on the bandwagon

"... having no seams, they demand no sewing skills at all. After you have made your first one you will possibly discover another advantage; that of mindless manual activity, which, with a little practice, will leave your eyes free to read, observe the landscape, or glue themselves to the tiny screen. So, keep an open mind, and venture into the territory of the seamless sweater." - EZ, Knitting Without Tears.

The Seamless Hybrid is complete! I heard the call of the bandwagon and responded by jumping on eBay, determined not to make the same "crappy yarn" mistake I'd made with my last sweater. I went straight for the Rowan Yorkshire Tweed, which I found a bag (color Gust) and a ball (color Champion) of at Jannette's Rare Yarns.

With a tutorial on provisional cast-ons and a tutorial on contrast turned-under hems I was prepared to cast on for the hidden jewel of the sweater, the contrast-color hems. There were several snafus at this stage, mostly owing to the fact that I have no idea how to crochet and my provisional cast-on didn't unzip, it snarled and had to be painstakingly picked out, stitch by stitch. However, I prevailed eventually, and with two small cuffs and a waist constructed, I was set up for hours of happy stockinette on the body and the sleeves.

I took these little contrast color hem bits with my on my December vacation to New Zealand and knit my way through the kauri forest, across the Cook Strait, down the east coast of the south island on the TranzCoastal train, and in a cottage on Stewart Island.

The sweater's construction was a bit mysterious at the outset, but I soon saw how the saddle shoulders were coming together, and I particularly like the way the saddle back turned out. The fact that there was no sewing to do at the end was certainly the best part. I don't share EZ's hatred of purling, I rather like it, but the hatred of seaming runs very strong, and I anticipate several more of her seamless sweaters in my future.