Knititude

Yes, there is such a thing as too much knitting

I took this photo a few weeks ago, at a moment when I was surprisingly happy, considering that I was sitting in a car in a parking lot, waiting for my son's soccer practice to end, and knitting frantically away on one of several unbloggable projects which have taken up the last month, more or less.  Why happy?  Well, I was looking out my windshield at the mountains, lit by the setting sun, and getting my knitting work done (something which makes any sort of waiting more palatable), and listening to "Eli the Barrow Boy" by the Decemberists.  You can see some fine specimens from my stitch marker collection in the photo (from left):  a knotted loop of contrasting yarn; a small coil-less safety pin; the plastic ring that comes with the replacement head for an electric toothbrush; and the metal ring that sits between two halves of a certain type of click-able ballpoint pen.

Unfortunately, by last week, the knitting (and perhaps even worse, the hours spent at the computer working on spreadsheets and writing out patterns) got to my upper back and neck, and left me unable to turn my head or look up or down without pain.  Which is one reason I haven't been blogging much...anyway, I got some x-rays taken, and found out my neck is too straight (seriously), which apparently has not been good for my posture.  I begin physical therapy this week, and I strongly suggest that y'all be aware of your body position when you knit, and take frequest stretching breaks, my friends!

Primrose Path Pullover

 

Do not, as some ungracious pastors do,
Show me the steep and thorny way to heaven,
Whiles, like a puff'd and reckless libertine,
Himself the primrose path of dalliance treads
And recks not his own rede.-- Ophelia in Shakespeare's Hamlet.

To be honest, I had not known the origin of the phrase "Primrose Path" when I named this sweater, although I was familiar with the connotation of a less-than-righteous route through life.  In thinking of the way the lace band on this pullover starts at the hem in front, wraps diagonally around the side of the body, and finally ends on the upper back, I liked the suggestion of something slightly naughty in traveling along this lacy "path."  When I first swatched for this design, the margins of the path were clean and straight, but I decided I wanted something a little more windblown, more spontaneous, which is why I added the scattered individual lace flowers along the path's edges*. 

I love the way Twist Collective photographed this sweater-- but these photos show the "path" in more detail.

The other great thing about this sweater is the allover ribbing, which gives it a body-skimming and flattering fit (not unlike the Rib & Braid Pullover/Jumper, or the Chinese Lace Pullover!).

*But if you prefer the clean lines of the lace band by itself, the pattern gives directions for omitting the scattered lace flowers.