Exciting Discovery

While preparing my earlier post about my Mon Tricot 800 Stitch Dictionary (published 1963), I discovered that they had a 1300 Stitch Dictionary (published 1979).  I tracked down a used copy on Amazon and ordered that bad boy.  The 800 version has stitches that I have never seen anywhere else.  Although I know there will be a lot of repeats with the new book, the potential for up to 500 unique stitches was impossible to resist. 

I did some research trying to find out more about Mon Tricot.  It was a french knitting magazine that does not seem to be in business anymore.  They started coming out with stitch books translated into English.  There are several versions with varying numbers of stitches.  I’ve heard rumors about a 1,500 stitch version but it does not have a crochet section, so I’m not interested in that one.

One word of caution.  These books were translated in the UK and use terms like wool instead of yarn.  The terminology is very different with crochet (sc is the US is a dc in the UK).  If you buy one of these books, make sure you know if it uses US or UK terminology.  I keep a piece of paper in my books with a guide to the US vs. UK terminology – problem solved. 

 

Shibui Knits Medley Stole - My Big 2020 Project

 

One of my big projects in 2020 was a stole using the ShibuiKnits Medley pattern from a kit I purchased from Modern Daily Knitting.  Honestly, I don't think the pictures on the Shibui site do this pattern justice.

Modern Daily Knitting Picture 

 I did make a few changes to the pattern.  I added one more color to my project, Shibui Tweed Silk Cloud in Twilight purchased from WEBS site.  I put it between the dark grey and the cream stripes.  I also added a slipped stitch edge despite the pattern saying not to.  I prefer very straight, neat edges and I like the bit of structure added by the slipped edge.  I also saved the small bits of yarn left and added a circular crochet medallion to the bottom edge of the dark grey band.  I couldn’t bear to not use every bit of such a luscious (and expensive) yarn.  This project was my first using luxury yarn.  It made a simple stockinette stich very beautiful.

 

My Finished Project

The stole took me about 10 months to complete.  I am a slow knitter and Tweed Silk Cloud is a lace weight yarn.  I had to almost completely redo 3 sections because of dropped stitches.  I tried to fix them using a crochet hook but no matter what I did, I could always spot the repaired area.  If I had left them, I would have never been happy with the finished product.  I still have not blocked it (as you can tell from the picture) but I have been wearing it anyway.  It is light and warm with a beautiful drape. 

The colors were not ones I would usually combine but I love the result.  I need to rethink my color strategy on future projects.

I've had a lot of questions about the medallion.  It has a magic loop center and is a mixture of double crochet and single crochet rounds.  For pops of color, I added some surface chains to the top so I could use up a much yarn as possible.  When it is feasible, I like to add small, unique touches to my projects.  

I was happy with the end result.  I want to design a crochet square based on the basic principles used here.  I see the potential for eye-catching accessories and afghans.