Stitch 'n Bitch: The Knitter's Handbook (48 page)

3.
Soak the hanks in room-temperature water for at least 20 minutes. Don’t stir your yarn or make temperature changes, as this can result in felted fibers, which you won’t be able to use.

4.
When you are ready to dye your yarn, carefully lift one hank at a time out of the water. Let as much water drain as possible. You can
gently
squeeze the bottom of the hank to get excess water out.

If you are dyeing your yarn more than one color:

1.
Lay your hank(s) out on a plastic-covered surface, because Kool-Aid dyes more than just yarn.

2.
Pour the Kool-Aid liquid onto your hank a little at a time. You can leave space between the colors, or let them bleed into each other.

3.
Place the hank in a medium-sized microwaveable casserole dish. Cover with plastic wrap that has a few holes punched in it.

4.
Microwave on high for 2–4 minutes, or until the water in the dish is clear.

5.
Put the yarn in your sink or bathtub and let cool. Fill with lukewarm water to rinse the yarn, but don’t let the force of the water hit the yarn directly.

6.
Hang the yarn in the shower to dry overnight.

If you are dyeing your yarn one solid color:

1.
Place the hank of yarn in a medium-sized microwaveable casserole dish. Pour in the Kool-Aid, making sure to coat the yarn evenly. You can use your gloved hands to gently push the yarn down into the liquid to make sure it is evenly dyed.

2.
Follow instructions 4–6 above.

K
NITTING
D
IRECTIONS

BACK

CO 48 (50, 54, 58) sts loosely. Work 4 rows in garter st. Work in St st until piece meas 17" from beg. BO 3 sts at the beg of the next 2 rows—42 (44, 48, 54) sts. Cont in St st until piece meas 25 (25½, 26, 26½)". Loosely BO all sts.

FRONT

Work as for back, including all shaping.
At the same time,
when piece meas 22 (22½, 23, 23½)" from beg, beg neck shaping: Work 17 (18, 19, 22) sts, attach another skein of yarn, BO center 8 (8, 10, 10) sts loosely, complete row. Working both sides at once, dec 1 st at each neck edge, every other row 4 times—13 (14, 15, 18) sts each side. Work even until piece meas 25 (25½, 26, 26½)". BO all sts.

SLEEVES (WORKED FROM THE TOP DOWN)

CO 41 (43, 45, 47) sts. Work even in St st for 4 rows. Dec 1 st on each side next RS row; every 6th row 4 times; then every 4th row 2 times—27 (29, 31, 33) sts. Work even until piece meas 16".

BELL SLEEVE SHAPING

Inc 6 sts evenly across next RS row. Rep this inc every 8th row 2 times more—45 (47, 49, 51) sts. Work even until sleeve measures 23 (23½, 24, 24½)". Work 4 rows in garter st. BO loosely.

FINISHING

Sew shoulder seams. Sew sleeves into armhole shaping. Sew sleeve seams from bell to underarm and continue down side seams. Leave 5" unsewn at bottom of tunic. Work 1 row sc around neck opening.

ABOUT MARTHA

I started knitting four years ago as a way to calm down from a very stressful job in advertising. I taught myself knitting out of a book and went on to become what I call a “freaky knitter.” Other people might use the term
obsessive
. A year ago my partner Rebecca Hartranft and I opened Urban Knitter, which is a fiber arts studio in Brooklyn, New York, offering knitting, dyeing, spinning, and crocheting classes (
www.urbanknitter.com
). I learned how to spin about a year ago and am now trying to see how I can smuggle sheep into my backyard.

MELISSA LIM

Don’t worry, this isn’t that plaid number they wore in the seventies—it’s an updated, hip take on the poncho, knit top-down with a chunky yarn and accented with furry trim and pom-poms. The turtleneck adds extra style and warmth. You can pair it with your favorite jeans, dress, or skirt for a quirky, chic look. I love the simplicity of this garment, which knits up quickly on large needles, and the fact that it can be easily adapted to suit different styles and tastes. You can experiment with various necklines, widths, and other details, like adding fringe or mini pom-poms to the hem.

S
IZES

Small (Medium, Large)

Finished length: 20" all sizes

Finished lower edge: 120 (128, 136)" around

M
ATERIALS

MC:
Rowan
Big Wool
(100% merino wool; 100g/87 yds), 5 (6, 6) skeins #008 Black

Gedifra Tecno Hair (100% microfiber; 50g/100 yds)

A:
1 (1, 1) skein #44

B:
1 (1, 1) skein #18

US 15 (10mm) 16" circular needles

US 17 (12mm) 24" circular or double-pointed needles (set of 4-5)

US 17 (12mm) 29" circular needles, or size needed to obtain gauge

I/9 (5.5mm) crochet hook

Gauge

8 sts and 12 rows = 4" in St st on larger needles

Note:
When using
Tecno Hair
, which is knit with 2 strands held tog, work from both ends of the skein, wind up another ball using half the skein, or purchase 2 skeins each of A and B.

D
IRECTIONS

With MC and smaller needles, CO 40 (44, 48) sts. Pm and join into a rnd, being careful not to twist
the sts. Add a double strand of A. Work 3 rnds in k2, p2 rib with MC and A tog. Cont in rib with MC only until work meas 8"–10", depending on how long or how short you want your turtleneck to be.

Work the eyelet rnd next as foll: *K2tog, yo; rep from * until you get back to the beg marker. (This is where you will thread the pom-pom chain later.)

Switch to larger needles and cont in St st as foll: K20 (22, 24) and pm. You may want to use a different colored marker to distinguish it from the beg of the rnd. Work 3 more rnds even.

On the next rnd, inc as foll: *K to next marker, M1, sl marker, M1 (this makes 2 sts in the same spot); rep from * once more. Rep these incs every other row until there are 132 (136, 140) sts. You will have made 23 total incs.

At the same time,
add the contrasting stripe when the body of the poncho meas approx 10" (measuring from bottom of neck to bottom of V); drop A and add a double strand of B. Cont for 3 rnds with MC and B tog. You may wish to alter the number of rnds on all the furry trim to suit your stripe thickness preference.

At the same time,
when there are 132 (136, 140) sts, ending after an inc row, switch again to smaller needles. Add a double strand of yarn A, and cont incs, work 3 rnds k2, p2 rib with MC and A tog. BO all sts loosely with MC only. Weave in all ends and block if necessary.