Posts from — November 2008

It took me about six weeks, but it was all just very relaxed and enjoyable knitting.  I had to use buttons from my stash, so ended up pawing through my great grandmother’s button box and found these football shaped buttons.  They are jade green colored on the back, but the fronts have been mellowed by the sun, and the only jade color left on them is in a little line detail they have carved in them.  I dont know what garment they were salvaged from, but my guess would be either a coat or the front of a dress because there were 10 or 12 of them in the button tin.

I went with 3/4 length sleeves.  I decreased about 10% before starting the garter stitch hems of the sleeves and the bottom of the cardigan.  Also, as EZ recommends, I slipped the first stitch of the rows to make a nice chained edge to the  fronts, and I used my favorite bind off – which I refer to as “Annie Modesitt’s bindoff” – although I’m sure she didnt invent it, I just saw her demo it once so in my mind it’s “hers.”  It’s the K2tog Bindoff found on this page.

The Knitpicks Andean Silk yarn “crocked” quite a bit, (turned my Denise needle tips blue!) so when I washed it for blocking, I added distilled (white) vinegar to the wash.  Hopefully any excess dye is now no longer a problem.  It did fade down from the deep blue-green jade color, but it’s still a very nice color.

This yarn is *very soft* with a beautiful drape though, and I would not hesitate to use it again in another project.  Just be aware that it does not necessarily “finish” to the same deep jewel color as originally contemplated.

I, personally, don’t like the “eyelets” that were included in this pattern, so I knit into the back of those yarn-over increases to eliminate the holes.  I also decreased about 10% before knitting the garter stitch cuffs and bottom hem so they aren’t so “belled”.  Just a personal preference though.  This sweater looks great just as written, gauging from the sampling of the 2,643 other Lady Sweater projects listed on Ravelry as of November 2, 2008.

I bought extra yarn because I thought I was going to run out.  I actually would have, only I just barely needed a yard or two of one extra ball of yarn.  Sooooo….since I have it here and I was overcome by that “end of a great project let-down” – I cast on for a hat with the same yarn.  That is currently drying.  Now what????  I may have to get the wheel out and spin for a while and contemplate my next project.