Seamless Hybrid

October 2011

A.k.a practically the only bit of Christmas knitting I'm planning on doing, what with a November baby on the way. Elizabeth Zimmermann's Seamless Hybrid from Knitting Without Tears is really joyful knitting, though. There's a lot of stocking stitch, but it's made up for by the fact that the percentage system works and the way the body and sleeves are joined and the yoke constructed is fiendishly clever.

This is my husband's second Seamless Hybrid. Maybe next time I'll talk him into letting me jazz it up a bit with a zip, or row or two of Space Invaders across the chest, or a cable-y bit somewhere, but for now it's reassuring to know that plain as it is, it's likely to get an awful lot of wear. I just hope the Eco Wool dk is up to it, as it does feel a bit fluffy.

Why Sirdar have chosen to discontinue this yarn is a mystery to me, as it's one of the nicest Sirdar yarns I've ever used. The decision did mean I was able to get a massive bag of it from Kemps for cheap, although I really must remember to start the intended project right away next time I do that, because one day running out of a discount discontinued yarn is bound to bite me in the whatnot. Fortunately not this time.

Size wise, we wanted a fairly relaxed fit which wasn't going to lose any length, and so settled for 46" chest and 27" length which used just under 1,500 yards. How to do that using a dk is carefully written out on my project page, for the sake of my own sanity as much as anything else, since I KNOW I'm going to make this again. Maybe in some lovely New Lanark dk next time...

Pattern: Seamless Hybrid with Shirt Collar by Elizabeth Zimmermann

Yarn: Sirdar Eco Wool dk

Amount: 13.5 skeins

Colourway: 204 Grey

Needles: 3.50mm

Size: Custom (approx. 46" chest)

On ravelry: here