Gansey Update - 8/19/06

Now for a quick update on the "progress" of the Gansey from Hell:

As you can see - the first buttonhole - with one of the beautiful silver Celtic Knot buttons from Stitches poking through.


And here, we have the beginnings of my initials which are on the far left front side - about 2" from the side "seam."

I've been doing some reading about the Ganseys origin. These are fishing sweaters, knit (as this one is) with 5-ply wool. These are tiny plys, since the yarn is as thin, if not thinner, than sock yarn. They are knit on small needles - in this case US size 1s so the finished fabric is tight woven. This makes them water and wind proof, pretty much. Of course, if you're knocked overboard by a huge-ass wave, or pulled into the drink by an enormous fish, it won't keep you dry! That's where the initials come in. When your body washes up on shore, the initials give some clue as to who you were!

I get a big chuckle out of all of this, and realize that this is a very traditional garmet, one that will no doubt take me until the end of time to complete, and, if given the chance, it will be worn with great pride.

I'll post more pictures as this thing progresses, and share more tidbits of the tradition as I can.