A Knitting Project that Started at the Farmers' Market

One beautiful Tuesday afternoon in June, I was just entering the farmers' market when a blond woman in an orange sleeveless sweater  caught my eye. I coveted her colorful knit top, so I approached her and asked  where she bought it. I was expecting her to name a store where I could find it, but she hesitated just a moment and told me that she had knit it. She added that she got the pattern and yarn from a wonderful company called Quince and that it was easy to knit. We both went about our shopping and I swallowed my disappointment. Then it came to me that my sister was an expert knitter and with the information the wearer had provided we could easily track down the sweater and maybe she would knit it for me. I have mentioned my sister Lucia before and praised her talent for arts and crafts– she did a vintage jeans repair for me in 2017 which I documented:  Find HERE

When I called her in New York to discuss my request, I was thinking about my mother's old sewing patterns from McCalls and knitting patterns cut out from various women's magazines in the '50s, like the one above. Lucia definitely inherited my mothers skills, so she's kept some of those old patterns and precious childhood fabrics stored in the same Scandinavian rosemaled trunk that my mother Isabelle used.  We're so lucky to still have that old thing in the  family.

Luckily, Lucia agreed to the knitting project and I started investigating the Quince&Co. website to find the item I had seen. This was easier said than done. The site was confusing and didn't yield a shell like the one I wanted, not to mention that my memory was vague, having seen the piece for only a few minutes at the market. Lucia had to explain about knitting web sites which often bundle patterns and yarn together. We then exchanged photos of Quince&Co. options and finally hit upon a pattern called "Kai" and a color called rosehip.  Then came my big surprise ---  patterns no longer come in paper packages that you buy or clip from magazines. These days you download the directions that the company provides after you've paid for them. So Lucia ordered the kestrel yarn to be sent to her and directions that she would download.

Photo & description of Kai on Quince&Co's website

"Kai is our sophisticated color block shell, with a split hem and the slightest of finishing trim on neck and armholes. We love the contrast of light, clear Wave and deep coral Anemone, but what colors will you pick?"

The following is Lucia's account of the project:

"When I learned that the wearer of the sweater had said it was from Quince&Co, I knew that I had heard of Quince, a small high quality yarn purveyor in Maine. I even had a pattern published under their auspices.  I was intrigued by the idea of trying linen -- I usually only knit with wool -- and I didn't know how forgiving it would be on my hands. Quince&Co offers two weights of linen, but the pattern called for Kestrel, the heavier of the two weights of linen yarn they offer. When I opened the package and saw the lusciously colored skeins, I was surprised to find the strand flat, not cylindrical like "regular" spun yarn. They call it a tape yarn, but it knit up easily on # 8 round needles, with the resulting texture being nubby and uneven. Attaching in a new skein was a bit of a quandary, but it must have been for others too because Quince provided a blog post on the very subject, with suggestions and tips:

https://quinceandco.com/blogs/news/working-with-kestrel

Knitting up the tank top was quick and easy, a perfect summer project, and I was happy to give this gift to a beloved sister less skilled with her hands.

So the moral of this story is if you see someone wearing something you like, ask where he/she got it. They will  take it as a compliment, and it may end up in a sartorial adventure."

Here are Lucia's comments in texts she sent as the knitting progressed

Friday June 25th                     "Yarn arrived,  color is beautiful"

6/25/21                                            I sent the measurements she requested 

  

       6/27/21                                "Progress on knitting"

7/10/21                                             "Sideways progress, It's fun to knit"

8/21/21                                     "Not the greatest angle but you get the idea"

8/31/21             "Finished knitting but now I have to finish off the ends. Still big job ahead"

9/13/21                                                             "Here she is"

Package arrived safely          

9/15/21

I love it

After I unpacked the hand-knit shell and admired it, I tried to imitate the market shopper's outfit and it was a good match. It was exactly what I wanted!!  Now all I had to do was take it to the farmers' market on Tuesday and find my twin