Hello from Newcastle! (north east of England)

Hi everyone

I've just started swatching for Enid. I think I'm going to be in for a long haul with this one and I can't deny, the idea of steeks is making me more than a little nervous! But I enjoy a challenge.

I'm a big busted gal with a narrow waist so I'm particularly interested in hearing about how others have chosen to modify the pattern...and I'm already considering converting Enid into a jumper rather than a cardi.

The yarn used in the pattern isn't available in the UK so I'm planning on using some of my tweed stash. Possibly in the colours pictured below with the grey/brown shade as the main colour, I'd be interested to hear what you think of this combo:

Looking forward to getting to know you all. Helen

Getting ready for January 1

Hi knitalongers!

I've been enjoying this forum so much lately - it's great to see the progress and think about the ways that the design can be tweaked to make it even better!

So, I've got my yarn all set and I'm planning to cast on for a sleeve on January 1 because I'm still mulling over a couple of modifications - here's a short list and if you're thinking about these things too, I'd love some feedback and thoughts.

Steeks: Lizz's steeks look fabulous, but Lizz, did you have to do a lot of modifying to the hemlines to make this work out well? I was trying to decide if having a non-yielding front opening would be a problem and realized I was wearing a store bought sweater with a set in zipper - no stretch there and I don't mind at all. I'm planning some steek swatching very soon.

Neckline: Specifically the back neckline. Most tops have a higher back neckline to accommodate one's shoulders and neck - to make the garment sit comfortably and flatteringly, the back is about an inch and a half higher than the front. In knitted garments a lot of this time this is accomplished with short rows. On Enid, the logical place to do this would be after the colorwork and before the neckline bind off. This would throw off some of the symmetry of the neckline, but might be more comfortable. Has anyone else been mulling this over? Has anyone who has finished enough to try Enid on wished for a different neckline? I figure this is something easy enough to un-do if it looks horrid, so I might give it a go when I get to the actual knitting (and move beyond my current state of pattern picking).

Shaping: From what I've read, all signs point towards side decreases/increases for the waist and hips and short rows for the bust. However, I recently knit a cardigan that made use of paired increases straight up the front of the sweater along the vertical bustline. It fits beautifully and seems like a simple way to add some flattering shaping to the body without interfering with the colorwork. Any thoughts? (By the way, I have a few resources on bust shaping and I'd be happy to mail some copies out to anyone wanting really specific info on how to do this - just drop me an email if you're interested.)

Want to see my pretty yarn? I'm so excited!

Starting off the new year right

I think Amanda and I both are planning to make the Enid our first big project of 2007. We're both in the throes of holiday knitting (or other things), and I think we're flirting with the idea of having Santa bring us our yarn.

So, I'm looking to cast on New Year's Day. Feel free to jump in earlier (or in Fairy GodKnitter's case, carry on!), or discuss possible yarn substitutions. I've looked at KnitPicks Telemark, but it isn't the pretty heathered colors of the Reynolds Whiskey. That, and the delicious teal isn't included, and the teal with the green is a huge part of why I LOVE this sweater. I may have to splurge on the good stuff.