Nerd Wars

um, right, so I mentioned Nerd Wars in my last post. I should probably explain that.

Except that it's unexplainable so I'll sum up. It's like a college literature class mashed up with the hands on work of a college art/design class. Only the subjects are pop culture, it's usually TV but also novels or movies, and it's all expressed in knitting. At the end we are graded on a point scale for our team. The team with the most points wins.

Below is the dissertation I submitted and received approval.

Name: TangledThread

Team: Browncoat

Summary: Knit 8 baby, toddler, and kiddo sweaters.

Category: Geek Pride

INARA
Yes. Great. I wish you hundreds of fat children.

MAL
Aw, could you imagine that? Me with a whole
passel of critters underfoot? Hell, ten
years time I could --

With only 14 episodes and a movie we never got to meet any of the children and as such I’m knitting a sweater for each member of the crew of Serenity from the TV show Firefly. I’m knitting 8 instead of nine because Wash and Zoe will be sharing a sweater.

I have a detailed description of why for each sweater but that write up is for the reveal and I'm keeping the proposal to the point.

ZOE
I don’t give a good gorram about
relevant, Wash. Or objective. And I
ain’t so afraid of losing something
that I ain’t gonna try to have it. You and
I would make one beautiful baby. And I
want to meet that child one day.
Period.

So let’s meet the sweaters.

Shepard Book is a man of the cloth gets with a mysterious past. His sweater is simple garter stitch with no fussy details made of sturdy brown hemp yarn but it has an unusual construction.

Baby’s Pure & Simple Pullover & Cardigan
Elann Canapone held double to get gauge
Swatch:
before washing

 

I’m more visual than numerical so before washing I drew around the swatch and shrinkage is obvious at a glance.

 

after washing and trip through the dryer.

Jayne is the hired muscle with a mom that knits. This is a scrappy vest knitted in the muted colors of Jayne’s tee-shirts.

Ziggy
http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/ziggy-5
Encore Worsted Solids & Heathers

no change with wash

Inara wears beautiful things and is always poised and proper. I’m making a little girl’s party dress with inspiration of Inara’s dress in Shindig. The white linen yarn and lace pattern are fussy to knit with and it hurts my hands but with washing it softens and has a swirling drape like the sleeves of Inara’s dress. Being linen it’s also very strong and can handle the cleaning needed to keep it white. All of that, the discomfort for the final result, the flowing strength are perfect representations for Inara.

Meredith
M&K Linen

before washing

 

 after washing and trip through the dryer.

 

Wash and Zoe are the married couple of the crew. Wash favors Hawaiian shirts while Zoe wears black gold and browns. Their sweater will be a black, gold, and brown Hawaiian shirt.

7-10 Split
South West Trading Company TOFUtsies

 yarn held double to get the Hawaiian shirt look

Kaylee, the ship mechanic, is unassuming, smart, capable and sweet. In the episode Out of Gas when she joins the crew she wears a dress out of a Chinese print but in a sundress style and wears it again later in the season. I’m using indigo dyed denim yarn that is also unassuming, smart, capable and sweet. The sweater pattern is the male casual style to match that sundress.

Organic Guernsey
Rowan Denim

before washing

after washing and trip through the dryer.

best scene that never was. River pretending to be pregnant and states to Simon. ”I’ll Knit.” in the deleted scenes of Our Mrs Reynolds

 
Simon, the ship doctor, is out on the fringe by necessity, not by choice. Rather than relaxing to ship style he consistently dresses in buttoned up vests.

Pepo Pie
Encore Worsted Solids & Heathers

 swatch just to check color of fabric- see above for gauge.

River is part messed up teen, part superhero. She wears soft clothes, combat boots, and usually needs a bath and to brush her hair. I thought about a mandarin style sweater but they were too fussy. Fussy to knit and even fusser to wear. River is many things but she is not fussy and would rather a Baby Kimono much like the kimono Inara wears a in the episode Serenity Part 1. Knit in a silk cotton yarn that is soft but can also take the heat of the dryer in the shades of pink River favors.

Baby Sachiko Kimono Sweater
Rowan Summer Tweed

 

before washing

 

 after washing and trip through the dryer

Mal, the caption of Serenity, fought for the Independents army during the Unification War. He may have been on the losing side but he strongly believes he was on the right side. He still wears the brown coat that gave the Independents their nickname. This sweater is a Baby Browncoat knit in a never wears our acrylic wool blend.

Baby Albert Coat and Bunting
Encore Worsted Solids & Heathers

 swatch just to check fabric- see above for gauge.

Yarn: I chose yarn fibers that should be readily available in the Verse. Hemp, Linen, Cotton, Wool, Silk, Acrylic, Soy, and Chitin are a combination of old world and space age. I put more thought than was probably sane on what would be grown and manufactured on the desert planets that make up the majority of the fringe worlds. Then I raided my stash and worked with what I had available in the pioneering spirit of making do.

Time Justification: Going to my knitting spreadsheet I found that I average 1000 yards of knitting a month. The 8 baby sweaters come in at 3200 yards per the patterns. Since two of the sweaters I will hold yarn double I’ll be knitting 4100 yards from my stash.