Pullover #2: Aunt Fred

 

Yes, it's true. It's the TENTH month of the Year of the Pullover, and I've finally finished another pullover!

Pattern: Aunt Fred, by Pamela Wynne, from The Rhinebeck Sweater

Yarn: Quince and Co. Chickadee; Cypress (6 skeins) and Leek (4 skeins)

Needles: US 5 and 7 (2 sizes up from pattern suggestion)

Ravelry

 

This is the first sweater I've knit from The Rhinebeck Sweater, though I ultimately expect to knit almost all of them. I actually bought the book for Pumpkin Ale, which is still my dream sweater, but it doesn't fit into Year of the Pullover, so it will wait until next year.

I finished most of this sweater in July, but wasn't happy with the collar, so I ripped it out and redid it.
I'm still not happy. The instructions for the short rows are a bit vague, and I'm not sure I've done it correctly. The edge seems tight. The seam at the base of the collar looks rather messy too, but I made a good faith effort to do it neatly, and don't see any way to improve it.

I originally purchased 5 skeins of the main color, and as I got close to the end, panicked and ordered a sixth. When I started the collar, instead of using the rest of the fifth skein, I started right away with the sixth so I wouldn't potentially run out in the middle. So whether I actually needed a sixth skein is unknown, but I was happy to have it.

This sweater was my first adventure in steeking, which you can read about here. I'm happy to report no unraveling or other steek-related issues!

Overall, I'm happy with the sweater, but still need to lose some baby weight before I can actually wear it.

So, where does that leave me for Year of the Pullover? I'm still working to finish up my I Heart Aran, and have started Artichoke French, another great sweater from The Rhinebeck Sweater. Can I squeeze 2 more pullovers into 2014? Wish me luck!