Cables with variegated yarn?

#1

Hi all,

A friend of mine is expecting a baby boy in June, so you know what that means…baby stuff knitting time!!!

I was thinking about making this and have a couple questions for y’all.

Have you ever seen (or knit yourself) cables with variegated yarn? Does it look nice/weird? Should I stick to solid colours?

This pattern suggests Rowan All Seasons Cotton, but do you know of any substitute yarns that I could use instead, perhaps from my favourite yarn companies of all time - Red Heart and Lion Brand :rollseyes:

And now for the toughie question - could I change this pattern to knit it in the round? Is it as simple as subtracting two stitches from each side? Could I also just pick up stitches around the arm holes from which to knit the sleeves? Or is this too ambitious an undertaking and I should just leave the pattern as it is???

#2

I’ve seen cables in varietaged yarn and they look fine–not as pronounced, maybe, but still pretty.

Since it’s a cardigan, if you wanted to do it truly in the round, you’d have to steek the front. What I’m doing on a cardigan for myself is connecting the sides and back into one long piece that I’ll divide for the armholes. You can absolutely pick up and knit the sleeves down, just decrease where you would have increased.

#3

Umm…maybe I shouldn’t be trying this, since I have no idea what you mean by steek… :blush:

#4

steek the front

something absolutly, completely, and utterly terrifying…but something I WILL do someday!!!

you actually CUT the yarn.

#5

Umm…maybe I shouldn’t be trying this, since I have no idea what you mean by steek… :blush:[/quote]

If you want to knit a cardigan in the round, and Fair Isle patterns often do this, you need a way to open the front up, right? A steek is an extra group of stitches–usually around 10 that you add to the front so you can continue to knit in the round all the way up. Sweaters use them for armholes and neck shaping, too. When you’re done with your knitting, you secure the steeks, usually by sewing up each side of the center of the extra stitches with a sewing machine.

Then you CUT up the middle between the sewn seams.

I posted a demo of a steeked sweater a while back if you’re curious.

Otherwise, casting on all the stitches for the two sides and the back saves you having to seam the sides.

#6

:shock: :shock: :shock: People actually knit things and then purposefully cut them up??? WHAT??? :shock: :shock: :shock:

#7

:roflhard: Not cut them up–cut them where they need to be cut. They really don’t unravel!!!

#8

Here is a pic of a cable scarf in Karaoke, a self-striping yarn.

I think it depends on how veariegated the yarn is - if it’s a gradual change, then cables would look beautiful. You can always do a swatch first and see how it looks.

#9

Okay, I think maybe this is more my speed, since I am DEFINITELY not ready to do any steeking!!!

So, if I just cast on enough stitches for the back and two front pieces, I could just knit back and forth until the armholes, right?

#10

Exactly. You’ll eliminate stitches for the edges of each side since you won’t be seaming. Just make sure that the side panel patterns line up. You might have to play with the numbers a bit.

#11

I know someone who knitted Trellis for the Knitting Olympics…it’s gorgeous! I’m tempted to make it myself…I think I’d substitute Shine Worsted. :smiley:

Here’s a cabled sweater I knit with variegated yarn…the cables aren’t as pronounced. I don’t think I’d do it with a variegated yarn that was much less subtle than this one…

#12

Julie, that sweater is beautiful!!! :thumbsup:

I went ahead and ordered Skacel Sirenetta in Brown for Trellis, so yay for me - yarn is on its way!!!

#13

:inlove: :inlove: That sweater, Julie!!

#14

Thanks, it’s on its way to a blue-eyed little girl in Canada :smiley:

#15

Are you talking about me??? :wink: Oh no, wait, you said little girl. Shoot! :lol:

#16

I made a cable hat and I have a scarf that is a WIP that you can see here (you’ll have to scroll down a couple of pictures). The cables are subtle, but I think they’ve turned out very nice.

#17

mks22300,

Your knitting is beautiful! The cabled hat is really nice and you’re right, the cables are nice and subtle.

I already ordered my yarn for the baby cardi, but your variegated cables are making me want more yarn!!! :inlove:

#18

The pullover I just finished knitting I converted the pattern to being knit in the round. I fudged the ribbing pattern a little at the “side seams” to get the pattern repeat to work out correctly, but once I got it straightened out, I flew through the knitting. I hate sewing, and have discovered that the mattress seam makes my seaming even slower… I’m definitely going to be converting more patterns to “in the round” or “in one piece” in the future. I see LOTS of dpns for sleeves too!

#19

Thanks curlykat! I’m sure no one here will try to talk you out of buying more yarn! :rofling: