7.11.2007
The Adult Tomten Jacket
My recent persistence with Elizabeth Zimmermann patterns and garter stitch in general have, in some way or another, all sprung from this inspiring wonder-project. Knitting the Adult Tomten was such a perfect balance of desirable knitting attributes, that I really miss working on it: mindless stitch pattern combined with interesting, architectural shaping, an amazing natural wool tweed which never got tiresome to look at or work with, a chunky enough yarn to consistently show progress no matter how short a time spent knitting, and above all, the idea of a comfy, thick, sproingy hooded jacket to envelop a wool-starved frame when the glorious cold finally comes back to us.
First things first, a little background info on the Tomten. Elizabeth conceived and knit the first Tomten Jacket for her infant son in 1940. The pattern as we know it (more or less) was released in 1961 in Elizabeth's 7th newsletter (reprinted with the rest of the collection in The Opinionated Knitter). The pattern has taken on variations over the years from both Elizabeth and Meg and made its way into two more classic publications: Knitting Without Tears, and Knitting Workshop. Tomten, the jacket's namesake, is a small Swedish elf who specializes in good deeds. According to Elizabeth, "your child will resemble him strangely, if you put a Tomten jacket on him or her." What do you think? Is it Elf-ish enough for you?
Modifications: Although EZ provides 'sizing' for an adult version - it's basically the same pattern worked in Sheepsdown, her superbulky weight wool (2-3sts/in). Despite wanting to knit a jacket in something a bit lighter than Sheepdown (I worked with fisherman weight wool), I knew I wanted to make some pretty major changes to the pattern to fit the proportions and shapes of an adult.
Elizabeth's pattern is a modular piece (she's nothing if not clever) - all numbers both vertical and horizontal are divisible by 4. This makes for intuitive and logical knitting... but also for a sort of boxy fit (great for the little ones!). Especially where armhole depth is concerned. Early on I decided to more or less throw the magic number out the window and knit to my measurements. Although I did choose to keep the signature 'quarters' for armholes and body/neck opening (detailed below), after all - it wouldn't be a Tomten without those.
The Tomten has DEEP armholes. When you reach the underarms, you basically divide the sweater into quarters: one quarter each for the armholes, leaving half of the sweater's stitches left over the middle for working front and back of the body. After working body fronts and back to desired armhole depth, you join them again into the round and work straight on to form that wonderful hood. While the construction is rather genius, you may notice that it leaves quite a ginormous neck opening. Half of your body circumference to be exact. And a 21" neck opening was just a tad much for me. Lets not even imagine the cavernous neck-openings on a men's XL.
Neck Opening & Hood Mods: To address the neck opening issue and prepare for a nice smooth hood transition I did a few things. First, I threw in some v-neck shaping about 6 inches before shoulder tops. Since I was planning a wide button band to encircle the entire outer length of the hood and body, a v-neck seemed the smartest way of smoothly feeding the band onto the hood with ease. And no mitering or lumpy corners! Next, to give it a bit of structure I added two short shoulder seams at the top - this was also a way of shaving off excess width at the neck. On either side of body front and back, instead of joining the whole thing into the round, I did a 3 needle bind off over 10 stitches on either side (5 sts from front, 5 sts from back). This alone took away 20 stitches from the neck opening which for me was 5 inches. That landed me right around my target neck opening of about 16". To add a bit more sturdiness I chose to bind off at the neck as you would a regular pullover, rather than knitting directly the live neck opening stitches to form the hood. This creates a less stretchy neck opening. Combined with the small shoulder seams (3 needle bind-off makes a nice strong seam, even over 10 measly stitches) the structure at the shoulders and neck made something much more wearable, and durable to boot.
To make the hood then, I picked up stitches from the bound-off neck. I wanted a less trunk-ish hood that sort of hugged the neck a bit in the back. The first time I tried the hood I followed the pattern, increasing evenly over the first 14 rows until desired depth. After I finished it, however, I really didn't like it. Still too wide at the base, even despite the neck decreases employed earlier. I ripped it and made some modifications to the second version that I like very much. The most important was a sharp decrease across the back of the hood about a half inch after picking up neck stitches. I really wanted it to fit the contour of an actual human neck, so pulling it in just above the shoulders worked like a charm. After three rows of garter, I decreased 10 stitches evenly across the back half of the hood in one row. With my new counts I worked even for about 4-5 inches before beginning the hood increases (I just measured my neck and head to see when to start increasing.) When I worked to my desired hood depth (about 13.5"), I short rowed the last 3 rows to curve the top point just a bit. In the end, I was really glad I ripped and re-knit (aren't we always!?) because the 2nd hood fits great. Oh - and instead of a three-needle bind off, I did a garter stitch graft to join the top of the hood - you can't even tell there's a seam there! I love that graft.
Armhole & Sleeve Mods: The armhole and sleeve cap modification is probably the most major change I made to the pattern. I explained in some detail the process here, if you'd like to review. Basically, I worked the deep armholes back and forth until I was about two-inches from consuming all armhole stitches (more or less I left underarm stitches to equal 8% of body circumference on a holder while working the sleeve caps, following a standard EPS seamless). I then began working a top-down set-in sleeve a la Barbara Walker in her masterpiece, starting with a third of the armhole stitches and working short rows back and forth, consuming an additional armhole stitch at the end of each row. It's really a genius little technique - I'm happy I got another chance to work it here. Of course because of the unique row gauge of garter stitch, I had to employ a decreasing scheme to work whilst doing the short rows on the cap. It was a bit like a knitting circus act, but in the end it worked out perfect. I'm really happy with how they fit. The picture above gives a nice little visual to the construction
Details and Trimmings: The buttons called to me - so I ignored their price tag. They're medium sized horn carved buttons, a deep warmish brown with lighter brown marbling. I'm really happy how they turned out. Toggles were a contender, but traditional buttons won out in the end.
Among the many reasons for which I love this pattern, I really like the options you have for trimming with a contrast color. The 'suspender' strips are a unique feature made possible by those deep, square armholes - I couldn't pass them up. I snagged a contrast color when I placed my order for the wool and just sort of developed the accents as I went. I like the idea of trimming the sleeve cuffs for a little definition. Since the whole thing is in garter, the nice visual weight of cuff ribbing or textured stitches that we usually have when knitting a stockinette sweater wasn't really an option. Contrasting cuffs worked just fine though. I also liked the idea of trimming the entire hood and body with one continuous, thin strip of the contrast color. This is probably my favorite accent of all. I went back and forth on whether or not I thought an I-cord bind-off fit in with the sweater's look. In the end I decided to mimic an I-Cord bind off by working one ridge of garter stitch around the entire body/hood area in the contrast color, then bind off in purl from the RS. I'm really loving how it looks.
The last little accent I wanted to mention are the 'reverse seams.' On the tops of sleeves and 'seams' of the body, I threw in a vertical strip of Slip Stitch Stockinette. In other words, on every WS row I slipped the seam stitch with the yarn forward. This is what creates those neat little ridges running over the shoulder and down to the cuff. Some versions of the Tomten in The Opinionated Knitter have this detail, although I couldn't find it written in any version of the pattern.
My longest post ever? Probably. There's so much to say about this sweater, I'm impressed if you made it through and I'm sure I've forgotten something. Overall, I couldn't be happier with how it turned out. I turn the A/C on in the apartment just to wear it. It seems I've been meaning to make a hooded sweater for years - I guess I don't need to feel bad about that any longer!
Big thanks to Adrian of HelloYarn for mutually spurning this project into motion (keep your eye on her, she's bound to drop her stunning version on us one of these days soon) as well as to my big bro for modeling the sweater during our Oregon Coast camping trip (the outdoor shots). For those of you wanting to make Tomten your own, feel free to e-mail me with questions. E-mail works better than comments (don't you just love Blogger?). I set up a gallery full of my Tomten pictures here, because there are so many of them! - feel free to peruse. This sweater really is priceless to me at this point so I'd be happy to watch the Adult Tomten Ministry spread!
Onward and upward. ¶ 3:40 PM
Pattern: Adult Tomten Jacket
By: Elizabeth Zimmermann
Source: The Opinionated Knitter, Knitting w/o Tears, and Knitting Workshop
Materials: Beaverslide Fisherman-Weight McTaggart Tweed
Amount: 8 skeins in 'Mountain Mahogany'; 1 partial skein in 'Autumn Dogwood'
Needles: 5.0mm/US8 Addi Turbos
Start Date: 29 May 2007
Finish Date: 25 June 2007
(Buttons added July 3, 2007)
By: Elizabeth Zimmermann
Source: The Opinionated Knitter, Knitting w/o Tears, and Knitting Workshop
Materials: Beaverslide Fisherman-Weight McTaggart Tweed
Amount: 8 skeins in 'Mountain Mahogany'; 1 partial skein in 'Autumn Dogwood'
Needles: 5.0mm/US8 Addi Turbos
Start Date: 29 May 2007
Finish Date: 25 June 2007
(Buttons added July 3, 2007)
First things first, a little background info on the Tomten. Elizabeth conceived and knit the first Tomten Jacket for her infant son in 1940. The pattern as we know it (more or less) was released in 1961 in Elizabeth's 7th newsletter (reprinted with the rest of the collection in The Opinionated Knitter). The pattern has taken on variations over the years from both Elizabeth and Meg and made its way into two more classic publications: Knitting Without Tears, and Knitting Workshop. Tomten, the jacket's namesake, is a small Swedish elf who specializes in good deeds. According to Elizabeth, "your child will resemble him strangely, if you put a Tomten jacket on him or her." What do you think? Is it Elf-ish enough for you?
Modifications: Although EZ provides 'sizing' for an adult version - it's basically the same pattern worked in Sheepsdown, her superbulky weight wool (2-3sts/in). Despite wanting to knit a jacket in something a bit lighter than Sheepdown (I worked with fisherman weight wool), I knew I wanted to make some pretty major changes to the pattern to fit the proportions and shapes of an adult.
Elizabeth's pattern is a modular piece (she's nothing if not clever) - all numbers both vertical and horizontal are divisible by 4. This makes for intuitive and logical knitting... but also for a sort of boxy fit (great for the little ones!). Especially where armhole depth is concerned. Early on I decided to more or less throw the magic number out the window and knit to my measurements. Although I did choose to keep the signature 'quarters' for armholes and body/neck opening (detailed below), after all - it wouldn't be a Tomten without those.
The Tomten has DEEP armholes. When you reach the underarms, you basically divide the sweater into quarters: one quarter each for the armholes, leaving half of the sweater's stitches left over the middle for working front and back of the body. After working body fronts and back to desired armhole depth, you join them again into the round and work straight on to form that wonderful hood. While the construction is rather genius, you may notice that it leaves quite a ginormous neck opening. Half of your body circumference to be exact. And a 21" neck opening was just a tad much for me. Lets not even imagine the cavernous neck-openings on a men's XL.
Neck Opening & Hood Mods: To address the neck opening issue and prepare for a nice smooth hood transition I did a few things. First, I threw in some v-neck shaping about 6 inches before shoulder tops. Since I was planning a wide button band to encircle the entire outer length of the hood and body, a v-neck seemed the smartest way of smoothly feeding the band onto the hood with ease. And no mitering or lumpy corners! Next, to give it a bit of structure I added two short shoulder seams at the top - this was also a way of shaving off excess width at the neck. On either side of body front and back, instead of joining the whole thing into the round, I did a 3 needle bind off over 10 stitches on either side (5 sts from front, 5 sts from back). This alone took away 20 stitches from the neck opening which for me was 5 inches. That landed me right around my target neck opening of about 16". To add a bit more sturdiness I chose to bind off at the neck as you would a regular pullover, rather than knitting directly the live neck opening stitches to form the hood. This creates a less stretchy neck opening. Combined with the small shoulder seams (3 needle bind-off makes a nice strong seam, even over 10 measly stitches) the structure at the shoulders and neck made something much more wearable, and durable to boot.
To make the hood then, I picked up stitches from the bound-off neck. I wanted a less trunk-ish hood that sort of hugged the neck a bit in the back. The first time I tried the hood I followed the pattern, increasing evenly over the first 14 rows until desired depth. After I finished it, however, I really didn't like it. Still too wide at the base, even despite the neck decreases employed earlier. I ripped it and made some modifications to the second version that I like very much. The most important was a sharp decrease across the back of the hood about a half inch after picking up neck stitches. I really wanted it to fit the contour of an actual human neck, so pulling it in just above the shoulders worked like a charm. After three rows of garter, I decreased 10 stitches evenly across the back half of the hood in one row. With my new counts I worked even for about 4-5 inches before beginning the hood increases (I just measured my neck and head to see when to start increasing.) When I worked to my desired hood depth (about 13.5"), I short rowed the last 3 rows to curve the top point just a bit. In the end, I was really glad I ripped and re-knit (aren't we always!?) because the 2nd hood fits great. Oh - and instead of a three-needle bind off, I did a garter stitch graft to join the top of the hood - you can't even tell there's a seam there! I love that graft.
Armhole & Sleeve Mods: The armhole and sleeve cap modification is probably the most major change I made to the pattern. I explained in some detail the process here, if you'd like to review. Basically, I worked the deep armholes back and forth until I was about two-inches from consuming all armhole stitches (more or less I left underarm stitches to equal 8% of body circumference on a holder while working the sleeve caps, following a standard EPS seamless). I then began working a top-down set-in sleeve a la Barbara Walker in her masterpiece, starting with a third of the armhole stitches and working short rows back and forth, consuming an additional armhole stitch at the end of each row. It's really a genius little technique - I'm happy I got another chance to work it here. Of course because of the unique row gauge of garter stitch, I had to employ a decreasing scheme to work whilst doing the short rows on the cap. It was a bit like a knitting circus act, but in the end it worked out perfect. I'm really happy with how they fit. The picture above gives a nice little visual to the construction
Details and Trimmings: The buttons called to me - so I ignored their price tag. They're medium sized horn carved buttons, a deep warmish brown with lighter brown marbling. I'm really happy how they turned out. Toggles were a contender, but traditional buttons won out in the end.
Among the many reasons for which I love this pattern, I really like the options you have for trimming with a contrast color. The 'suspender' strips are a unique feature made possible by those deep, square armholes - I couldn't pass them up. I snagged a contrast color when I placed my order for the wool and just sort of developed the accents as I went. I like the idea of trimming the sleeve cuffs for a little definition. Since the whole thing is in garter, the nice visual weight of cuff ribbing or textured stitches that we usually have when knitting a stockinette sweater wasn't really an option. Contrasting cuffs worked just fine though. I also liked the idea of trimming the entire hood and body with one continuous, thin strip of the contrast color. This is probably my favorite accent of all. I went back and forth on whether or not I thought an I-cord bind-off fit in with the sweater's look. In the end I decided to mimic an I-Cord bind off by working one ridge of garter stitch around the entire body/hood area in the contrast color, then bind off in purl from the RS. I'm really loving how it looks.
The last little accent I wanted to mention are the 'reverse seams.' On the tops of sleeves and 'seams' of the body, I threw in a vertical strip of Slip Stitch Stockinette. In other words, on every WS row I slipped the seam stitch with the yarn forward. This is what creates those neat little ridges running over the shoulder and down to the cuff. Some versions of the Tomten in The Opinionated Knitter have this detail, although I couldn't find it written in any version of the pattern.
My longest post ever? Probably. There's so much to say about this sweater, I'm impressed if you made it through and I'm sure I've forgotten something. Overall, I couldn't be happier with how it turned out. I turn the A/C on in the apartment just to wear it. It seems I've been meaning to make a hooded sweater for years - I guess I don't need to feel bad about that any longer!
Big thanks to Adrian of HelloYarn for mutually spurning this project into motion (keep your eye on her, she's bound to drop her stunning version on us one of these days soon) as well as to my big bro for modeling the sweater during our Oregon Coast camping trip (the outdoor shots). For those of you wanting to make Tomten your own, feel free to e-mail me with questions. E-mail works better than comments (don't you just love Blogger?). I set up a gallery full of my Tomten pictures here, because there are so many of them! - feel free to peruse. This sweater really is priceless to me at this point so I'd be happy to watch the Adult Tomten Ministry spread!
Onward and upward. ¶ 3:40 PM
Comments:
I have been waiting for pictures of this since you first posted about it. It is awe inspiring.
Congratulations!
Cheers.
Thanks for all the detail here - it does make this tempting. Again, beautiful sweater and handiwork.
I'm trying to contain in my head the paradox of the complexity of the construction with the simple beauty of the product.
Thanks for the thorough pattern notes too!
(You also completely remind me of a hobbit in those pictures. It must be the hood.)
I have a half-knit tomten in adult size lurking in my knitting basket for months. Now I really feel like renewing the tomten-love and reknit some parts with your modifications.
Thanks for being constantly inspiring ;-)
You should get yourself a book publisher ... you are the whole package!
Love your wonderful work.
You continue to impress me with your beautiful knitting and your beautiful photographs.
REALLY like the way you did the hood and the contrasting. =)
inspiration indeed!
Great work.
I'd love to become a disciple of the Tomten Ministry, but frankly, all those mods made my head hurt just a little bit. But I've been toying with the idea of trying my hand at an EZ bog jacket, and seeing your lovely photos really gets me jonesin for a massive dose of garter in lovely, tweedy yarn.
Truly, your knitting and photos are beyond compare.
@Ann - rejiggering might be my new fave word.
Wonderful job!
Wonderful, thanks for this detailed description!!!
LG Eva
Your brother looks like that guy from Ladyhawk. Mmmmm.
BRAVO!
I only wish I felt confident enough to successfully knit one of these for myself.
At first I just couldn't picture the finished totmen on an adult?
I had NO idea how beautiful it was going to turn out!
Once again, another inspiring art/sweater that I'm dying to try myslef!
Chuckling picturing you wearing it indoors with a/c...
Love your adult tomtem !! It feats you very well !
Since I read your blog (for just several week) i just want to learn to knit with E. Zimmermann ... Thank you to let me known about her.
Anyway, your blog in very inspirating for me ... I just want to have everything you knit !
Excuse my bad english !!
A bientôt
Marine
I just finished a baby Tomtem! Lovely to knit, quite nice as it is, but not an epic work, as is your adult version.
once again, a project that inspires and demands repeated visits to your blog.
what a gifted knitter you are!
somewhere out there, EZ must be smiling -
You are absolutely inspiring.
Tu trabajo llena de orgullo a todas las personas que tejen. Gracias por compartir tu maravilloso trabajo con imágenes tan maravillosas!!!!
Ale, de Buenos Aires.
The jacket is stunning. The yarn is gorgeous. The shots leave me speechless.
As always, absolutely fantastic. And very nice photographs as well.
And is something coming up in the next few months? I saw something mentioned with the word garter edging and became curious!
Every time I read your blog you have some new beautiful creation that makes me drop what I am doing and run out and try and make one too.
Enough already! LOL
(That jacket is frickin' gorgeous!)
And thank you, thank you, a thousand times, for giving such fantastic details about all of your mods! This post is getting bookmarked for future reference, for sure.
Amazing!
I've scattered a few tomens around my friends and family. It's a lot of garter stitch. The last one was in one of those fluffy yarns and sweetie wore it to bed.
And the photographs and notes are wonderful, as always.
As you probably know, Elizabeth Zimmerman was from Wisconsin. Last year, one of the grad students from UW (who also works at one of our fantastic yarn shops), was responsible for setting up a show, exclusively about Elizabeth. Needless to say, it was a hit in the areas fiber world. :)
Thank you again for responding about the hat.
I am in awe! This is my first time to visit your blog. You do amazing work and are a good read. I'm happy you answered the buttons when they called––they look great. I have buttons calling me at my LYS––in fact I have visited them several times. Perhaps I should suck it up and buy them at the outrageous price?
anyhow - you are very talented and inspiring.
1) I hope you post your pattern mods in full someday
2) I too would like to have your babies (but not 10,000 of them, as another commenter said)
I just keep going over and over the photos -- more than inspiring, more than awesome, they are nourishing.
--Jeanette
Thank you for taking the time and effort to include such gorgeous photos!
I am totally envious. And I am not sure if it is the Tomtem, the model, or your photography...or all three. All I can say is "Damn Sexy!"
You may have inspired me to tackle the Tomten altho I'd need to make it less 'dense' (translation: lighter, airier, cooler) for my SoCal weather. Hmmm.
cam
Your knitting (all of it) is pure genius.
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I admire EZ greatly but love what you have done to alter the boxy shape and fit the hood more closely. A lovely garment.
That's so cool, Jared. I have to say, I sometimes find EZ's adult patterns just that little bit clunky, but that bit of finesse that you apply, entirely within the context of her principles, is just brilliant.
Breathtaking, simply breathtaking.
I have been waiting for pictures of this since you first posted about it. It is awe inspiring.
Congratulations!
Like so many, I've been a long-time fan, admirer (and lurker) of yours. This sweater made me come out of the closest to say, hot damn! you would make EZ so proud (not that I know her, or anything) but really, you've done amazing work here--as always...
Cheers.
Wow. WOW. That is gorgeous. If I show my dh he will immediately want one (he has admired several of your FOs and then I admonish him for giving up the sticks!) but I think this is beyond my expertise at the moment. Give me a year or so, and then I might try this! (For myself, first, of course!!!!)
Thanks for all the detail here - it does make this tempting. Again, beautiful sweater and handiwork.
I love this sweater because it is reminiscent of a (timeless) child's garment and you kept that feel, but artfully adapted it for an adult. Amazing work!
Your knitting is amazing, I have not seen one thing yet that I didnt fall in love with. You should start writing patterns!
That is one cool looking jacket. Who knew garter stitch can look so elegant? :) But then again, everything you do is beautiful. Congrats on your interpretation of a great EZ baby sweater!
I'm in awe. Almost to the point of being intimidated.
I'm trying to contain in my head the paradox of the complexity of the construction with the simple beauty of the product.
Absolutely stunning!! I hope you kept your notes on the Tomten - Brooklyn Tweed style. I do think you should write or rewrite the pattern. Get hold of Meg Swanson - if she doesn't get hold of you first!
it's gorgeous! I love it, I love the mods, everything about it! and I'm anxiously awaiting Adrian's version, too. :)
I love it! You did such an amazing job -- makes me want one so badly. It doesn't hurt that you take absolutely beautiful pictures. I just want to squish all the wonderful garter stitch! I may have to settle with making a pair of Saartje's Baby Booties as I'm not sure I have quite the talent to pull off the Tomten yet.
Absolutely stunning! And I've always loved the reverse seams. They seem so appropriate for this project. Nice details.
oh thank you. i so much hoped you would post about it today. it looks so good (the photos are wonderful) and good for me that you did an adult one as i have the wool for one (yorkshire chunky) and really want to do it soon. your's is gorgeous and the pattern is great fun isn't it? i have the third children's one on the needles right now. i will probably have to email you for knitting support. congratulations on this hooded beauty. one sure could need one now here in denmark as you have to pretend it is summer!!!
Beautiful! You've made yourself a classic - and it looks classic, not clunky. Congratulations, and thanks for the detailed post. Enquiring minds and all . . .
You've done it again!! What a brilliant job turning this into a classy adult version. Your Tomten is stunning!
It's beautiful, it's inspiring, it's amazing. Thanks for sharing, including the details on mods. Wow!
Brilliant! It's those little details that really make a sweater. You and EZ make an unstoppable team :)
Thanks for the thorough pattern notes too!
Wow - undeniably gorgeous! I just love how you dive into a project and make it completely unique. Seriously, you need a book deal. And, oh by the way, put me down for a pre-ordered copy.
I haven't been knitting for awhile but your recent EZ posts and the beautiful way you have interpreted her patterns are so inspiring. I'm feeling a knitting resurgence coming on. Very nice work.
As usual your choice of yarn and attention to details are superb. I dub thee "King of the Garter Stitch!"
That is gorgeous (as always!) I love the tweediness of the yarn.
(You also completely remind me of a hobbit in those pictures. It must be the hood.)
I hope you are inspired to write up the adult pattern sometime... I think you are very close to truly making it your own sweater. And it's a marvel.
All your hard work paid off with marvelous results. This is one stunningly beautiful piece of work. Wow.
Amazing job! My husband has deemed the Tomten as THE SWEATER I MUST KNIT for him. I've already ordered my Beaverslide color cards, I'm ready to dive into Tomten madness!
Wow, I've wanted to make an adult one for myself since i made my first baby one in the eighties. Yours is gorgeous.
Beautiful! Thank you for the pics and writing about the modifications you made. You really are a master at making a pattern your own. Kudos!
It's beautiful, really and truly. I only hope to one day have the attention span to devote to such a gorgeous project.
That is one good-looking sweater. You truly knit it in the Elizabeth Zimmerman tradition: make it your own. Well done.
You always have the most amazing photos! They really show off this fantastic piece of knitwear. Well done!
Wow, you are great at spreading a ministry, too. I'm totally convinced this is the best thing since sliced bread...and it is definetly one of them! My gosh, the architecture of it as you put it is awe inspiring! I just love it. And the color...::sigh::
Totally love it. I've been wanting to do an adult totem for a while now - out of handspun. You've become my inspiration.
Hey, that turned out really fabuluos! Everything comes together nicely: the yarn, the garter stitch, the construction plus mods, the color accents and buttons...
I have a half-knit tomten in adult size lurking in my knitting basket for months. Now I really feel like renewing the tomten-love and reknit some parts with your modifications.
Thanks for being constantly inspiring ;-)
Jared, this is breathtaking. And the photos! I'm constantly amazed by your talent. Thank you for sharing it with all of us!
It looks wonderful. Where on the Oregon Coast were you camping? I live near the Columbia and I kept thinking it would be great to see you and that Tomten in person. That's ok, had I seen you I'd have been too goggle-eyed to introduce myself...
Genius, just genius.
You should get yourself a book publisher ... you are the whole package!
Love your wonderful work.
That is truly beautiful. And thanks for sharing all your modifiactions!
You continue to impress me with your beautiful knitting and your beautiful photographs.
add me to the list of lovers of your tomten!
REALLY like the way you did the hood and the contrasting. =)
inspiration indeed!
Superb - i've been keeping an eye out for this post, since you mentioned it last week. Very inspiring indeed, and incredibly skillful.
Great work.
Brilliant modifications. I particularly love the way you've used the contract color. It's like a little touch of sun highlighting the edges.
What a wonderful piece of work. You are such a thinking knitter. I believe EZ would have been very proud of you.
Delurking to say thank you so much for this post. It's a beautiful sweater. I'm making one for my 3yo and have just the sleeves left, and I've been watching for this post since you first mentioned you were making an adult version. I'll be bookmarking for the future. Wonderful job.
Another chef-d'oevre! I think it's wonderful that you've modified some of EZ's adult sweater patterns to reduce the bulky, potato-sack look in favor of a streamlined fit. Good thing you were in the Pacific Northwest to wear it, although I still like the image of you strolling around New York in the heat in your EZ sweater...
Just fabulous -- I'd love to make one, but the math just boggles my mind. Thanks so much for sharing all your plans and mods. You've done a spectacular job, as always.
The colours, the fit, the buttons, the photos... you've done it again! A masterpiece!!!
I'd love to become a disciple of the Tomten Ministry, but frankly, all those mods made my head hurt just a little bit. But I've been toying with the idea of trying my hand at an EZ bog jacket, and seeing your lovely photos really gets me jonesin for a massive dose of garter in lovely, tweedy yarn.
Truly, your knitting and photos are beyond compare.
very, very nice - the shaping and other mods you did took it from a boxy, shapless child's sweater, to a well fitting, sophisticated adult one!
Beautiful. I have to admit not having been overwhelmed by EZ at first. Your work, pictures and posts have converted me to want to try her out. Thank you for such detail!
You might double-check your heritage....I DO believe there runs EZ blood in your veins. Simply put, you have done a beautiful job, AS ALWAYS!!
oh my goodness. it looks stunning! the construction is perfect - worth your effort for all the rejiggering. and I'm ever impressed at the way your photos capture the yarn!!
What a delight! Stunning work, great trim. Your finishing is flawless. I don't think I have ever seen this sweater made up, just lots of buzz. Bless EZ and may she never leave us.
absolutely a gorgeous sweater. this seemingly simple looking sweater combines so many intricate details i think only an experienced knitter, like you can pulled it off so flawlessly. the pictures are gorgeous, it only adds to the beauty of this cardi! amazing work, jared!
I'm coming back to re-read comments and go thru your "book" here. That's what it's like, this post is like a very good book! And maybe you should!...thanks so much for this one (and others). Terry
Garter stitch garments can sometimes come out clunky and homemade. Yours is stylish and elegant. Gorgeous yarn choice, and as always, excellent photos.
There's nothing to be said that others haven't covered... but your jacket is so fantastic that I had to add my cheers to the pile. Beautiful!
Be careful, it looks so wonderful complete strangers are going to want to hug you just to feel the squish of the garter. It's beautiful.
@Ann - rejiggering might be my new fave word.
All your notes are awesome. The knitters thank you! I also love the mock i-cord border. I used it myself for my little girl's tomten, but I think I did one extra row, and bound off on the third row.
Wonderful job!
Jared, if you were my man, be sure i would rip the Tomten jacket every day ;D
Wonderful, thanks for this detailed description!!!
LG Eva
Everyone else has already covered the bases here, so I'll just compliment you on your color sense (LOVE the contrasty bits! Well chosen!) and the gorgeous buttons (though, yeah, I can see why you were tempted by toggles, however briefly; but I think your final decision was an excellent one.)
I don't know what I could possibly add but had to chime in. Stunning piece, brilliant interpretation, amazing photos and wonderfully detailed post- thank you.
Dear God in Heaven, what a glory! If I make it to the end of the day without buying a massive stash of Beaverslide Tweed it will be a miracle. This may be my favorite of your many awe-inspiring knits, Jared. You rock my world.
When it gets past 100 in the comments, I have to wonder if you'll read this--but I, too, cannont help but pile on with the compliments. Your Tomten is sublime and perfect.
Your brother looks like that guy from Ladyhawk. Mmmmm.
I agree with Valerie (above) on whether you'll read this, but wanted to offer my two cents' worth, too. Color, buttons, modifications, photos: all A+. I actually like the slip stitch reverse seam touch the best. But that's not to say everything else isn't spot on, too.
Just beautiful. Would you consider publishing and selling the pattern? (After consulting with Meg, of course.) I'm not sure I'm accomplished enough yet to make one that's so nicely fitted without more hand holding. Thank you for sharing so many photos. I can see why you're so proud and I can hardly wait to see what's on the needles next! Tina in Phila.
I love how you took a classic EZ pattern and with a few brilliant modifications, made it a sweater worthy of ooh's and aah's!
BRAVO!
I only wish I felt confident enough to successfully knit one of these for myself.
Truly stunning!
At first I just couldn't picture the finished totmen on an adult?
I had NO idea how beautiful it was going to turn out!
Once again, another inspiring art/sweater that I'm dying to try myslef!
Every new item you make is the best yet. I'm making a child's Tomten now and I really like the process. Your comprehension of sweater construction is awesome - your're a modern EZ.
Oh my, Jared, such wonderful work! You've kept the spirit of the design and adapted it so well for fit and style. I like the accent color and button choices as well. Thanks for sharing your modifications (though it would be a while before I could figure them out for myself).
Chuckling picturing you wearing it indoors with a/c...
Absolute perfection, from the choice of yarn to the modifications (thanks for including the details of those, by the way!)
What an amazing jacket! The fit, the colour, the craftsmanship, the design mods - really cool! you are an inspiration to all knitters.
Everything a sweater for a man should be! My girlfriend just alerted me to your site and I can't wait to see what else you've done. I'd love for you to write a guest entry on my blog! http://manneedles.blogspot.com/
Bonjour,
Love your adult tomtem !! It feats you very well !
Since I read your blog (for just several week) i just want to learn to knit with E. Zimmermann ... Thank you to let me known about her.
Anyway, your blog in very inspirating for me ... I just want to have everything you knit !
Excuse my bad english !!
A bientôt
Marine
Only SLIGHTLY less elfin due to the non-pointy hood. Otherwise, you'd look right at home under a toadstool. Congrats!!
Gorgeous. Stunning. And deceptively simple. Truly in the spirit of the pattern - knit to you.
I just finished a baby Tomtem! Lovely to knit, quite nice as it is, but not an epic work, as is your adult version.
Oh my goodness, I love it! It's beautiful and wonderful and amazing. Congratulations on finishing it!
you make it seem to effortless.
once again, a project that inspires and demands repeated visits to your blog.
what a gifted knitter you are!
somewhere out there, EZ must be smiling -
I think you must be the foremost contemporary interpeter of Zimmerology. Truly, you could rewrite the book. Tomtens will soon be every where thanks to you. Keep it up. I'd like to see you take on the rest of the Zimmerman ouvere.
You are absolutely inspiring.
I'm delurking just to say that your Tomten is truly amazing and your photos are really beautiful. I'll definitely keep an eye on your blog!
This is beautiful & inspiring! I think an adult Totem is definitely going into my ever-growing list of things to make!
Hello Jared!!!
Tu trabajo llena de orgullo a todas las personas que tejen. Gracias por compartir tu maravilloso trabajo con imágenes tan maravillosas!!!!
Ale, de Buenos Aires.
Because of you I have now ordered my first EZ book.
The jacket is stunning. The yarn is gorgeous. The shots leave me speechless.
Oh wow. That is gorgeous and your photography makes me cry - it's so beautiful! You are a master at interpreting EZ's designs.
Yay!! At last!! I've been waiting for this post...now I can plan my own Tomten and consult you on it! Thank you sooooo much!
Who would have thought garter stitch could be so exquisite!! You've done an amazing job kitting and the 'math'!! Your an inspiration to many, of course you know that! I'm checking into Beaverslide yarns too.
I want to add to the long list of comments to congratulate you on a gorgeous Tomten, and to thank you for your dedication in explaining the process to us.
As always, absolutely fantastic. And very nice photographs as well.
Even if I only had the pictures to go by, this would be a MOST compelling knit to add to my queue. Thank you thank you thank you for the detailed comments. It shows the joy you had creating this in your own style, and will also make a fantastic reference if/when I should craft one for myself.
Jared....it is absolutely great! I was hoping that you could direct me to the pattern that you used for the beanie in your Flickr photo of Luigi? Thanks.....
Stunning. You updated the pattern without losing its attitude.
And is something coming up in the next few months? I saw something mentioned with the word garter edging and became curious!
Well, crap.
Every time I read your blog you have some new beautiful creation that makes me drop what I am doing and run out and try and make one too.
Enough already! LOL
(That jacket is frickin' gorgeous!)
Fabulous work, as usual. Thanks for all the details. I think that the knitting details are valuable, albeit time consuming to write.
Thank you very much for your effort to write so much about knitting this sweater ! It is strange to see you in it, while here is hot 38 stepens C. :)
What a wonderful interpretation of EZ's jacket! I like the fit you've given the jacket, and the transformation into a wearable piece! Thank you for sharing and photographing the details...
That is stunning. I saw a reference to this today on Ravelry. Beautiful, thoughtful work and a great model too.
really stunning work. sometimes the simplest stitches, yarns and patterns can make the most beautiful results! you'll probably hear from me in the future with qestions about my own! i love it! (i want it! i need it!)
gorgeous! as always, i am so impressed with both the creativity and finishing details of your knitting. lovely photographs as well. a treat all around!
I don't particularly care for garter stitch, but you make it lovely, Jared! This is an absolutely wonderful sweater! Like everyone else I've been waiting to see it. As a newish knitter there is no way I could manage all your mods, but my utmost respect and a generous dash of awe are being sent your way.
Well I'm back again to gaze adoringly at this sweater and try and figure out how you did it. I understand everything except for the sleeve cap/armhole situation, I can't seem to figure out how you took the square holes and short rowed out. Were you picking up stitches from each side as you knit? Maybe you could post something about this technique. You know bust out a few diagrams, graphs, maybe a pie chart or two for those of us who are suffering from Tomten fever? LOL Just kidding, but I would love to hear more about the sleeve mods!
Love. It. Can't stop looking at it.
And thank you, thank you, a thousand times, for giving such fantastic details about all of your mods! This post is getting bookmarked for future reference, for sure.
Amazing!
Genius on the shoulders of genius.
I've scattered a few tomens around my friends and family. It's a lot of garter stitch. The last one was in one of those fluffy yarns and sweetie wore it to bed.
I just heard about your jacket today and came to take a look. I have to de-lurk to say, it's spectacular! Well done!
And the photographs and notes are wonderful, as always.
I am so impressed by your Tomten Jacket, as well as all your completed projects. You have so inspired me to try some new things with my own knitting! Very well done! I have enjoyed your blog very much and can't wait for your next post! :)
Jared....Many thanks for the beanie info! What a great surprise to find your comment on my blog!
As you probably know, Elizabeth Zimmerman was from Wisconsin. Last year, one of the grad students from UW (who also works at one of our fantastic yarn shops), was responsible for setting up a show, exclusively about Elizabeth. Needless to say, it was a hit in the areas fiber world. :)
Thank you again for responding about the hat.
I often lurk to see what you've knit. The tomten is so impressive! It's always inspiring to see what you're working on! Lovely!
Wow! This is so amazing! And thank you for explaining your process so thoroughly! I love that sort of insight!
Jared
I am in awe! This is my first time to visit your blog. You do amazing work and are a good read. I'm happy you answered the buttons when they called––they look great. I have buttons calling me at my LYS––in fact I have visited them several times. Perhaps I should suck it up and buy them at the outrageous price?
so classy - done just right, perfect use of color. I noticed that the links you have arent working - it says "not found" -- maybe check them?
anyhow - you are very talented and inspiring.
Amazing! It's so refreshing to see your great designs for men amid the giant sea of children's & women's patterns out there.
the fit throught the shoulders is amazing. I've never seen this design so well fitted before. Great!
Ditto to everything that everyone else has already said, but particularly:
1) I hope you post your pattern mods in full someday
2) I too would like to have your babies (but not 10,000 of them, as another commenter said)
I just keep going over and over the photos -- more than inspiring, more than awesome, they are nourishing.
Fabulous as always, Jared. I'll add this to my list of projects that you've inspired me to do.
--Jeanette
Random side comment that has nothing to do with your sweater (though it is quite lovely): The store I work at in San Francisco, Noe Knit, is offering your Red Light Special hat as a class for the second time. I thought you might enjoy seeing the end results. There are pictures posted on the store's blog ( http://noeknit.blogspot.com/ ).
A man knitting a sweater that's so awesome is sexier than a rock star! Even my husband loves this sweater (he also said you take great photos!) Thanks for sharing!
Wow that's so cool. I've always wanted to knit a hooded jacket but never found the perfect pattern. This might just be The One!
That is absolutely incredible. Amazing work!
Thank you for taking the time and effort to include such gorgeous photos!
I forgot to comment earlier! But this is an absolutely wonderful piece of clothing/art. I love its rustic yet modern feel.
I am totally envious. And I am not sure if it is the Tomtem, the model, or your photography...or all three. All I can say is "Damn Sexy!"
Words fail to describe the wonder of all your creative efforts. A veritable feast for the soul.
You may have inspired me to tackle the Tomten altho I'd need to make it less 'dense' (translation: lighter, airier, cooler) for my SoCal weather. Hmmm.
cam
Jared, so many of us have not the awesome skills you obviously own. I add my voice to the others - Would you consider writing up your own changes and publishing? Please, Please, Please!
After having read Knitting Without Tears, I thought there must be an error when you said this gorgeous cardi came from that book- I would surely have remembered it. Of course, I was wrong.. page 87 tells me so. I totally didn't see how that rather plain-looking B/W picture and brief text results in the crunchy granola goodness that is your Tomten. Well done, and thanks for the inspiration.
Absolutely beautiful! All of the modifications have really improved the fit. Love the yarn/color selection. You're a true inspiration!
It's so beautiful. Your knitting and photography are both stunning. I made the mistake of showing this web page to my BF and now he's absolutely insistent that I make him one :-)
Jared-I just hope you are still keeping up with your comments on the Adult Tomten. I was already contemplating making one for me when a friend clued me into your blog. You did such a fantastic job of adapting EZ's pattern to fit todays time and yarns. I ran out today and bought some of the new Handpaint Cascade 220 and a contrasting color of heather and am ready to start my own version. I am sure I will be revisiting your blog many times during my construction phase. Thanks for such a wonderful sweater and blog-CrazyAnn of LifeandtimesofCrazyAnn.blogspot.com
Wow! That seriously looks like it is from an expensive clothing catalog - but better! It is fab to see a man who knits and the sweat is absolutely amazing, and mostly, inspiring :o)
If you are kind to Tomten, Tomten is good to you. He is not all made of kindness you know. If you forget hounor him....just too bad.
I'm so pleased to discover that you modified the Tomten jacket. I've been thinking about trying it and it's great to see what you did with it. And I love your colors! I just can't believe I didn't stumble across this sooner. Ravelry has really opened things up, hasn't it?
Jared, found your blog some days ago and I am in awe of your work. Reading your modification of the Tomten is all 'foreign'language to me, maybe in a 100years it will make sense. I have just discovered EZ books (not being on the American continent is the reason) and purchased them all...me beginner, having knitting envy...
Your knitting (all of it) is pure genius.
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