River

jody

river 'n me

Murkyriver  Riverswag

Oh yeah, she’s done!
First off…a public apology to all those I took down with me on this one. Oh my, this was a boring knit. Yes it was a very long repeat…but guess what? Every row was pretty much the same — just off by a stitch at a time. Ugh!
The results, though, I’m quite happy with.
Specs
Pattern River by Sharon Miller in Rowan 38
Yarn KnitPicks Alpaca Cloud 100% Baby Alpaca in Tidepool. Approx 350 yards.
Needles 5mm (US 8) Bryspun circs
Mods & Thoughts

  • The needles — I wanted to like them, I really did. The cord is amazing. I could sit and play with the cord, bending it this way and that. It’s a great tactile experience. I even really like the way the needles feel in my hand. Their points are nice — not too sharp, not too dull. But, I don’t like their lack of weight. Would I use them again? Probably not.
  • Number of repeats I did 14 or 15 repeats instead of 11. I could have done 1 or 2 more but I just wanted this thing to be over!
  • Yarn This is very nice yarn, and for the price this is amazing yarn. It gets a tad fuzzy — sorta like a mohair halo — and is wonderfully soft.
  • Blocking This was so quick to block! It went from a big puddle of yarn (pic on the left) to a lovely undulating lacy thing (pic on the right) in just a couple hours. The hardest part was finding a place to pin it out that had a fan and could be Isabella-free until it dried. In the end a spray bottle of water ensured the latter. poor Isabella

I sub’d a non-mohair yarn because I wanted to make something that I could wear everyday. I think I succeeded. In the pic above I’m wearing it with my denim jacket. I know you don’t see the intricacies of the lace but I’m OK with that. I’m not a traditional lace-wearing sorta girl. I like knitting lace though, so this is a perfect compromise. I get to knit it and wear it.
I could have picked a color with more contrast (maybe one of the light blue shades?) but green is my favorite color.
I finished this thing just in time. This weekend is was windy and in the 30s, and my lacy alpaca scarf was just the ticket to keeping me warm without feeling like a bundled up kid during the first snowstorm of the season.
KALers — how ya doin?
I stopped the weekly posts because the progress slowed down a lot. Drop me a line or leave me a comment when you’re done and I’ll link to you in a post!

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46 thoughts on “River”

  1. That’s a great color! I really wanted to make it but according to you and others, it sounds like a “snoozer” of a project.. but the results are so nice. Maybe I’ll eventually break down.

  3. gorgeousness! I love the color on you!
    I feel asleep one too many times knitting the darn thing. What a snore! That, combined with the fact that I need to rip a row has contributed to the semi-permanent demise of River. I haven’t officially called it quits on the project, but I’ve moved on to other things. Ah, well.

  4. looks fantastic. love it with the denim. i think i’ll be rockin’ my lace like you if i can ever finish one. i think i’ll pick up my orange lace thingy and give it a go again. great pics. i really like the contrast of that preblock/postblock and boy i have to go there about your hair. its such a brilliant cut! i know i’ve probably missed the fan fare over your fabulous do and cool glasses, but i just had to acknowledge that.
    take care!

  9. Jodi – it looks awesome. I love this pattern. I wish you could buy it as a single, as it is the only thing I like from the book it is in.

  10. That’s the way to do it, wear it how you want. I took mine away on holiday and used it as a lacy coverup for those late evenings, yet it still looks great wrapped inside my jacket to keep me as snug as a bug. Yours is such a pretty colour too.

  11. your river is beautiful! everyone’s been complaining about how boring a knit this is, so i’d decided not to make it, but ever time i see i finished one i change my mind again… i love how it looks in alpaca cloud!

  12. wow, looks great, jody! i started mine, then, i really didn’t like the look of garter stitches on this thicker, zephyr yarn so i kind of stopped proceeding. now i’m not sure if zephyr is a good yarn for it. but i really like yours.

  13. Hi Jody, Your River looks great! I finally finished mine back in the beginning of October. It was a gift for my aunt. I used Kidsilk Haze in a camel color. I thought about making one for myself but (yawn) that pattern was so (yawn) boring (yawn) that I don’t think I could stand to make another one!
    Ericka

  14. Fabulous job! What a great colorway. I’m happy to hear that the Knitpicks alpaca is a good mohair sub. Would you knit other shawls with it?

  16. Your River is gorgeous! The yarn and colorway you used was one that I was seriously considering for mine.
    I’m still working on mine, I figure I’m about halfway done. I have 10 1/2 repeats done, but because I’m using smaller needles (US size 8) than called for, it’s only measuring 28 inches so far. There’s a progress picture on the 11/21 entry on my blog, if anyone is interested.

  19. Your river looks wonderful, but more importantly, you look great! I think you lost some weight, missy. Congrats! (I know it can be tough. I gained 16 lbs. between Feb and Apr of this year, and it took me until last month to lose it all. Notice there are no body shots on my blog between Asana and Clementine – it’s not an accident!)
    My River has slowed, and except for airline knitting will probably not pick up until after the holidays. It’s driving me nuts, but I know the result will be worth it. Enjoy your new, chic wrap.

  20. Congratulations on your completed River! It looks gorgeous on you!
    Oh, how I wish mine was done. However, it is one of those projects that got sidelined when real life interfered, and I just can’t seem to pick it up again. I do want to finish it, I really do.

  24. Stunning. It looks great and snuggly too. I hate knitting scarf type items but oh, how I love to wear them. Looks great with the jean jacket. :)

  25. Your River looks lovely in that colour. I am just about to order some Knitpicks yarn for lacy scarves and Alpaca Cloud Tidepool was one of my choices. Its great to see it knitted up.

  27. A perfect yarn sub. Yours turned out beautiful, and I like how your wearing it, too!
    I don’t enjoy knitting or wearing traditional lace, either, but was giving River the eye for next year. It never even occured to me to sub with Alpaca Cloud, of which I have a couple lovely skeins in the stash. I got it before I realized what knitting with real laceweight would be like. I don’t have the patience. But it’s SO pretty and I’ve been a bit dejected that I can’t figure out what to do with it. But this would be a good mindless in front of the TV knit. I think I’ll do the same.
    Thanks for the inspiration and Happy Knitting!!

  29. I’ve put mine to one side because I’m busy with Christmas knitting right now but I will get back to it because I do want to finish it. I agree that it’s a boring knit though. I’m thinking of buying some bamboo needles to see if that helps since I keep hearing that KSH works much better on bamboo.

  36. Your River looks great! I’m having a hard time feeling the love for this pattern, but it’s a gift for mom and I’ve got to finish it. I’ve got to force myself to work on it this week.

  37. Congratulations on finishing River, it looks great on you.
    Bet you get loads of compliments when you go out wrapped up in it. Its freezing here in the UK, so I’m permanently wrapped up in my River at the moment.

  39. I wasn’t in on the KAL, but started a river when the book came out, did a couple repeats and it sits now. Glad to hear I am not the only one bored with it. But the end result really is pretty! Yours looks great :)

  45. I need to pick up my River again…spent too much wasted time on the craft fair that sucked and now I’m finishing a sweater for my godson. Maybe after that, lol…I would like to finish it!!! Or at least get through one repeat, lol…

  46. Your River is BEAUTIFUL!!!
    You’re right, though, the pattern is a complete snooze. I have so many papers to write and so much work to do that I think I’m going to give mine an RIP and turn it into a project I actually like to work on. Would you mind removing me from the knit-along? I guess I don’t knit well with others. :)

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