Saturday, October 1, 2011

October is here!

I'm happy to announce that my favorite month of the year is here!

There's nothing I don't like about October: cooler weather, pumpkin everything, the playoffs (which of course I would enjoy much more if the Orioles ever made an appearance), my birthday (I suppose that might not last for too much longer), Halloween, and the reappearance of my handknits as I snuggle into warm socks and cozy cowls for the first time since April.

I have a busy month ahead of me this October, but I can't wait.

I expect my knitting productivity will drop this month (I really want to make the Dahlia Cardigan, but I haven't even managed to wind the yarn yet), so I'm happy to show off a big project I finished in September:


Pattern: Backward Cable Pullover, from Wendy Bernard's Custom Knits
Sz: Small, 36.5"
Yarn: Louisa Harding Grace Silk & Wool, 6.67 skeins
Needles: sz 5 and 7


I love the look of this sweater, with the high neck in the front, and deep scoop neck in the back.

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(Which I guess you wouldn't be able to see as much if the hairdresser hadn't cut my hair too short, so I guess it was actually a good thing.) A lot of Ravelers moved the scoop neck to the front, but I just love that this looks so different this way.

This is the second pattern I've knit from the book, and while my Tuxedo Vest turned out enormous, this fits to a T. Or is it 'tee'? Whatever. Fits perfectly. My gauge was slightly off, so I knit the 36", figuring it would come out closer to 35", and for once, I was right!

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My only concern was that the instructions for the short rows on the neck don't seem to work. Maybe I was just misreading them, but I had to rip out and re-knit three times before I finally just cobbled something together myself. The way the directions are written, at least in my interpretation, you end up wrapping more stitches on one side than the other, and that can't be right. I mean, I guess it could be right if you wanted one side of the neck lower than the other, but I'm pretty sure the goal is to make the center of the neck rise higher than both sides.

The yarn is delightfully soft--which is a good thing, as this was intended to be a close-fitting sweater--but it's a bit pilly . . . I have serious doubts about weather it will hold up over the long term, but I don't see any obvious solution for that, so I'll just have to be extra careful with this one.

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(Occasionally I should at least consider brushing my hair before taking these knitwear photos. Sigh.)

3 comments :

Minding My Own Stitches said...

That is a fabulous cable up the front of the sweater. And I love the green, too. Here I was thinking how nic eyou look in your photos and then I read that you're wishing you'd brushed your hair. LOL.

crookedknits said...

I love it! I've been dying to make this sweater since I got the book, but I'd definitely be one of the people to turn the sweater around. I have a feeling that wouldn't look too good on my chest. I'm kinda jealous it works on your! I love how the back shows off your tattoo

Clumsy Knitter said...

I've always liked this pattern, and the sweater looks great on you--love the color! Your hair looks great too, btw. :)