EZ's ASJ

I'm knitting Elizabeth Zimmermann's Adult Surprise Jacket for myself with some really fabulous yarn that I've had since Methuselah was a baby. (Okay, I'm exaggerating I've probably only had the yarn in my stash for 10 years.) But the Lane Borgosesia "Bijou" yarn is discontinued and it's one of the first not cheap acrylic yarns that I bought. I probably hadn't knitted anything with it because my perfectionism got in the way, I didn't want to make a mistake in my choice of projects for this really good yarn, nor did I want to risk knitting something that didn't fit, would become dated, _______ fill in the blank with any number of other great perfectionist reasons for not starting a project.

Anyway, I'll be casting on today, after I finish making my calculations. I started an ASJ group on Ravelry yesterday for very selfish reasons: I need the support and I need the accountablity factor that having a group engenders. The number of people joining the group over the last 24 hours really surprised me. I have since, in response to various posts, gone through my knitting magazine piles and actually gotten some really great information that I'm finding useful and that I'm delighted to be able to share with others.

I found some directions for creating a hood on the BSJ which I think I'll adapt to the ASJ (Knitter's Magazine Winter 1999). I found a pattern that actually provides directions for the ASJ for sizes small through xxlarge, complete with yarn amounts, needle sizes, gauge, and a color changes chart (Knitter's Magazine Fall 2000) and I also unearthed the ASJ pattern I bought from Schoolhouse Press several years ago after reading through EZ's book "Knitting Workshop" which I retrieved from my bookshelf and dusted off. My penchant for pattern books and magazines is definitely paying off!

I also am going to use some other stashed yarn, "Toskana" by GGH, to make the ASJ. This yarn was in a close-out bin at a LYS that went out of business a couple of years ago. The colors compliment the "Bijou" really well and I like the spongy almost terrycloth like texture of the "Toskana". I'm praying that someone will have 3 or 4 balls of the "Toskana"color number 3, sort of a ruby read that they're willing to sell or trade. I'll post y request on Ravelry and see what happens!

That's all for now. Be Blessed.
D.D.