The "Puhple" Sweater

I know I've been promising to show you this sweater for some time now, so please forgive the wait. I hope you'll think it's worth it, because I think this may just be the best sweater I've ever knit.

Pattern: Roo by Kate Gilbert, Twist Collective summer 2009
Yarn: Knit Picks Swish Worsted (100% superwash merino) in Eggplant, a little less than 7 skeins
Needles: US 7 (4.5 mm) Addi Turbos
Mods: different gauge (see below); closures
Recipient: Rainbow
Started/Completed: September 13/October 8

This sweater was such fun to knit. The time span is a bit misleading, because I was working on this in between several other projects. The actual knitting time was pretty reasonable. I did the back first and it took the longest mainly because it took the course of knitting the back to get used to reading the charts (I'm usually a very pro-chart person, but when there's garter stitch and stockinette in the same chart, it takes my brain some time to get used to it). The fronts took maybe three evenings total to knit, and I knit the sleeves at the same time over the course of a weekend. The hood was the last piece, and it probably took me just a few hours, with about an hour or two to graft the top and seam the rest of the sweater. Had I been working on this project exclusively, I probably could have finished it in a couple of weeks.

My only really big mod to this pattern was in gauge. When I swatched, I discovered that I probably would have had to go up to a US 9 to get gauge, and, in my opinion, the resulting fabric would have been way to loose for this yarn. Moreover, I really liked the fabric I was getting on size 7 needles, which was about 18 stitches over 4 inches, or about half a stitch more per inch than specified. With Rainbow's chest measurement of 20.5 inches, I would have normally chosen to knit the 22" size; with my difference in gauge, however, I elected to knit the 26" size knowing it would come out smaller than that. I knew I could also count on the tendency of a superwash yarn to stretch if I needed to get some additional room in the sweater when it was done. As it happens, after blocking, the sweater fits perfectly. There's a little bit of room so she can layer a shirt underneath as well as grow a bit, but it's not so big that it overpowers her.

The other mod was in the closures. I really wanted to be able to throw the whole sweater in the wash, so I was worried about using the leather closures specified in the pattern (not to mention that I wasn't sure I would be able to source the materials necessary). I'd seen several projects on Ravelry that used a twisty I-cord loop with a decorative ending instead, so I decided this was the way to go. I made two 12" lengths of I-cord and sewed the ends into place, leaving a loop for buttons. I'd originally intended to use toggles, but on a trip to my LYS, Rainbow herself found these purple buttons that were amazingly a match for the sweater. (I really have to remember to take her from now on when I go button shopping, because I'd missed seeing those same buttons when I'd looked on my own a couple of days earlier!)

The color is most accurate in this photo

As to my overall assessment of the pattern? It's a winner. I had made sure to find the errata for the pattern before I started but, to my surprise and delight, they'd already been corrected in the download. The pattern was easy to follow and very clearly worded, and the sweater itself was relatively easy to execute (simple shaping, not lots of "at the same time"s, etc.). The cables are clever but very intuitive, so once you've done a couple of pieces, you know what to expect. If I have one complaint, it's about the number of charts that are used. I realize this probably couldn't be helped, as different charts are needed for each piece, but it made things a little annoying at times when I had to find a place to spread the charts around me so I could see it all. I did get a little confused from time to time when working on the hood, as it seemed to me that the two charts should have been on opposite sides of the page, but I think that was just another brain adjustment thing, because I had it straight by the time I was about halfway through the hood. I was very thankful that the charts were fairly large, because by the end of the day my eyes aren't always so good.

As you can tell from the pictures, Rainbow was completely thrilled with her sweater. "Puhple" is her favorite color at the moment, so she was very excited to put it on. She wore it out and about all day last Saturday, when there was just a little chill in the air and a little extra something was needed. I have a feeling she's going to want to wear it a lot in the weeks to come, and that is certainly the biggest compliments I could get as a knitter.

Can you tell we had some fun with this photo shoot?

In the Hood

I've been working on Rainbow's Roo, and I am quite literally in the hood now. It's amazing how quickly it's knit up -- sometimes I forget just how fast baby and children's garments are! I knit the sleeves over the weekend (I did them both at the same time to make absolutely sure they were identical), and last night I grafted the shoulder seams and started the hood. I would estimate that I have two to three nights' worth of work left to do on this before it's done, or at least in one piece. I still need to do a little digging around to find a tutorial for frog closures made from I-cord, because I am not going to do the leather triangle toggle thing called for in the pattern. I really want this to be completely washable!

Yes, I'm fully aware of how bad this photo is. Camera wasn't cooperating.

While the slew of obligation baby knits has not let up at all, I've decided that I really don't want to neglect myself in the meantime. On Saturday, I stopped by my LYS as usual and brought with me a couple of gift cards I'd been saving up. Those, combined with a frequent shopper reward, got me a great deal on a sweater's worth of Madelinetosh Tosh DK that will become an Effortless Cardigan for moi. I figure that a simple, straightforward top-down raglan would be easy enough for me to pick up and put down as needed but still finish in a reasonable amount of time (read: soon enough to actually wear it this sweater season). I sat for a while with three colors in front of me but ultimately decided on Baltic -- when it comes down to it, I can't say no to a vibrant blue.

I'm really excited to get this out and cast on, but I am making myself finish at least Rainbow's Roo (and maybe another baby item) before I do.

Ready for Fall

Fall officially starts tomorrow, and my knitting mojo is officially back and in full swing.

Last night, I decided to have a little finishing party to take care of the projects that were only waiting for finishing touches to be finished. First, I got out the STR Baby Surprise Jacket, which only needed some edging (in single crochet) around the sleeve cuffs and a couple of buttons. I finished the edging and wove in all my ends, but I couldn't find two matching buttons in the appropriate size in my button stash, so I will have to get those at my LYS this weekend. The sweater needs a good blocking to get it clean and to get the edges to behave a little better, but I'm pretty much at the point now where I can cross it off my baby knitting list.

Next, I bit the bullet and finally sewed the buttons on my Essential Cardigan. I'd picked out a couple of button options last week, so I picked the winning selection and got busy with my needle and thread. It really didn't take that much time, but I wouldn't exactly call it fun to sew buttons with black thread on dark gray fabric. Fortunately, I had some good entertainment on my computer while I was working (I'm finally caught up, yay!), so it didn't get too tedious. I plopped the sweater in the tub this morning after my shower and laid it out to dry after breakfast, so I should have a sweater ready to wear this weekend, should I so choose.

There are several other baby projects to work on/start, but I'm taking a bit of a break to work on Rainbow's Roo. I'd really like her to be able to wear it this fall, before it gets so cold that she needs a real winter coat, so I'm trying to plow through it as quickly as I can. I'm a handful of rows from getting to the armhole shaping on the back at this point, and it seems to be the right size when held up to her, so so far, so good.

Meanwhile, during my lunch breaks, I've been working on a sock (yes, I know, I'm just as shocked as you are). I unearthed a pattern I had written down several years ago in a notebook that I just pulled out again and am making a few adjustments to it. It's written to fit my feet, but I'd like to upsize it as well, so I'll be doing a little figuring on it.

That's a lot of knitting, isn't it? Yep, I'd say fall is definitely here.

Notice Posted

First, a public service announcement: Today it was so chilly outside (highs in the 50s) that I pulled out a pair of handknit wool socks to wear. Tomorrow's going to be just a tad bit warmer, so I'm planning on a long-sleeved tee and this shawl, which has been waiting patiently for me to wear it since it was finished. I think fall may have officially arrived.

Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming.

After posting the other night, I got out my purple yarn and cast on for Rainbow's Roo. (Technically I cast on again, because I'd started and done a few rows the night before and ripped it out after measuring and realizing it was going to end up too small.) I'm through about half a repeat of the chart on the back and have done one decrease so far, so it's definitely in progress now. I was a bit slow going at first because my brain and the chart were not cooperating, but now that we've straightened things out, it seems to be all smooth sailing. I'm also cabling without a cable needle, so that's making things quicker as well. My goal is to have this done by later this fall so Rainbow can actually wear it before she outgrows it, though that's iffy seeing as she is regularly refusing all sorts of things (like, lately, pants and anything with ruffles). She seems to be enamored of the yarn, though, to the point where I had to cut a small piece of it for her this morning so she wouldn't unravel and completely tangle an entire skein.

I've got a bit of a lull going in my design stuff (the one pattern is in testing, another submission is ready to go out the door), though of course the ideas have not stopped. Since watching Return to Cranford the other night, I've been obsessed by the shawls worn by some of the women, specifically the one worn by Judi Dench -- it looks a little like the one here, but there was almost a collar to it as well. I've got a rough sketch and a rough idea of how to execute it, but I need to sit down with some yarn and needles and swatch a bit to see if I can get it to work. If I can, I'm thinking I'll put it up on Ravelry as a free download, and in the meantime I can share the process with you here.

Back on Track

Although technically it's not yet autumn, the week's forecast calls for a couple slightly cooler days (highs in the 60s) and some definitely cooler nights (lows in the 40s), so I feel completely justified in getting out my wool yarns and knitting sweaters and other warm things.

About a week ago, I cast on for a Baby Surprise Jacket for a baby gift for a coworker who is due in December. I haven't given it too much attention, so it's moving slowly so far. I've just started the increase section and I'm starting to pick up some steam, so I'm hoping to get it finished within the next week or so. I know the baby is not going to need it anytime soon, but I have quite a few baby items to knit in the next six or so months and I'd like to get them all done as early as I can.

The next big(ish) project to go on the needles will be Roo for Rainbow. My swatching ended up giving me more problems than solutions. To get the specified stitch gauge, I probably would have had to go up to a US 9 needle, and in my opinion, that would have resulted in a fabric that was way too loose for this particular garment. Added to that is the fact that I really like the fabric density I was getting with a US 7, though my gauge is off. I decided to go with the fabric I liked and adjust for the gauge difference by knitting a larger size. Originally, I'd intended to knit the 24" size (Rainbow has a 20.5" chest but I wanted a few inches of positive ease in order for the sweater/jacket to fit over other clothes and allow her some space to grow). I cast on for that size and knit a few rows last night, and it looked like it was matching the finished measurements of the 22" size, so I ripped it. I'll cast on again tonight for the next size larger and see how that goes.

I did finish my Essential Cardigan last week but have yet to sew on the buttons (bad knitter!). It's really silly how about 20 minutes of work are standing in the way of my having a new sweater. I think I may have some residual feelings of resentment toward the sweater from all that miserable 1x1 ribbing, though, so it may need to sit in time out for a bit longer until I'm ready to face it again.

Finally, I'm getting another original pattern ready to go into the testing phase. At this point I am planning on self-publishing it on Ravelry, though I've been toying with the idea of submitting it to the Knit Picks Independent Designer Program because I knit the sample in Knit Picks yarns. Thoughts? I will let you all know when the pattern is going up for testing The pattern is now in testing here, in case you're interested, but in the meantime, here's a little preview: