Cromarty is done. We are pleased.
Of my 21 skeins of Koigu Kersti, this is what remained:
23 grams of Kersti.
Interestingly, although my stitch and row gauge on my swatch was spot on, my Cromarty is longer than the 22 inches the pattern states — it’s closer to 25 inches. I am very happy with that!
My friend Johanne had warned me that the neck on Cromarty is very wi-i-i-ide. (Incidentally, Johanne made Cromarty in cotton. She is either terribly courageous or quite mad. You be the judge.)
I tried Cromarty on, neckband-less and confirmed this.
So I made the neckbands shorter and eased them into the neck opening.
That did the trick!
We are satisfied!
Phew!
So, in celebration, on to the give-away for The Celtic Collection.
Thanks for all the emails — I received 847 of them, so clearly, you guys want this book.
I chose the winner using a random number generator. And the winner is . . .
Wait — would you like to exactly how the choosing works?
I have all the contest entries in one directory in Outlook and I sort them in order of date received, in descending order.
I export the contents of that directory to a spreadsheet. I open the spreadsheet in Excel and see what the range of numbers is.
I go to Random.org’s Random Number Generator and tell it to generate one integer within the range of numbers on my spreadsheet.
So the random number generator selected number 417, which is:
Wendy O. in Herndon VA!
Congratulations!
And a very big thank you again to Shirley in PA for her generosity in donating her copy of The Celtic Collection for the contest.
By the Way
The video I posted on Thursday is a music video for the Gena Rowlands Band, for a song from their upcoming album. I’ll tell you the “secret” of how the scarf was filmed, because the director David Wilson told me I could. 
In his words:
“There were two scarves – one 24 foot scarf knit by a team of three people and then a 90 foot fabric scarf, made by my friend (and seamstress) Jaime Supan. She “quilted” the fabric to give it some texture so it would match the knit scarf better.
No computer trickery, though, that’s real “scarf” in every shot.”
Pretty cool, huh?
Lucy would agree if she wasn’t busy napping!
Cromarty is gorgeous.I like many of Starmore’s designs I particularly like the cables in this one. I think finishing with only 23 grams of yarn left is a sure sign that the knitting godesses were smiling down on you.
Wow, it looks even more beautiful all put together! And how appropriate that you finished it this weekend …
Cromarty looks wonderful! Great sweater.
I’m so so excited!! My first blog contest win — and such an exciting prize. Thank you, thank you!
Cromarty is gorgeous! Perseverance pays off. Congrats!
Thanks for sharing the “secret”. Having a large portion of the scarf be fabric would certainly make it lighter, more fluid and easier for the filming. I’m glad that they didn’t try to fake the whole thing though!!
Wendy, beautitful work, as always! That wide neck looked wonderful with your skin tone. Do you ever make sweaters with a wider neck, to show off a little more Wendy?
I’ve got very small shoulders and I’m forever adjusting necklines so they don’t fall off my shoulders. For some patterns (obviously not cold weather wear), I’ve learned to love a more open look.
Keep up the good work! What’s on the needles next?
Carol in Prince George, VA
Cromarty is “Magnifique” Wendy
!
It looks terrific, Wendy.
She is soooo beautiful! Congratulations to a fabolous piece of work.
I’m with Carol in VA. The “bandless” version is quite flattering as well!
Nice, nice, nice! Good work on the neck.
Cromarty is STUNNING! Congrats. And congrats to Wendy O.
Cromarty is beautiful! I have to say that is I was to knit it I would love the wide neckline, it would suit me down to the ground
Absolutely stunning. Wear it well!
Absolutely gorgeous! It’s quite amazing that you were able to close up the neck that much. You are a very talented lady. :O)
WOW!
I love it. We’ll wear them at the same time someday and scare everyone with the Cromarty Mob. We should have a gang sign or something. (That’s what Lala says, who is watching over my shoulder.)
xo
Very nice work. I’m amazed by the neck as well. Like magic.
it’s simply divine and i love that colour. It’s always nice to see a ‘to-do-list’ being made just so that I can avoid hte future pitfalls. So now I know, this one has a wide neck and munches yarn..
Simply gorgeous, Wendy. Wow.
Beautiful!
Beautiful Cromarty that looks wonderful on you too! What a juicy color on you Wendy!
what a spectacular success – It looks wonderful! I have a hunch that I’ll be making one of those before too long.
Congrats on the lovely completion, Wendy.
Gorgeous! I love the way you handled the neck, and that color looks wonderful on you. Thanks for spilling the beans about the scarf – although with such a cutie on the other end of the needles who noticed that the middle was fabric?
Wow! Cromarty is beautiful! And horrah for having enough yarn. That last bit must have been nerve wracking.
I am a one, max two project person. If I did not have BeadWork on the needles , Cromarty would go on! Just a few days and I will follow!
Wnedy, fabulous job on Cromarty! I completely enjoyed watching the progress, and am particularly impressed with how well the neckline came out, although the wider neck does seem nice on you – also impressed with how efficient you were in your yarn usage… just lovely!
Excellent job! I would have been going crazy while knitting the neckband thinking I would run out of yarn. So, what’s up next????
Cromarty must look stunning on you with your red hair! It’s gorgeous.
Stunning sweater, Wendy! You did a beautiful job! And great timing on the finish.
I love what you did with the neck!
That sweater is beautiful. Great Great Job!!
Wow, it looks fabulous! The shortened neck bands made all the difference – wonderful job!
You are such a knitting inspiration!!
Thank you for sharing the knitting progress – pro’s and con’s that you encountered while knitting Cromarty. You certainly over came it all and have such a beautiful sweater.
Wow. Just. wow.
That should be in a glass case in a museum somewhere.
Congratulatins on Cromarty! And whew – I had that situation with the neck on my last sweater and… it didn’t finish out so good. I’m going to re-do it.
Thanks for telling the scarf secret – that’s cool to know and cool that you know the person who helped with it!
Your Cromarty is awesome, Wendy! Your work is wonderful, the color is gorgeous! I like the way you were able to close up the neckline. If it is cold enough to wear a heavy sweater, then I would want the higher neckline, if for no other reason than to keep warmer! I love it!
Well, you’ve done it again! You never cease to impress me!
Cromarty – she is beautiful. And I love what you did with the neck opening. In fact, I may just have to burglarize your house and steal her, she is that stunning.
Kudos, Wendy, on another lovely handknit. You never cease to amaze me.
I had a feeling some of that scarf in the video was fabric, rather than knitting….
wow! cromarty is a stunning work of art!
A-N-T-I-C-I-P-A-T-I-O-N! It’s the old ketchup song… remember it? I’ve been humming it for days wondering with great anticipation when we would see the finished masterpiece. It’s breathtaking! You are amazing! Thanks for the tips on the neckline. PS – I would have been in such a panic with so little Kersti left. You are a very brave woman!
Waaaah! I want one too, but I need to lose like 75 lbs to be able to wear that size. Yours is gorgeous. Thanks for the warning about the neckline. I WILL lose weight. I WILL knit it.
Absolutely stunning.
Smart move with the neck band, the sweater looks awesome! I’ll bet you’re glad to have it off the needles though.
I’d like to pose a delicate question. The models in the book are very svelte. How well does the sweater fit on a normal woman? It’s hard to tell with the camera and your arms in front of yourself like that. I hesitate to knit myself something with such heavy cables because I’m afraid it will make me look like the Michelin man.
Unbelievably gorgeous sweater!! I am swooning!
Wow. Pretty!
Cromarty looks amazing, Wendy. And I’m quite impressed with how you handled the neckline. The color, I bet, goes really well with your hair!
I was thinking how lovely the sweater looked on you with the wide neckline. But I’m not sure you would have had enough Kersti to finish without shortening those neckline bands!! Oh my, I shudder to think…. in any event, it’s gorgeous. Congratulations, and I can hardly wait to see what you move onto next!
I agree, Wendy, that you look gorgeous in the low-cut version. I’m just sayin’. (Hi Lucy girl!)
Cromarty is so beautiful!
Cromarty is beautiful!!! I am amazed at how you made the neckline normal sized from its original size. Could you please share a few details of this incredible transformation?
Congratulations on Cromarty. It looks great!
Now THAT is a work of art!
Absolutely awesome – seeing something like Cromarty completed is like a new goalsetting lesson for me – I want to knit like that when I grow up….I am awestruck! Beautiful work from a beautiful soul.
So very, very lovely – and that color is making me swoon a little bit. It is fabulous!
Cromarty is wonderful (I’ve yet to be brave enough to try a Starmore pattern… maybe this year.) I also have to ask, do you know David Wilson? I’m from Columbia (where the video was shot.) and didn’t watch the video until you mentioned how they accomplished the scarf. It didn’t hit me until I was watching it where it was shot and who “David Wilson” was… David is a friend of my husband. Just one of those strange things! I really enjoy your blog!
Your Cromarty is truly beautiful. congratulations and thanks for sharing the knitting journey.
hi Lucy!
I recognized that AS cover — I bought that book about 10 years for $5 (!) on a remainders table at the discount bookstore across the street from my office. (I’ve been a knitter on and off all my life, but I wasn’t actively knitting at that time — I just loved the sweaters in the book and thought that someday, maybe,…
But I’ve been loving your Cromarty ever since you started. And I’ve been dreaming about cables. So maybe someday is getting closer.
The sweater really is beautiful. Congratulations to the winner of your contest!
Cromarty is stunning. Love the color too.
*applause*
Standing ovation from Wisconsin!
Cromarty is fabulous…is it just my computer or does it match Lucy’s eyes?
Just beautiful! Well done!
)
Your Cromarty is gorgeous.
Oh that is soooo pretty!!!!!
Pretty cool about the scarf.
Of course Lucy has to nap. It is hard on a cat being so pretty. =)
I am so going to miss Cromarty. Please let me see more of the finished product? (twice a week)
Wonderful sweater. I think the color is absolutely gorgeous.
I was wondering, how are you choosing what project and yarn to use for your stash-busting efforts? Do you decide on a new project, and then see if you have the right yarn for it, or did you catalog your yarn collection first?
My problem is a vast (for me) amout of laceweight. Luckily between Folk Shawls, Victorian Lace Today, A Gathering of Lace, and the internet, there’s no shortage of possible projects.
Ending up with such a beautiful Cromarty was certainly worth the struggle, don´t you think?
And they do keep – at least more than 10 years…
Cromarty has turned out simply beautifully – but then we always knew it would. The neckline surgery worked superbly, didn’t it?
It is beautiful! I am very impressed with your tenacity whilst tackling those cables. I hope you enjoy wearing it.
Wendy- Whew! That was cutting it close on Cromarty- at least you had enough yarn.
You should be pleased, it’s a very flattering design, and looks great on you. Can’t wait to see what “we’re” doing next.
Cromarty is absolutely stunning!!!!
Hey Wendy, Cromarty looks fabulous! The colour is beautiful, and I love what you did with the neckline.
Cromarty is gorgeous! I really like it in that particular color as well.
Beautiful! The whole thing is just lovely.
Man, it’s just beautiful! Breathtaking! And one of my favorite colors. Congratulations!
oooooooooooo, cromarty is GORGEOUS! wide neck or not, lol.
i wish there was a way to access out of print patterns better. it’s frustrating to want to make something, but not havign the ability to get the pattern.
Gorgeous, Wendy. I like your reduced neckline the best. I think if it were mine, I’d feel a lot more comfortable wearing the sweater like this. I think I would always be tugging it up if it were larger.
Lovely Cromarty! The hassle with the splitty yarn was worth the result, I’d say. The cables seem to pop really well.
Cromarty is stunning!!
And thanks for posting the scarf secret. I couldn’t get that out of my head.
WHOA. Gorgeous sweater and amazing yarn management.
How do you begin and end the closed cables? No matter which method I use, mine always look a tad wonky. Yours look great.
Wow. I am insanely jealous of Cromarty. Somehow, I didn’t think I would want something so heavily cabled. Now, I am very sad I do not have the book. May have to swing by the library to see what I dig up.
Congrats on the accomplishment!
(How are the monsoon socks coming along?)
Fantastic work-simply beautiful.
GAWGUS!
Holy smokes! I’m making a simple cardigan and I had trouble sewing on the sleeves and this button band nonsense is going to be the death of me. And you casually change the neckline from huge to just right?! I’m not worthy.
By the time I’m posting, we’ve run out of superlatives! What a wonderful job. You did amazing things with that neckline-it looks like it is meant to be the way you made it. Huzzah!
Gorgeous sweater!
Absolutely beautiful. And thanks for the giveaways!
Another beauty. The length came out perfect also. I was a tiny bit concerned about that. Great job!
Holy Batman, Wendy! I am in awe. You have created yet another work of art.
Beautiful sweater, beautifully knit, in a beautiful color of a beautiful yarn. I’m glad someone, somewhere in the world is finishing some great sweaters.
So, so, so stunning. I am madly in love with so many Starmore designs, but just don’t have the patience for them these days. You are inspiring me, though. Little River or Fern might be in the makings here soon.
Absolutely beautiful! The cables are gorgeous. And the neck looks awesome. Wendy, you are so talented to be able to make such adjustments. I’m sure you’ll enjoy wearing it. And thanks for the info about the video. It was fun watching. My 5 yr. old got quite a kick out of the long scarf!
Surfing throug the blogosphere, trying key wordr as kniting, yarn, etc…I just droped et “your place” because your name- Wendy. So, I find cat loving kniter! I loved your Cromatry mostly cause of colour, it is my favorite! I am an fresh bloger, and I am writing only in croation (did I wrote right? an language we speak in Croatia) unfortunatly, but I am thinking about writing in English to, so you can visit me back to meet my supervisor!
Cromarty is quite lovely, but I have to say I did like the wide neckline. I thought it was very flattering. So what’s up next?
Oh, and what do you do with leftover yarn? I’m thinking of a random blanket…
Absolutely beautiful Wendy! Another seriously drool worthy sweater.
Oh Wendy! You did such a beautiful job. You’re sweater takes my breath away.
could you email me your home address so I can send you things to raffle off?
Wendy, that sweater looks gorgeous on you! Fitted or not, it fits you perfectly and that’s wonderful.
That is truly lovely…excellent work!!!