Knitting and Golf: Tied

It took me a while to recover from cutting up that sweater earlier this week, but I was back in the operating room with an extremely complicated bit of blocking on Brendan's birthday tie. First here's the goods on the guy:



Looks swell, doesn't it? I used this pattern for general outline of what a 52" tie should look like, and I also used some Briar Rose sock weight yarn, and used size 1 needles in a double seed stitch pattern. Can you imagine? When I finally casted off, the edges were curly and the whole thing was warped, and it looked like an intestine and I thought I was going to die.

I admit when it comes to blocking a piece I am very casual. If I can get away with it, I try not to block a thing at all. But if a tie is too skinny, or god forbid too wide, you might as well make a toy intestine out of it. I blocked this piece, eggzakly to the schematic in the pattern, inch by inch. Then, after sewing it together I re-blocked the sucker. Double block! I'm a believer.

A few months ago I had found a golf button in a button store on East 9th Street. Just one button though, and tiny, with two crossed golf clubs over a golf ball, sort of like a baronial crest. So John soldered it on to a tie clip for the tie. This picture isn't great, but you get the idea: