Saturday, February 24, 2007

Finished Earlier Than Expected...

This baby sweater was to be my finished object for March, but then Andrew and I started watching "V for Vendetta" last night and I really got into it and before long the sweater was finished! This isn't the best picture as it is nearly 10pm and I am in a not-well lit apartment - however, I will endeavor to take a better picture tomorrow in natural light.



The pattern is Daisy from Knitty but I made some changes to the structure. I absolutely detest having to sew pieces together afterward, so I knit the sleeves to the point of the raglan shaping, joined them to the main body, and continued to knit in the round with the raglan shaping. I think it makes for a much neater work... and I have only 5 stitches under each arm to sew up when finished. The yarn is one of the new fair-isle Plymouth Encore skeins, and I really could have got away with one skein for the entire sweater (I made the smallest size), but it was easier to have two skeins so I could work on the sleeves without cutting the yarn from the body. There is enough yarn leftover to probably make a matching hat and booties.

Now here is the delicate thing... the yarn smells a bit. I noticed it when I brought it home - but the yarn store said they had just received it from their supplier, and I live in a no pets non-smoking house. The smell - well, it reminds me a bit of burned hair or wet dog. It's fainter now that I have washed the sweater, and I don't know if at this point if I am just being sensitive about it or not. Before I washed the sweater, my mother-in-law said it reminded her of wet wool - and Encore does have a smidge (about 25%) of wool in it. I asked Willow if she smelled anything and she said it smelled like sunshine (oo-kay...) Does anyone know of anyway I can de-smell the sweater before I finally give it to Teri?

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Word of the Day 4:
plicate

Pronunciation -[adj. plahy-keyt, -kit; v. plahy-keyt]
–adjective
1.
Also, pli·cat·ed. folded like a fan; pleated. –verb (used with object)
2.
Surgery. to perform plication on.

[Origin: 1690–1700; < size="1">

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
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I found this word when I was looking for a synonym for 'knit.' It isn't exact, but I liked it anyway. I assume that the word 'complicate' is connected to this as well.

6 comments:

LadyLungDoc said...

You could try putting it in a plastic bag with a bar of soap. Tie the top shut and let it sit for a few days. Or, put the dry garment in the dryer with a fabric softener sheet and run it through a short cycle.

Either of these will not get rid of the odor, but they will cover it up. Once the sweater is worn once or twice, it will pick up scents from the wearer.

Batty said...

If you have the time, just leaving it out in a well ventilated area might help. Also putting it in a drawer with lavender or some potpourri might help.

Nice work!

Anonymous said...

I am excited to try this yarn! I haven't seen it before and I love Encore for baby/childrens sweaters. You think all of it smells? hmmm Where did you get yours? It is beautiful!

Jo said...

Melanie,

I bought mine at my LYS - there was a blue/green/yellow fair isle pattern as well.

tara said...

I word I know! I love the color. Good luck with the smell thing. I have heard that it is hard to get rid of a smell but maybe the wool smell isnt a bad thing.

tara said...

oops. I meant A word I know. Hmm.