marmor

September 07, 2017










Marmor is finished and I love her! The minimal design is modern, classic, and wearable. Marmor is knit in one piece with an Audrey Hepburn-esque stand-up shawl collar with a knitted-as-you-go i-cord edging. The pattern also uses a top-down set-in contiguous sleeve technique that looks beautiful in garter stitch. The pattern is well-written and easy to follow, although at the beginning, I confess to not knowing where the directions were taking me. I decided to suspend my knitting reality and just follow the directions and knit onward. Good decision. It's in the in-progress picture below when it finally dawned on me what was unfolding. All at once, the back collar and i-cord edging, the right and left contiguous shoulder shaping, the back, along with their slipped stitch faux seams are in process. All that will become clear after an hour of knitting and you'll realize it's an ingenious pattern. See the picture below.

I love and adore the look and texture of garter stitch but garter fabric is quite dense and it can make a sweater droop. Care must be taken with yarn selection and/or gauge as you will have to deal with droop if you don't. Knitting garter in a very tight gauge is one way you can keep garter from drooping. Another way is selecting a lightweight yarn. Luft from Woolfolk was a perfect choice for this pattern. Because it is such a "big" yarn (knitting to a bulky weight), yet is very lightweight, Luft is a perfect choice for a large garment such as a coat or long sweater.  You can knit a big coat that won't be too heavy to wear (or knit) and won't sag from being too heavy. The yarn itself is what makes this sweater so special. Luft is the fluffy kitten of hand knitting yarns and feels like a velvet cloud in your hand.  Heaven. Only the most unlucky knitter wouldn't think this was uber soft next to the skin. It is a blend of merino wool and organic cotton making it a perfect year 'round yarn.

I cannot imagine the process that makes a yarn both bulky and lightweight at the same time, so I dissected a strand to see how it was made. It looks like a netted tube into which soft fluff has been blown. Folks, this is a special yarn, truly gorgeous; very soft and tame to knit, yet sturdy.  I would not hesitate to wear my sweater anywhere, and wear it often, but I will take care and hand wash it.

While knitting the pattern with this lovely yarn, I couldn't help but feel that this is an exciting time for hand knitters. That's us!  The industry has grown so much over the last decades with so many new and time-saving techniques to master (contiguous sleeves comes to mind) and so many gorgeous yarns to try such as Luft.  Indie dyers and designers are now easy to find, and then there's Ravelry, God bless them, who make it all so easy for us to find each other for social connections, help and encouragement. And then fine yarn companies like Woolfolk who are making supremely gorgeous yarns for us. We are truly in a golden age of hand knitting.

After knitting Marmor, I'm looking forward to Woolfolk's new fall/winter pattern collection and I'll share that with you when it debuts on Saturday.

Purchase Marmor by Regina Moessmer on Ravelry
A list of Woolfolk Yarn stockists can be found here.








At the top is the back collar--you can also see the i-cord edging. Then going clockwise from there, you see the right front, then the shoulder "seam" (that is part of the contiguous sleeve technique), followed by the back with the slipped stitch stockinette detail down the center, then the left shoulder seam, and the left front.

I made the smallest size, used 9 skeins and made it 1" shorter than the pattern.



I used the pale gray on the left, but I love the look of the white netted tube against the darker colors. 
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18 Comments

  1. This is such a beautiful and, as you said, sturdy garment. I love the bold, exposed-seam look and the sheer coziness of it. Thank you for the garter stitch tips. Really helpful! Chloe

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    Replies
    1. Thank you Chloe. It is so cozy, that's a great word to describe it. I actually finished it quite a while ago but was waiting to post it when more people were starting to think of fall knitting. Our Northern California evenings can get surprisingly chilly and this was just the perfect cardigan to wrap in. I do love garter so much and always trying to find garments that showcase it.

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  2. What a beautiful cardigan!
    Any update on when your larger sized gingersnap cardigan pattern will be available? I'm looking forward to it! Many thanks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you. I'm too embarrassed to admit that I've just plain run out of steam on that Gingersnap thing, but there's no other way to say it. It's really not so very difficult to do, it's just doing it, and I just keep putting it off and off and off. Ugh. So bad. I really must get back to it once and for all.

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  3. Lovely sweater! It seems simple, but you see more and more thoughtful, tailored details the longer you look at it. :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, so true! As they say, "it's all in the details"!

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  4. Looks cozy! A practical cardy, and classy too.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Michelle. I just loved knitting it and now get to love wearing it.

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  5. Love the sweater! How do you stay so fit?
    M

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  6. You are kind, this model and your work are perfect. Thanks from aix en provence.

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  7. I've been dying to hear how this went. Apparently, it went very well! Thanks for the in process photo. The finished product looks so nice on you😊

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  8. This sweater is a beauty Kristin. I love the diagonal lines and the construction looks fantastic. Have to try this yarn! Beautiful fit. Cindi

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  9. Really tempted by this pattern! Thrilled with how well this turned out. Thanks for the helpful tips and photos!

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    Replies
    1. Hi Claire. I think you'll love knitting this pattern.

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