OAK

Yesterday browsing I also found a nice menswear sweater.I got an idea for a scarf using a similar-ish idea and have been thinking about how to make it a reality. I've got a glimpse of a plan, but I would have to learn how to knit scarves from the center out - most likely definitely doable. I'll let the idea incubate for a while.

The sweater can be found at OAK, a name I wasn't familiar with before but now that I've been browsing their site I'm seriously in love with many designs on display. Many knitwear pieces are constructed interestingly and have some excess in interesting places, which is something that always catches my eye...

Random ideas that cross my mind today

I've been lamenting the fact that I never used a blog when my knitting frenzy was at its highest for a while now, so from now on I'll use this blog as a record of what thoughts and ideas cross my mind related to knitting.

Today I went to two Oulu yarn shops with a friend and got a glimpse of an interesting technique. Both the knits that had a variation of the technique were on display at the shop Villiina. I don't know the name of it in either Finnish or English, so it's very difficult to find new patterns with variations... The technique is a way of wrapping yarn so that stockinette is curved outside of the plane, creating a 3d effect - there was a baby jacket with a bobble-like surface, and a sweater with horizontal stripes that stood up from the rest of the garment. The baby jacket was created by dropping stitches and knitting the last not dropped stitch so that the rows in between were squished and hence curved out. It drives me crazy that I have no idea about how to research this technique...

The knitting spark somewhat reignited, I've been wandering around Ravelry. I'm toying with the idea of making a Star Crossed Slouchy Beret. I'll go through the yarn I have and see if I'll find anything suitable. I'm thinking that 7 veljestä would be too scratchy for my sensitive head.

* some garment or different kind of mittens using the principle in Fanning the flame mittens (Ravelry link) - or maybe I just want to buy the pattern and make these? Something to think about.

* I'm also thinking about a nice flowy cardigan with some excess near the thighs, as is the fashion nowadays.

* I found an interesting site, The Walker Treasury project. They post good quality photographs of the patterns Walker describes in her Treasury series books in order to help knitters see the potential of each. They don't post the directions though, but I think that I will use this site as an inspiration from now on, since I don't own any of the Treasury books. I tried to find them a while back but they're insanely expensive, and in dire need of reprint. Mostly of interest to me right now: textured patterns and slip stitch patterns.

* Again I'm thinking about buying a knitting machine. I should know more about them... Any readers who want to help me with choosing one?

* I added "favourite knitting blogs" to the left. First ones on the list are Techknitting and Fuzzy logic (knitting experiments).

*Random finds, interesting patterns and ideas:

• Greek Key Scarf from Fuzzy logic
• A beautiful idea from the writer of Fuzzy logic