Tuesday, March 30, 2010

And they call it, hoodie luh-huuuuv

'Member my first Central Park Hoodie? I loved that thing. Still do, in fact. But in retrospect, that was puppy love.

This, this is true love.
CPH Front
Don't get me wrong, the electric bluegaloo CPH is one of my favorite knits. But frankly, I almost never wear it. It simply doesn't get that cold here very often. So it, and my other wool sweaters, only see the light of day once or twice a season.

This baby, however, is a cotton blend. That be LOVE #1. I've already worn it five times in the past week alone! It was 78 degrees yesterday, and I still wore it. Uuuuntil the hot hot air in my car forced me to take it off.
CPH Back
LOVE #2? (No, it's not my butt. Definitely not my butt.) It's knitted all in the round and...wait for it...all. top. down. That's right, I reverse-engineered the entire pattern. It wasn't that hard, actually, thanks to the Bible Barbara Walker's Knitting from the Top. No seams and a custom-tailored fit!
CPH Side
Dude, I would make such a good spy. Except for the running and the shooting and the secret identities and stuff.

I obviously can't go into too much detail without giving away the pattern or breaking the record for the longest blog post ever, but here's a general rundown of my mods:
  • Used a provisional cast-on for the back and fronts
  • Used short rows to shape the shoulders
  • Joined the back shoulders to the front shoulders with a three-needle bind-off so there would be more stability to counter balance the weight of the hood (and had to fudge it a stitch on each side to line up the purl columns because I'm freakishly anal that way)
  • After the shoulders, on the fronts, increased a stitch every other RS row 3x, then did a provisional cast-on to add extra stitches for the neckline
  • Joined the fronts to the back once the armhole depth had been reached, adding stitches at each armhole with a backwards loop cast-on
  • Knitted set-in sleeves top down, decreased from the elbow to a couple of inches above the wrist, then knitted 2x2 rib until the cuff was the perfect length for my under-tall arms
  • Used decreases and short rows to create a nice, rounded hood
  • Knit the entire border band in one piece (thank you 60" HiyaHiya Interchangeable Cable!)
  • Added a zipper instead of buttons

TIP: If you plan to knit this top down, flip the order of the charts. For example, when it says to knit Chart A, Knit Chart C.
CPH Side 2
And look! LOVE #3: No villagers-with-torches pointy hood this time! I used decreases and some hoodie short rows a'la Cristy (sounds good, don't it? Next time I go to a restaurant, I'm going to order that), creating 6 wraps per side in 4 stitch intervals to add height to the fronts. That turned out the perfect hood for me!
CPH Front SG
I'm too obnoxious for my cardi, too obnoxious for my cardi, so obnoxious let's part-tay...

LOVE #4: This pattern really is spectacular, any way you knit it. The cables add interest but are easy to memorize, and the multiple purl columns conform to your body without the need for shaping. The finished product is cute and flattering, and really - how can you not love a hoodie!


By knitting it all top-down, I was able to customize it even further to the perfect length, the perfect width, the perfect fit!
CPH Front 2
Yarn thoughts
LOVE #5: The yarn. Oh, the yarn. I heart this new discovery of mine like I heart Nathan Fillion (but in a completely different way). This is Tatamy Tweed by Kraemer Yarns, a cotton/acrylic blend that comes in several amazing tweed colorways. It's easy to knit with, machine washable and fabulously soft!

It did shed some of those tweedy bits while knitting and in the dryer after the first wash, so I had to trot out the lint brush for a few tees and things. But those were very minor inconveniences and the sweater doesn't look any less tweedy post-shedding.

I just found out that Kraemer has now launched a Tatamy line with solid versions of their tweed colorways, which makes me all kinds of giddy! This may become my new go-to sweater yarn!

Wrap it up
I can't get enough of this sweater! It's so cute and comfy and cottonlicious, I want to wear it all the live long day. In fact, I have some forest green Tatamy Tweed in my stash and am seriously thinking of knitting another one. Because top-down, custom-fit, in a fabulous cotton tweed, it is sheer sweater perfection. (ETA: Even with those two cables twisting the wrong way, which I just noticed thanks to Anonymous which I totally did on purpose. Design feature. And a knittily-engrained life lesson. 'Cause, you know, the world isn't perfect, so your sweater shouldn't be either. ;)).
CPH Front 3
Top-down Central Park Hoodie
Pattern: Knitscene, Fall 2006 or Interweave Online
Yarn: Tatamy Tweed Worsted, 7 skeins in Oatmeal
Needle: HiyaHiya Interchangeables in size 8 (various cable lengths)
Mods: Knit all top-down, short row shoulders, non-pointy hood, zipper instead of buttons, and a buncha others listed up above

19 Comments:

Blogger Batty said...

Wow. You mean you rewrote the whole pattern? I am in awe. The new CPH fits you perfectly, the color is great, and the weight is much more appropriate for where you live (rather than where I live and freeze). Great job. And that zipper... perfection.

4:59 PM  
Blogger Bezzie said...

Very cool! I think it'd look good w/a shawl collar for those who don't like the hoodie. The zipper is the cherry on top!

5:09 PM  
Blogger Brenda said...

Fantastic! That really turned out great.

Do you watch Castle? It's my favorite show. My husband likes it too, but I'm pretty sure it's not for the same reason. He thinks I like it because I like to read mystery novels. I let him believe that.

5:58 PM  
Blogger Zonda said...

Totallyawesomelyfabulousness!!!

Methinks I need to check out that yarn for this area too :)

6:57 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Looks gorgeous! You don't say whether those two cables twisted the wrong way were done on purpose or not, but they add charm and originality to your awesome sweater :)

6:57 PM  
Blogger weezalana said...

Anonymous - OMG! I did not even notice that until you mentioned it. No, wait, I mean, that was totally done on purpose. Design feature. And, er, life lesson. You know, 'cause the world's not perfect, so your sweater shouldn't be either. ;)

7:05 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Whoops, I shouldn't have mentioned it then! It just makes your sweater that much more unique! ;)

7:09 PM  
Blogger Jacey said...

Dude, it's so awesome. I heart it. The zipper is an awesome choice, and the yarn is so luscious. Kudos, chickadee.

7:27 PM  
Blogger Halfway Crafter said...

I love all the mods you made! I too had a pointy hood and can only wear it when it's really cold. Still, I thought I was pretty clever in being able to follow the pattern and knit the thing, let alone modify and knit it top down in the round!

7:37 PM  
Blogger Monique said...

It looks great!

10:55 PM  
Blogger Sarah said...

Okay, I was totally debating whether or not to mention the miscabled cables, but it looks like Anonymous spilled the beans for me!

Design feature aside, it looks fantastic, and my brain is just a little too fuzzy right now to understand how you reversed the pattern, but clearly you have more knitting-fu than I when it comes to changing stuff. Me? Super impressed.

5:22 AM  
Blogger knottygnome said...

it looks fantastic! i love sweaters that will go with everything. and obviously you would not make a good spy because you have a unique one-of-a-kind sweater that would render you instantly recognizable to knitters everywhere. also, do you know any foreign languages? i hear they are big on that these days.

6:31 AM  
Blogger Julie said...

wow, it's amazing!! Such a gorgeous hoodie, and it looks wonderful on you. Good call on the cotton!

9:03 AM  
Blogger IrishGirlieKnits said...

You are a sweater rockstar!! Just imagine what you would do if you actually lived somewhere cold!!

Love love love this sweater!! Great job :)

10:01 AM  
Blogger turtlegirl76 said...

All Hail Barbara Walker! Hail to the top down Queen!

So very awesome. Makes me want to make another CPH myself.

3:45 PM  
Anonymous Jeanne said...

Its gorgeous - great job! I think it looks beautiful on you - what a great fit. I can't believe someone spotted a cable done the wrong way though - of course its a design feature!

Kraemer's isn't too far from where I live - and I've been to their store many times - they really have very nice yarns

4:23 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

That is all sorts of awesome - from the color, fit, zipper, reverse engineering - all of it. And hey - I live 20 minutes away from Kraemers.

4:30 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

That is all sorts of awesome - from the color, fit, zipper, reverse engineering - all of it. And hey - I live 20 minutes away from Kraemers- and 5 minutes away from Jeanne :)

4:31 PM  
Anonymous Generic Viagra said...

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11:38 AM  

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