Contributed by Doreen Lewis
In the world of Base 10, I am a rising (ok, so I have
completed the rise) Senior Citizen.
In Ancient Babylon, I would be a mere teenager (Base 60, for the math
geeks in our midst). And everyone
knows that teenagers are fickle.
Move over Saroyan; make way for my new BFF – Stellaria. After 9 Saroyan’s, I have found a
new love.
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| Saroyan without beads |
Don’t get me wrong – Saroyan (be it Camille or William)
is still one of the most versatile knitting patterns I have encountered. A free pattern by Liz Abinante on
Ravelry, Saroyan is knit side-to-side (each row is short) with an
engaging knit-on (no pesky picking up stitches here) leaf border. It is a quick knit that is eminently
portable (you can knock out a few rows waiting in the dentist’s office or even
in line at the drive-though at the bank).
Saroyan can be knit in a variety of shapes and in a wide range
of yarns. I have seen examples in
my LYS in everything from Fingering – my own personal goddess (or demon –
depending on who is minding the checkbook that day) to Worsted Weight.
I have made Saroyan’s with beads and without
beads, with solid color yarn and with variegated yarn. I even made one with a worsted weight
yarn (that baby llama and silk was just impossible to resist). I have, after all, made 9 Saroyan’s.
But move over Saroyan; Stellaria has moved to
town. So what if the rows are long (the cast on is 172 stitches and the
top-down piece grows from that) and the bind-off is heck (681 stitches that
bind off like 1000)! Stellaria’s
garter stitch body, a graceful easy-to-wear crescent, is shaped with short rows
and the lace border (also knit on – I really hate picking up stitches) is a
piece of cake.
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Stellaria made with Fiber Charmer Galadriel (55% superwash BFL and 45% silk)
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This pattern by Susanna IC ($7.00 on Ravelry) is worth every
penny. It is challenging enough to hold your interest but not so complicated
that you can only knit in a hermetically sealed chamber, away from the
distractions of daily life. It
blocks easily and the finished product is very showy. Stellaria is written for DK yarn and calls for US 7 and 9
needles. I use Fingering weight
yarn and US 6 and 8 needles. It knits up (even with beads) with near blinding
speed. I have just finished my
third Stellaria and have plenty of time to make 2 more by the
Holidays.
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Red Stellaria with gold beads is a Knit Witch sock yarn
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Both Saroyan and Stellaria take 1 skein of
Fingering weight yarn. Saroyan
can be knit to use the amount of yarn you have on hand while Stellaria
as written takes approx. 430 yards.
In a pinch, I would be hard pressed to give up either one of
these great patterns. I guess I
can always have more than 1 BFF…
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Stellaria is Dream in Color Starry
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