How To
Details, Details . . .
Dear Kay,
It’s the little things that make a pattern cool. A clever designer is always watching for the right moment to add a special detail.
In plowing through my MDK March Mayhem KAL projects, I’ve noticed details in each one that just totally and completely made my day.
The Subtle Short Row
This past weekend, while celebrating both our 28th wedding anniversary and Mother’s Day (Happy Mother’s Day, by the way!), I cast on my third MDK March Mayhem KAL project: Humulus by Isabell Kraemer.
Three words for you: German short rows. So elegant. Not long after I cast on, Isabell’s MDK March Mayhem Champion pattern sent me on a mini-odyssey to build up the back collar of Humulus so that it sits well on the shoulders.
See how the top gray part above the collar is much wider than the bottom? That’s because I knitted back and forth along the back of the collar to add extra inches—the magic of short rows. This will make my Humulus fit well across my shoulders.
One could work these short rows in a number of ways, with the general idea of knitting a while, stopping, turning, and purling back in the direction you just came from. But I think Isabell’s choice of German short rows is just perfect. German short rows are so subtle that you can’t really see where the turn happens. Other short row methods are more visible. If you’d like to see what the fuss is about, here’s a quick video tutorial from the divine Amy Detjen. (By the way, if you’re looking for a knitterly trip to Scotland this August, you really, really ought to click on that link. Lordy!)
This yarn is Jill Draper’s Mohonk. I’m bonkers for it—the Cormo wool is so sproingy that I had to get a handle on an even tension. But oh wow it is fun to knit with. And these colors—Mourning Dove and Bottle (such a green)—are going to make a Humulus of springtime cheer. Not exactly a contrasting pair of colors, but I’m loving them together. I dithered a long time over Jill’s colors in the Shop.
Fun fact: you can kind of stand up your Jill Draper Mohonk Humulus as a little sculpture.
A Clever Stitch Pattern
True Colors by Melanie Berg amused and amazed me with its strange podlike lace shapes.
I thought I was going to have to do some crazy lacemaking maneuver invented by a Belgian nun 200 years ago to get that shape to happen. Turns out that the pods are nothing more than a purl stitch, surrounded on each side by decreases. When you do seven consecutive rows of these paired decreases (with decreases on both the RS and WS), the result is a purl stitch center that is stretched outward. A pod! A distinctive, cool pod!
A Simple I-Cord Edging
OK, this one is subtle and elegant. I finished Gretha Mensen’s Dohne shawl two weeks ago and haven’t even had a chance to talk about the exquisite fun of working with a beautifully sheepy yarn and a texturefest of a pattern. This Prado de Lana Wee Bairns defies my photography skills—it is the richest shade of brown, a deep chocolate. The undyed fleece of a pair of Romlinc sheep is a joy to behold.
And the edging that Gretha runs along the long, straight edge of the shawl is so refined and simple.
It’s a two-stitch I-cord, and it creates the most elegant finish to the edge of this wrap.
I cranked up the AC and bundled up with this marvelous piece to watch the teevee. If you have yarn on hand that is undyed, sheepy, and beautiful, this is the pattern that will make it sing.
Keep at It, KAL Folks!
The MDK March Mayhem Knitalong continues through the end of May. You can see all the mayhem at #MDKMarchMayhemKAL. We’ll be doling out weekly yarn prizes through the end of the month. So even if you’re just casting on now in a fit of wanna-join-in-ism, you’ll be eligible as long as you post a photo on Instagram with the hashtag #MDKMarchMayhemKAL. So far we’ve sent out prizes to four clever knitters.
Finally, I have to say, every time I revisit the MDK March Mayhem bracket, I see another pattern that I want to make. Go have a look—it’s all sort of irresistible.
Love,
Ann
The edging on Dohne is simply elegant, and deceptively simple to do. Brilliant. Details like these make all the difference in a finished piece. I love the MDK bracket, thanks for this beautifully curated selection of patterns and designers. Let’s see, 64 patterns, 52 weeks in a year…
Sooo agree on the elegant edging, simply blown away with how beautiful mine looks!
Ann, the Prado de Lana yarn that you describe, Wee Bairns, is a worsted weight but I think that the pattern for the Dohne show all calls for a DK weight yarn. Did you have to adjust the amount of yarn that you used and needle size, if so was it hard to manage? Also, do you have that yarn in the shop?
Yes, Wee Bairns is worsted weight, so I went up to a size 9 needle rather than the size 7 specified in the pattern. It was great fun to make–the cast on is at one point of the triangle, so it just gets bigger and bigger, which is satisfying. I still haven’t blocked my Dohne, but the gauge I see is 15 sts=4″, rather than the 17 sts specified in the pattern. I had five skeins of Wee Bairns and used just about all of it. As for having Prado de Lana in the Shop? I WISH! They sell only directly via their website and at fiber festivals. My dream is that they grow their flock enough that we can carry it someday.
I came for the Humulus cast-on and True Colors color party, and I stayed for the 2-stitch i-cord edging. I was wanting to make it (without having read the pattern), and now I’m DYING to make it. #mustmakeDohne
Thank you Thank you for the German short row tutorial! As luck would have it, I’ve been mulling over how to do short rows in moss stitch; this I will try pronto! Love MDK for all the wisdom and guidance.
I am working on a sleeveless top, https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/iris-4, and I’ve use two of these techniques that were new to me- the German short rows and the I cord edging. They have both turned out very, very well!
I’m not sure why a picture of a flower came up with that link, and I can’t figure out how to edit. But that’s not correct. Obviously! The pattern is Iris, by Ririko
https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/iris-41
I think you missed a digit on the url
I may have to make True Colors just for that stitch! And German short rows were such a revelation – I learned them when I made Wanderling, also by Isabell. Previously, short rows made me nervous and generally unhappy, but the German ones are so perfect! I’ve even figured out (thanks to googling) how to replace other types of short rows with German one. (And Happy Anniversary!)
I,m halfway through the Fair Isle on Humulus and yes. love the german short rows, don’t think i will do them a different way. Don’t have my bll band with me but using a Plymouth worsted in navy blue with a bright green for the Fair Isle and I love it! Will have to join Instagram i guess but yikes that means one more password to forget!
Wow you are a prolific knitter with many projects going at the same time! I have to be a monogamous knitter or nothing ever gets finished. But I’m having a grand time with my Shakerag Top!
I’m knitting a Dohne with Prado de Lana’s Lavender, a CVM/Romeldale oatmeal-colored DK, and it’s been a wonderful experience. I love the slipstitch edge. At first I wasn’t so sure about it, but I am a convert! All of Prado de Lana’s yarn is delightful.
You said to click on the link to see knitterly trip to Scotland in the fall, but the only link was for the short row video. where is the other link? Thank you, catherine
Hi Catherine!
The link for Amy Detjen was what I was referring to–http://www.amydetjen.com/. Enjoy!
True Colors is truly beautiful, so much so that I am recommending the stitch pattern for my daughter’s next blanket. Thank you for pointing me in that direction.
German Short Rows are AWESOME! EASY and discrete. What more could a knitter want?
I-Cord edging is a personal love of mine. Another technique that is easy and discrete.
Enjoy your posts enormously!
I am totally taken by the piece with the pods (beneath Jill Draper’s Mohonk Humulus).
With no designer or piece name there is now way to begin a search for it. Is there a wild chance that you may recall anything about it? It’s perfect for a blanket for my daughter.
Any information you may have will be so appreciated.
Thank you for your time and attention to my query.
MJ, the SKEINdinavian