in the pattern, maybe a few inches short, but it’s looking too short on his long torso. I think I can tweak this and make it work, doing a slightly narrower tie over a longer length.

I’m going to knit it in a tube this time, though–no seaming for me. I’m off to go undo all my careful sewing! Keeping my fingers crossed that this comes out ok . . .