and some more cables
pattern: baby cables and big ones too
yarn: lang soft shetland, charcoal (05), 10 balls
needles: 3.75mm, 24" and 16" circs
date started: 09.21.08
date finished: 11.13.08
finally, a sweater with no finishing! all I had to do was weave in the ends and block it and it was ready to go. it feels like I've had a streak of good luck with all these sweaters, the patterns have been straight forward and easy to follow.
my gauge was a little off, so I just knit a size smaller knowing it would come out in my size. I think I ended up with an inch of ease, or a little less, on this one.
I only hit one snag and it might have been because of my row gauge - I'll admit I've been too lazy to check while knitting. if I would have finished the cable, the sleeves would have been way too long on me. I couldn't finish the cable on the first sleeve, so I tried to start the cabling earlier on the stockinette portion of the second sleeve. I almost made it, but not quite. it'll just have to be part of the 'design' of the sweater, no one other than knitters would know anyway right?
I originally bought the soft shetland for the ram's horn jacket from knitting nature. once the yarn came though, I decided that the fabric was too thin and un-jacket like for the ram's horn and I wanted to knit this sweater pretty badly. it's sold as a worsted or heavy worsted yarn, but I don't feel like I lost any drape by going down to a much smaller needle size.
this yarn definitely gives the sweater a more rustic feel than the original one. it's tweedy-ish and soft, but not buttery merino soft. a warmer sort of softness, if that makes sense. since it doesn't have the plumpness of a merino yarn, the cables almost fade into the stockinette sections. a feature I was first worried about, but have since grown to love.
the only real question I have on this sweater, what to wear underneath? it's been tough finding shirts that work with this neckline. so far tanks seem the way to go.
Comments
gorgeous! i'm jealous, i need one of these too. you are a sweater making machine!
Posted by: melissa | November 28, 2008 1:02 PM
Mhm... Each version that I see of this sweater makes me want to knit one ever more.
Posted by: Siga | November 28, 2008 3:04 PM
Ohhh yours turned out so well. It is such a great sweater.
Posted by: kittykitty | November 28, 2008 3:49 PM
very nice! wow you are on an FO streak here :)
Posted by: gleek | November 28, 2008 8:59 PM
ooh the cables are so cute! lol, looks like you're on a sweater spree!
Posted by: yuvee | November 29, 2008 2:22 PM
Woman....you are a knitting maniac. I love all these finished pieces. I think this one would look really great with a white button down shirt with the collar popped, dark jeans and flat loafers. I like the idea of a contrasting tank, try one with thinner straps to make the look a bit more elegant. Another idea is to find a thin cotton cowl neck sweater - with a really slouchy neck - and layer it underneath. I would look for one several shades deeper than the sweater. That way, you can stay warm and still show off the beautiful neckline!
Posted by: Trish | November 30, 2008 9:37 AM
Way to go with all that finishing! You are going to be so cozy.
Posted by: Cassy | December 1, 2008 12:18 PM
Ooh! Aah! Lovely :)
Posted by: Veronique | December 1, 2008 1:06 PM
This sweater looks great in gray! must add to knitting list..
I have a (store-bought) sweater with this sort of wide neckline, and its hard to find a layer for underneath! I think I wore it with a scoop-neck tee of the same color. I like the idea of wearing a collared shirt underneath.
Posted by: Diaa | December 1, 2008 1:40 PM
You're on a roll! This is so lovely. I especially love the sleeves!
Posted by: Nonnahs | December 1, 2008 8:45 PM
I really like this on you! I want one now too.
Posted by: tiennie | December 2, 2008 1:17 AM
I love it!
Posted by: Rebecca | December 2, 2008 7:18 PM
i haven't seen this before and it looks great! love the subtle neckline cables. hope all is well.
Posted by: carrie m | December 6, 2008 10:14 AM
This is beautiful Yahaira! And yes, hitting both stitch and row gauge can be really hard.
I love the ram horn's jacket. I hope you'll do that too at some point if you find appropriate yarn for it. It's on my to-do list one day too!
Posted by: connie | December 21, 2008 11:55 AM
Dude, where did you go? I am jonesing for some more bloggage... right now, please.
Posted by: Sarah M. | January 5, 2009 10:36 AM
Where is Yahaira? Also, I prepaid for Pure Knits so I hope it is published soon.
Posted by: dawn s | January 30, 2009 8:27 PM