photo credit: @abbotslane or abbotslane.com
First for some business things, thank you for the enormous response to the Smooth Operator Socks pattern. Wow! I am going to announce the three winners of one skein each of Must Stash Yarn (I see she has pre-orders back up for the yarn!) on Friday, July 22nd, 2016. On this same Friday I am also going to give the details for a Smooth Operator Socks Knitalong. Start your socks now if you like (I don't care about a starting date) and just join in and post when everything is up and organized. People who join in don't have to finish their socks, you could finish one sock, one part of a sock, or the entire pair of socks, it's all good. Joining in is the main goal and absolutely everyone is welcome! Any yarn is welcome, too. So Friday is the day. Threads will be set up in the Itty-Bitty Knits group on Ravelry and ready to go on Friday, too.
Let's call the upcoming knitalong the SOSkal and hashtag it #SOSkal on Instagram. I am leaving the sale price up on the Smooth Operator pattern for a bit longer just because! I'll post more about the knitalong and the yarn winners on Friday, July 22, 2016. Keep your eyes out if you want to join in. It is going to be a very relaxed and fun knitalong.
Now on to the regular blog post.
My son got married last Saturday. It was one of the best days of my life. It was better than the most perfect day we could have imagined. And it was the most fun I've ever had with the people I love the most in the world. I'll post more details about the wedding at some point but for now it still feels a little overwhelming and personal. Thank you for all of the kind and supportive wishes along the way.
I made many things by hand for the wedding and bridal showers. One thing that I had been posting about along the way was my son's wedding necktie. He asked if I would knit him a tie in navy blue. I was skeptical that it would work. I looked at all sorts of necktie patterns on Ravelry and they were all good and fine but none fit the exact tie I had in mind.
There are lots of good necktie patterns on Ravelry if you'd like to check any of them out and some are free!
I had no intention of writing up this pattern at all when I was knitting the tie but a couple of things changed my mind. One thing is that I really had fun knitting the tie and figuring out the measurements, the fabric texture and gauge, and adding the keeper loop on the back. I still wasn't convinced it would look good enough to wear for the wedding. I kept telling my son that just because I made the tie didn't mean he had to wear it in the wedding. I did not care if it didn't work out at all. In the end it turned out to be a beautiful, handsome necktie and I felt really proud of it. I loved that I knit him something to wear in the wedding, it meant a lot to both of us.
The other thing that happened is that while I posted a couple of photos on Instagram and Facebook I started getting a lot of messages and comments all over the place that people really wanted the pattern for the tie. When the necktie turned out so great and my son wore it and received so many compliments I started thinking that it would simply be a nice thing to make the pattern available for others to enjoy.
I am hoping others can knit the tie for their loved ones for everyday wear or for any type of special occasion. That would be pretty cool.
Click here to see more information about The Wedding Necktie or to purchase the pattern!
Those are Signature Needle Arts double-pointed needles.
Here is some information you might like to know about The Wedding Tie pattern:
The Wedding Necktie
This pattern is available for $1.50 USD 
buy it now
buy it now
My oldest son was married last weekend. His only request was that I knit him a necktie to wear on his wedding day. I studied various patterns on Ravelry but nothing was exactly what I had envisioned. Finally, I used a store-bought tie that we liked as a template. Armed with one skein of Quince & Co. Chickadee and a tape measure, I went to town making The Wedding Necktie. The resulting necktie was elegant and perfect. You wouldn’t have even known it was a handknit tie. My son received countless compliments about his knit necktie on his wedding day.
I had so many requests for this tie pattern and I had so much fun making and seeing the tie in action that I decided to write up the pattern for anyone interested. Of course the tie doesn’t need to be for a wedding, it is a good everyday tie for any occasion.
Photo credit @abbotslane.
Photo credit @abbotslane.
Finished measurements: 2¼ inches at the widest point, 1¾ inches at the narrowest point; 62-inches long. Measurements taken after a gentle wash and block. For size reference, my son is 6-feet tall.
Yarn: Quince & Co. Chickadee (100% American Wool; 181 yards/50g), 1 skein in Peacoat. Or a similar amount of sport weight yarn. I used almost all of the 181 yards with only 6 grams remaining at the end.
Needles: US size 5/ 3.75mm, set of 2 double-pointed needles used to work flat. Use the size to get the correct gauge.
Gauge: 7 stitches per inch in seed stitch
Abbreviations
K Knit
P Purl
Kfb Knit in the front and back of the same stitch.
K2tog Knit two stitches together.
SSK Slip two stitches separately as if to knit, pass the stitches back to the left needle, knit the slipped stitches together through the back loops.
St(s) Stitch(es)
RS Right side
WS Wrong side
K Knit
P Purl
Kfb Knit in the front and back of the same stitch.
K2tog Knit two stitches together.
SSK Slip two stitches separately as if to knit, pass the stitches back to the left needle, knit the slipped stitches together through the back loops.
St(s) Stitch(es)
RS Right side
WS Wrong side
Pattern notes
• You will want a crisp, dense fabric for the tie. Make sure the needle size you select creates a slightly dense fabric.
• For the side edges be sure to give an extra tug on the yarn to tighten up the edge stitches as you work. This will help to create a clean-looking edge.
• If possible, have a favorite tie of the recipient to use as a guide for the preferred widths and lengths of your tie. The width and length of the tie can be easily adjusted.
• If your tie is adjusted to be larger I suggest getting two skeins of the Chickadee yarn.
• You will want a crisp, dense fabric for the tie. Make sure the needle size you select creates a slightly dense fabric.
• For the side edges be sure to give an extra tug on the yarn to tighten up the edge stitches as you work. This will help to create a clean-looking edge.
• If possible, have a favorite tie of the recipient to use as a guide for the preferred widths and lengths of your tie. The width and length of the tie can be easily adjusted.
• If your tie is adjusted to be larger I suggest getting two skeins of the Chickadee yarn.
So thank you for the encouragement along the way and for motivating me to write up this new little pattern. The pattern price is very low, only $1.50, and it will stay this way.
I'll be back on this coming Friday with lots of SOSkal talk! I hope you are all well. I can honestly say that after the wedding was over I have never been so exhausted in my life. I have been bone-tired for the last few days. Today I feel things coming around and my energy is returning.
Happy and tired for a fun reason isn't a bad thing though!
Much love to you all.
xo ~ susan
