RENAISSANCE: NEW LIFE FOR OLD PATTERNS
IT’S AUTUMN IN NEW YORK AND FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER, I DID A PHOTOSHOOT HERE.
Even though I like to think of my pieces being worn just about anywhere there is sweater weather, it was incredibly satisfying to get to re-envision some of my oldest designs through the lens of this city I love; its fashion, its people and its many moods.
LADY YAK is the first sweater design I ever published. Although it looks very simple, I filled it with of all the things I could never find in a pattern. Full-fashioned shoulders, tubular cast-ons, full-fashioned decreases…and my favorite part—the face-framing split turtleneck which is knit separately for a *perfect* tubular edge and back-stitched to the neckline. The tutorial for this technique is also the first I ever created.
And it’s a quintessentially New York sweater to me. Black, sleek, subtle and timeless.
When I first wanted to publish it, all of my friends and yarn store colleagues encouraged me, except that… no one ever published a black sweater. It’s unseeable, unphotographable, and outside of New York, black just doesn’t have the same appeal. Its working title was “Nothing to See Here”. But I persisted, did the best I could with the photos and got it out into the world.
But now at last I’ve had the chance to show you that there is indeed, something to see here.
If Savile Row made a sweater, I like to think it would be tailored like this.
But remember, tailored doesn’t mean tight. There should be some ease to really make this sing. This is also very yarn dependent but that mix of structure and drape is what this type of yarn does so well. The pattern recommends 2–3” of positive ease but given the current taste for looser fits I would extend that up to 4” and you will still have a well-fitting garment.
In this era of very oversized sweaters, you might be wondering whether you actually need a fitted sweater. But I take heart: because of all of my designs, this is my Mum’s favorite and most-worn sweater and it continues to be at this very moment. I really couldn’t ask for more of an endorsement than that.
The construction for Lady Yak is bottom up and in pieces and the shoulders are shaped with my own adaptation of full-fashioned decreases. The schematic clearly illustrates how this silhouette differs from a standard set-in sleeve, but there is nothing actually difficult about executing it. The only concept that may be new is the collar that is knit separately and sewn to the edge; this was done to allow for a very full rib (more than could be comfortably picked-up from the edge) and, as I mentioned before, to create a truly perfect tubular edge as only a cast-on can do. The technique has a built in safety-net in the form of strategically-used waste yarn that makes the process actually rather sedate and not nearly as hair-raising as one might imagine. I have know fairly new sweater knitters to attempt it and come away completely happy with the results and I think we can all agree from looking at that sumptuous collar, that the bit of extra effort is entirely worth it.
Both of these sweaters were born from working at Knitty City in close to proximity to some seriously delicious yarn. Lang Yak was the first yarn containing yak fiber that I had ever seen. I tried to sell it to EVERYONE who came into the shop but mostly ended up selling it to myself. And I have no regrets. Both of my Lady Yak samples have held up beautifully. The ratio of merino to yak has changed slightly in the new formulation of the yarn but I still like the idea of a wool/yak blend to give you the benefits of both fibers. NYC knitters can now find it at Annie & Co. But if I was to make this sweater again for myself, I would probably use the Baby Yak medium from my old friends at mYak. I’m dreaming of one in their natural chocolate color.
ODETTE was conceived as the other side of the coin to Lady Yak. I had Odile, now I needed…Odette. When Woolfolk Far was first released it was if the ethereal feather-light yarn of my Swan Lake dreams had suddenly materialized. The slip-stitch cables are my delicate nod to plumage but that’s where the fantasy ends. The sweater is decidedly contemporary and made for everyday wear.
Once again this sweater is worked in pieces from the bottom-up. I also used the full-fashioned shoulder shaping but this time with a slightly more relaxed silhouette suited to the drape of this yarn. Tubular cast-ons and a vented hem give this a modern look and the delicately enclosed neckline adds a lovely detail. Just a regular-old tubular bind-off on this one so breathe ease. As ever, I provide the techniques I think suit the piece best but knitters choice always prevails. Make it your own.
