Jamieson Shetland | Anna Bright designs

Tag Archives: Jamieson Shetland

12/09

Eras

This gorgeous young man, our son Will, is about to begin a new era of his life. Having completed his ‘A’ levels in spectacular fashion, he leaves us this week to start his university studies.

He is sporting a sweater that I made for him last Christmas, one that is based on an original from a very different era.

This portrait of Edward, Duke of Windsor was painted in 1925. When Will asked me to make him a Fair Isle tank top I used this painting, in the collection of the National Portrait Gallery, as the inspiration for Will’s version. You can see more details of the sweater on Ravelry.

Of course, starting new eras necessarily involves ending old ones. Our beautiful baby boy, with the broadest grin and the loudest laugh, has left his childhood behind and grown into an amazing, talented, considerate, handsome, witty and and endlessly interesting young man. I am bursting with pride as I watch him make this this transition and cannot wait to cheer him on as he embraces life as an adult.

But some things never change. Will, this is for you:

“So they went off together. But wherever they go, and whatever happens to them on the way, in that enchanted place on the top of the Forest a little boy and his Bear will always be playing.”

AA Milne, The House at Pooh Corner

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29/01

trying…

… to get the button band exactly as I want it. It has been trying (just a few of the many attempts shown) but I think I’m finally there. Just got to make the thing now!

Thanks for all the comments on the previous post – I’ll write in more detail about the design process for this cardigan when I’ve finished it, and if you are interested I’ll write it up and share the pattern (although it might end up being a bit of a ‘insert your own measurement here’ type of thing).

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17/01

not-quite-elizabeth-zimmerman’s-fair-isle-yoke cardigan

I started this cardigan on Boxing Day, as my post-Christmas treat to myself. It is inspired by Elizabeth Zimmerman’s sweater of the same name, but I am working it from the top down, not using EZ’s percentage system and I have also changed the Fair Isle pattern on the yoke. So it has sort of ended up being my Fair Isle yoke cardigan, hence the title of this post.

I am mostly using 2 ply Jumper Weight yarn from Jamieson and Smith, with the red being Jamieson’s Shetland Spindrift. Both companies produce wonderful pure wool from the Shetland islands; some people express a preference for one manufacturer over the other but, to me, their yarn is equally lonely. I therefore tend to make my choice based on which one has the colours I want.

This cardigan includes both short row and vertical bust darts, as well as short row shaping at the back neck. It seems to be fitting ok so far. I’m knitting it in the round – it is destined to be my first attempt at steeking (aak!).

I wanted the cardigan to have quite a vintage feel. So I am making it short and fairly fitted, with about 3 inches of 1×1 ribbing at the bottom. I will knit the buttonband separately and sew it on afterwards.

I’m almost at the bottom now, and have just briefly paused my somewhat obsessive knitting to make a little gift for someone. I can’t wait to get back to it though!

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29/03

finished object: hemlock ring blanket

Pattern: Hemlock Ring Blanket by Jared Flood

Yarn: Jamieson’s Shetland Heather

Needles: 6mm

Notes: I have loved every moment of making this blanket. It has kept me warm in the chilly Spring evenings, has felt comforting on my lap and has been easy to knit.

It took a fair amount of blocking to transform the blanket from it’s original crumpled state to the smoothed-out version you see here. Worth it though.

I love it when both the process and the outcome of a knitted project work as well as this!

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25/01

new design: druidess beret

Remember the Druid mittens I made just before Christmas?

Well, now they have a beret to match!

I decided a couple of weeks ago that I wanted to turn the mittens into a set, particularly with the cold weather we’ve been having here recently. So, I ordered some yarn from Jamiesons of Shetland to match the mittens, this time in a DK weight (the mittens are made in 4 ply). While I was waiting for it to arrive I started playing around with chart paper and a pencil. I wanted to use the cable-and-bobble and plaited cable patterns from the mittens, and incorporate them into a slouchy beret.

The beret flew off my needles in just a few days, and I am thrilled with how it has turned out. Two things in particular please the maths nerd in me. Firstly, I love how the 2 x 2 ribbing around the rim runs smoothly into the body of the hat:

Secondly, I am really proud of how the decreases on the top look so polished:

I am planning to write the pattern up and share it as a free download on Ravelry. I will not be making a charge for this design, as I see it as riffing on Jared Flood’s theme, rather than creating something from scratch myself.

However, I’ve got a bit of a problem – I need to find a (mac-compatible) knitting chart program. For basic charts I use a knitting font in Word, which works fine. But there are all sorts of stitches in this pattern that aren’t covered by that program.

I could write the pattern out line by line, but I know that my preference is to work from a chart, so I would prefer to provide one for other knitters to use. If you know of a charting program, I would really appreciate being pointed in the right direction for it.

Finally, I just wanted to share another detail that I love about this beret – it is finished off with a bobble!

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