Frog in knots

Knitting, knots and frogging.

Saturday, May 19, 2007

Twisted

I must be really twisted to think knitting patterns from the 80s is a good idea, but I have news for you - it's coming back, like the monster in a horror film 80s knitting is rearing it's ugly head again. I've had my eye on this pattern from the very day my Mum bought the book in 1987 and now a whopping 20 years later I've finally made it.
And it's a little, well...er twisted. There are so many freaking cables on it making me look like some sort of demented helter skelter.
It's like one of those mind puzzles that starts to move if you look at it for too long.
Am I glad I finished it? Kinda. I started knitting it on a whim pre-Knitting Olympics last year as I was between projects waiting for them to start and it's sat in a cupboard ever since. I get UFO guilt so this is one less thing to niggle in the back of my mind and lets me strike off another half sweater from my sweater-a-month total. I have to say that I did not enjoy finishing this at all, I started it in a time when acrylic yarn and metal needles were my staple diet. In the last 12 months I've used either wood or bamboo needles almost exclusively and I really missed them. Also this acrylic was one of the brands I like a lot less than the one I usually use and found it awful compared to the nicer yarns I've been using more recently. Basically I've been spoilt. I'm not sworn of acrylic forever. In fact I'm knitting with it right now but I think the worm has turned. Next month's it's cashmere for sure.

40 Comments:

At 5:54 pm, Blogger Veronique said...

I love those cables!

 
At 6:20 pm, Blogger Seahorse said...

Enjoyable to make or not, the end result is lovely!

The eighties are coming back??? Maybe I should never have frogged all that scary intarsia after all... Lol ;)

 
At 6:25 pm, Blogger Piglottie said...

What a stunning cardigan - I love it!!! I've just noticed your Jedi coat on the sidebar and am intrigued (or have I missed someting - quite possibly!)

 
At 6:51 pm, Blogger Bezzie said...

Cables in the 80s weren't too terribly bad. Now if you had knit it in day glo colors and added shoulder pads, yikes!

I like it!

Funny how we get spoiled so fast isn't it?

 
At 7:20 pm, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Pretty cables.

That moving picture is crazy, I still feel a bit dizzy!

It's terrible what yarn does, you try something new, and then you're addicted!

 
At 7:26 pm, Blogger Charity said...

Well, I don't know if it makes me old, but I love it! It looks like the perfect comfy sweater to throw on, and fits you really nicely. :0)

 
At 8:56 pm, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Well, I can't feel it, but as Fernando would say, it is better to look good than to feel good, and it certainly does flatter you. You should wear that color often!

 
At 9:01 pm, Blogger Piglottie said...

Thanks for the info re: your jedi coat Rain. Its gorgeous! I love it :) unfortunately crochet and I do not get along!

 
At 9:05 pm, Blogger dreamcatcher said...

The cardi looks lovely, the cabling pattern is very nice indeed. The other picture made my head swim though :-D Have to say the pattern doesn't look that 80s to me, no huge shoulders or batwings orother madness!

 
At 9:45 pm, Blogger Peg-woolinmysoup said...

Beautiful sweater - colour is gorgeous on you. That little photo of the green with brown leaves almost makes me feel wonky! I have a couple of shirts like that and when I iron them I almost have to look away! I'm with you on the cashmere!

 
At 9:58 pm, Blogger StarKnits said...

LOL the cabels are nice. they look really cool. now i totally woudln't think 80's when i saw that sweater, but mayebe if it was neon colored or soemthing like that. plus with a side ponytail! LOL

 
At 12:00 am, Blogger Bron said...

noooooooo
I love it!!!!!!!!!!

 
At 12:13 am, Blogger Shelley L. MacKenzie said...

Great job on the sweater! I like the colour, and the cables look great.

Gee, if things from the '80s are coming back, I should just raid my closet...though I doubt the stuff would fit since I was a teenager back then...well, so long as shoulder pads don't rear their ugly head, it might not be too bad.

BTW, I've added a link to your blog in my sidebar.

 
At 12:56 am, Blogger Zonda said...

Yikes, my eyes!!! hehe, that illusion!!

Your sweater however is lovely!! Nice cabling! I bet you're glad to be done though!

 
At 1:14 am, Blogger Batty said...

It may be an 80s pattern, but this one has held up really well. I love your color choice, and it fits you beautifully. Must be the no shoulder pads or poofy hair.

 
At 1:24 am, Blogger Sarah said...

I like the wonky cables, aren't you glad you finished it up?

I'm old enough to have lived theough the 80's once so I can skip the second round :)

 
At 3:04 am, Blogger Alisha said...

That is a very beautiful!! Amazing cables!

 
At 5:45 am, Blogger cpurl17 said...

It's a lovely sweater and has a classic look that is timeless!

 
At 7:11 am, Blogger Linda said...

My eyes have gone all wiggly! Your cabled cardi is beautifully knitted. I know what you mean about being spoilt using nice yarn. I always used to use acrylic years ago!

 
At 8:29 am, Blogger Artis-Anne said...

OH I LOVE it and the colour is gorgeous but then I am old !! well older :)
But truly I think its a classic; just don't go any where near padded shoulders !!!

 
At 9:20 am, Blogger T said...

It looks lovely on you, cables are never out of fashion. Snuggly!
Don't put any more of those weird pics up, ok? ;)

 
At 11:36 am, Blogger reluctantMANGO said...

The cardigan looks great! Definitely one of the few positive fashion contributions of the 80's... Just don't let us find you wearing it with fishnet stockings, leather miniskirt, slouchy boots and lace gloves, m'kay? ;)

 
At 11:37 am, Blogger reluctantMANGO said...

Oh, and the hair looks fab - new cut?

 
At 12:58 pm, Blogger turtlegirl76 said...

Wow. I never would have pinned that for an 80s pattern had you not said anything. It's fantastic!

 
At 2:17 pm, Blogger Pinkwool said...

I agreee with TG, too. A classic cable cardigan is never out of style so this will definately be one of those staple sweaters in your closet.

When I started knitting I swore I'd never pay more than a couple of bucks for a skein/hank of yarn. Haha! Now I don't bat an eye dropping $20+ on yarn for socks, of alol things. Lol!

 
At 3:07 pm, Blogger KnitPastis said...

Incredible cable work! That turned out so nice!

 
At 4:52 pm, Anonymous Anonymous said...

It looks beautiful! The color is gorgeous, and I like the cables.
Oh God, the 80's are coming back?? Yikes!

 
At 5:49 pm, Anonymous Anonymous said...

You know, it looks pretty classic to me. Cables, cardigan...what's to date it to a particular decade? I'm sorry you didn't enjoy finishing it, but I hope you get some good use out of it.

 
At 9:30 pm, Anonymous Anonymous said...

OK, that twisty illusion really got to me, but that cabled cardi is a classic beauty!

In the 80s, I would've worn it Preppy with a T-shirt, skinny jeans, and flats. Uh-oh, I'm really dating myself....

 
At 2:34 pm, Blogger acrylik said...

What a stunning cardi, I love it, those cables are excellent. Beautiful colour, too.

The moving pic made me wobble a bit, mind ;)

 
At 2:42 pm, Blogger amanda said...

You are so funny :) I love the sweater, it's, like, totally fabulous. Rock on 1980s!

 
At 2:59 pm, Blogger Carol said...

I love your sweater and it looks so nice on you..
I have patterns that go back to the 50's and they are still ones that I use today...it is amazing the price back then and the price today..

 
At 6:29 pm, Blogger Kath said...

Good thing you put the illusion after the FO shot - my eyes really went squiffy! Love the cardi though - such great cables! Some acrylic can be better than others but I know what you meant about going off it! At least we're safe when it comes to washing acrylic jumpers - ideal for mucky little ones! Congrats on the book and lucky you on the lovely Canadian yarn haul - hope the Pup is on the mend!

 
At 6:41 pm, Anonymous Anonymous said...

That is a classic so will never date .I love the colour too.

 
At 8:50 pm, Blogger Melissa said...

I think it looks very classic. It's looks nice on you.

 
At 11:54 am, Blogger Donna said...

Wow, lots of cables. I love the colour though.
That illusion made me go all squiffy!!

 
At 4:21 pm, Blogger Bonnie said...

Qoq--that's some beautiful knitting! Great cable work.

I'm am sad to hear 80s knitting is coming back. I learned to knit in the 80s and really hated big shoulders and puffy sleeves. Yuck!

 
At 9:07 pm, Blogger DomesticOverlord said...

So, you were in my dream the other night. You see one of my friends wrote a play for an English class and somehow this got twisted into a dream where you took time out from producing music videos to produce this awful play. You kept saying that it was fantastic but I knew it was going to ruin your career so I kept trying to talk you out of it.

Craziness.

 
At 11:53 am, Blogger Modelwidow said...

Everything is still wiggling after that illusion :0)

It maybe an 80s pattern, acrylic on metal needles - but I think it looks fantastic.

 
At 3:53 pm, Blogger allisonmariecat said...

Oh, no, not the 80s! Where'd I leave my Aqua Net and long black leggings?

I think it's lovely, anyway. I hope the end result makes the finishing worth it!

 

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