Ponchette Knitalong

We had a wonderful program at our fiber art guild last week with Brigitte from Klose Knits in Urbana. She got us started on a very smart, classic in its simplicity, ponchette which we're completing as a sort of guild knitalong. I love the pattern but I’ve just taken my first go off the needles. No, I didn’t mess up the pattern. There were 2 reasons why I took it off the needles. I certainly don’t want to cause any offense to the many hemp yarn knitters out there. I’m sure it has its uses – just not on my ponchette. The second reason has to do with the pattern itself. I’ve never been a fan of the garter stitch. Don’t know why, just a person preference. I’ve just never been a fan – even if I’m knitting something that’s going to be felted and all the stitch definition obliterated. Not a fan. Not a fan of the hemp yarn. Not a fan of the garter stitch. Just to prove I gave it the old college try though – I did manage to get through 7 repeats of the pattern.

Now, those who know me know I’m not a fan of the cotton yarn (no give, tends to feel heavy and stiff to me) so it’s not really no surprise that I haven’t gotten into the hemp yarn.

I did, however, start the ponchette over with what I think is a very sound substitute – a middle ground, even. I’m working it with Dale of Norway Tukan which is a 90% cotton/10% alpaca mix that is within my tolerance zone for cotton yarn. I got this is a great sale basket find at Nanncy’s Knits about 3 years ago (I don’t even think they make it anymore). It was a grab bag of about 20 balls of this yarn but in a variety of colors for, if I remember rightly, about $10. Can’t go wrong there. I even had enough of one color to send my Mom for a project. Now I’m redoing the ponchette using the 3 balls of white that were in the bag. I’m also changing it so to avoid the garter thing and working it in a stockinette base. Sigh…much more better!