Tag Archives: length

Acrylic & Sweaters (or at least acrylic and my sweater)

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I’m making great headway on my husband’s sweater!  It’s very exciting.  I’ve got the body done, and one sleeve. OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAThe shoulders/sleeve situation looks great, if I say so my self, and I really like the ribbing on the hem and cuff.  (I added a row of purls along the top of the ribbing to make a defined line between the body and the hem.  I think it turned out well!)

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERABut, I’m pretty sure I messed up.  I the body is maybe 2  inches too short.   And that’s really too much to let slide.   If this was a wool sweater, I’d at least try to block it out a little longer.  And if it was a cotton one, I’d hang it up for a while to see if it would sag down to a more reasonable length.

But, I’m knitting this bad boy in acrylic Brava Worsted, which means that neither of those tricks are really going to work.  (Unless there’s some other secret trick that I don’t know.  Tell me if there is!)

I think my only recourse is to rip out the hem and knit a couple extra inches to the body, then re-knit the ribbing.  Sigh.

But, maybe I’ll just wait for a while before ripping anything out, I don’t know if I have the heart to go to town on this sweater quite yet.

Remember, kids, always measure twice before binding off.   Sigh.

Do you have any tips on blocking acrylic?

Husband Sweater: The Picard Maneuver

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In case it hasn’t been perfectly clear in the last two years of blog posts, I am a big nerd.  My husband is also a big nerd.  A big exciting night with friends usually includes home-brew beer and a rousing game of Settlers of Catan.  I’ve read through the Harry Potter books  so many times that I can practically recite them.  And, even though it’s nearly 30 years old, you’ll still find us curled up on the couch watching Star Trek: TNG whenever it comes on.

So, when my husband asked me to be sure that his new sweater is long enough that he doesn’t have to preform the “Picard Maneuver,” I knew exactly what he meant.

What?  You’re not a weirdo nerd, too?  You don’t know what the Picard Maneuver is?  Let me explain.  Captain Picard, Starfleet officer and coolest bald man in the known universe, always keeps his ship and his uniform neat and tidy.  So, whenever he sat down, stood up, or otherwise mussed up his uniform, he would always tug down his uniform top to make it lay nicely.  For example:


Thus, the “Picard Maneuver.”

My husband has a couple sweaters he has to use the Picard Maneuver on.  You can understand why he is worried about the length of his new sweater.

I’ve decided not to measure the sweater.  I know, crazy.  Instead, I’m going to keep knitting and trying it on him until it is the absolute perfect length.  I’m hanging it up for a couple days to let the yarn sag naturally, especially since it’s cotton, which tends to droop more than wool.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAThis weekend, I plan on knitting the rest of the waistband, based on how long it ends up looking on my husband.  Hopefully, all this elaborate hanging up, trying on, and re-trying on will make the Picard Maneuver unnecessary.

Do you have any clothes you have to do the Picard Maneuver on?  How do you prevent it?