I have crossed over ...

... to the Dark Side, during my blogging absence of late, to the side of .... wait for it .... knitting! 

It's not that I live in a cold climate and need woollies to wear ~ Brisbane is far from being considered an icy city at any time of the year. But knitting does tend to keep me busy during the nights when I can't sleep, and the family did complain about the sewing machine running at 2am in the morning (go figure that one!) So knitting needles it was to be, click clacking away under the blanket of darkness and making a cardi was a simple choice.

With not having clicked the old needles for a few years I found a simple pattern, no buttons or buttonholes and a plainish style to wake my old fingers up with. My hands seemed to have some memory of what to do and it felt like old times very quickly. This is the pattern that I 'planned' to follow ...

Creative Knitting Spring 2103

How lovely does that simple cabled front band look, worked in reverse stocking stitch ~ classic but easy! The pattern is in Creative Knitting Spring 2013 magazine and was exactly what I wanted. Instead of knitting the back and fronts separately, I worked on circular needles, eliminating the side seams. 

People often say knitting is like riding a bike, you never forget! Supposedly skills learnt many years back become part of muscle memory ~ too bad nobody clued me in that my years of knitting hiatus might be beyond the statute of limitations. Yes my friends, disaster struck.

The body is finished, joined at the shoulders (minus the sleeves) and ready for a quick test fit. The cable stitch around the neck looks great. I am loving the colour combo of this wool, and can see it fitting into the winter wardrobe easily.

Neck cable detail at shoulder

AHHHHH!!! Why is my beautiful cable edging down the front rolling under? 

Front cable band hiding under the roll!

It's not normal! The picture cardi isn't doing it ~ but if I look more closely have they actually used photo trickery to delude me? 

Have they used 'magic pins' to keep the cable from rolling ?!?

And then the brain kicked in and remembered, I really needed a ribbing type stitch to even out my stitches and create an edge ~ and the cable stitch didn't do this. Remember all the curled scarves we all have knitted ~ edge them, or even out the purl/knit rows,  and the curls disappear! 

So I am contemplating at the moment to either a) add a rib edge to this cabling, or b) undo and restart. Which doesn't worry me as I really want to end up with a wearable cardi and I do have a few more weeks up my sleeve till the winter chills hit. So I am now on the quest for the mythical non-roll stocking stitch edge

Doesn't it seem like everyone is taking up knitting again these days? Years back it was considered a necessary cost-saving way to keep the family warm, something only our Grandmother's did, keeping their hands busy between cooking and other domestic duties of the day. But now it has become quite a fashion statement ~ even a form of graffiti (have you seen 'yarnbombing' in action). 

Crazy Yarn Bombing examples from around the globe

Ralvelry is my new 'Facebook' for knitting, with Pinterest coming in a very close second. Anyone one else out there being snagged with the knitting bug ... go on, 'fess up ... J