Category Archives: Fishermens Neck Gansey

Tall stack o’ neck ganseys!

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I’ve been a knitting fool with these Fishermen Neck Ganseys… in two styles;  “St Andrews Harbour” and “Flamborough Cliffs”.  I’ve given an armload of them away for the holiday gifts, but seems there are still a sufficient number left to photograph, and show off some new ones, with the most recent addition to complete the colorway of   stone harbour at dawn …

 


The herringbone motif with moss panel or cables, including a simplified easy variation that knits up quick, and of which as of today I have a sample with this little silver darling….
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Also finished today, the simple variation of Flamborough Cliffs in some Malabrigo Rios…

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I am not sure if I am quite through knitting these, as they seem to be a hit with the men (and women) in our family, but with the new year approaching, it really is time for me to set my sights to a new knitterly horizon. I just am really very smitten with these neck ganseys, and so pleased to have this design as my 2016 finale.

Wishing you all a very happy new year!

Another Fishermens Neck Gansey

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Introducing St Andrews Harbour, second of the two fishermen neck gansey patterns…

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Picking up from back in this post …  Out To The Waves …  I have been working every minute I possibly can to have this project Fishermens Neck Ganseys ( two patterns in one download )  ready by Christmas, and I am happy to say that it is done & dusted!

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St Andrews Harbour is an intrinsic image of the fishing industry of Fife, and the name sake of this design inspired by the Scottish Fleet fisher ganseys of Fife Scotland. The herringbone central motif is the distinctive element this design, in all of the three charts to choose from;  moss stitch, or a variety of cables accompanying, as well as a simple & fast variation of each design.

About to take Emma out for a quick Christmas Eve stroll on the knitting trail , with  shockingly nothing on my needles presently to knit,  hurrying before it gets dark,  while contemplating the joy of the holidays, of being finished the big project of fishermen neck ganseys …

and of fishing in Fife …

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St Andrews Harbour, Fife, Scotland

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Out to the waves…

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Come now fishermen of olden days, lets share a splendid dream together!  Take me in your nets…out to the waves… oh to be truly unafraid of the elements, exploring harbors of every shore, while facing the bracing raw melody of the sea!

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Colorway: Stone harbor at dawn.   Yarn: Berroco Ultra Alpaca & Ultra Alpaca Light.  I am diving in again to these blues & greys, into the watery  colors,  surfacing yet again with another woolly interpretation.  Be back soon!

A Fishermens Neck Gansey

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I love the textures of the the fishermens sweaters, or ganseys as they are also known. A couple of weeks ago I thought to try one in a simple cowl using my favorite traditional motif from Flamborough gansey.

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Flamborough Head

I gave a hint of this direction in a recent post Elemental , and now I have knitted four samples of varying shapes of a neck piece I am aptly naming a ‘neck gansey’ !

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Flamborough Head is a beautiful section of the Chalk Coast of British Isles, and I spoke of the colors of chalk, of shore grass, of wet sand, and of stone and storm, all captured  in the language of yarn.

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Flamborough Head on the Yorkshire Coast, England.

I must say, after knitting four simple variations, the repeats are quickly memorized, and are thoroughly pleasant to work, evoking visions from a bygone era of strong courageous fishermen in their striking traditional ganseys.

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In the near future, I would like to augment this design with more traditional fishermen gansey motifs, in a series,  and the pattern will be updated to include the additions (any who purchases pattern will get those updates), but I wanted to get this pattern up and running as soon as possible so that knitters could make them for the holidays.

You can find Fishermens Neck Gansey Pattern on Ravelry  HERE … I hope you try one… and happy holiday knitting!

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ps.  I thought I would mention that I still need to get the neck ganseys photographed modeled, which I intend to do very soon, so watch this space!

Elemental

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My mind has wandered down to the chalk coasts of British Isles,  to find the spirit of the sea etched into a landscape assaulted by wind and salt, of the coastal birds, algae stained rocks, crustaceans, seals and shoals of fishes, and dolphins and whales… seeking the blue depths with the promise of life cycling perpetual….to find the masculine and elemental.

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It was no surprise that Black Friday found me running into the local yarn shop, searching for colors of wet sand and sea grass and chalky cliffs… and now I’m disappearing into the deep mists of creation for a while, to surface with something sudden & unexpected!