Posted on 8 Comments

Finish line

16 knitting
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49/365: Feb 18 - Finally finished knitting this vest

Sometimes, when you’re in the middle of a long-term project, you just feel the need to cross a finish line. Any finish line. This was me last week. I love working on the blanket, but man, I’ve been doing the same thing since January! I needed a little break. Good thing I have a few bins with unfinished projects inside, eh?

So I fished one project out and took it with me to Boston last weekend.

I actually didn’t have a whole lot left to do on the Milady vest, but it was languishing because interpreting the pattern instructions was more trouble than it was worth. Seriously, this is the worst pattern I have ever tried to follow. There’s the written pattern, the stitch chart, and the “tips” section, all of which need to be referenced at the same time in order to decipher each step. I don’t function well under those conditions.

18 knitting 01

I eventually re-wrote nearly the whole pattern in a step-by-step manner that I could follow, and it became much easier.  I plan to update my Ravelry page with my rewrites, so if you are interested in making this vest someday and find the original pattern as baffling as I did, you won’t have to struggle with it.

The yoke was the hardest thing to figure out, but it was so worth it. Look at those beautiful cables! I really love cables.

18 knitting 02

Anyway, you may remember I used reclaimed yarn for this project – I took apart the first sweater I ever made (pictured on the left). I think this garment is much more likely to be used regularly. It’s more flattering (do you agree?) and it fits me better. I never did come to terms with the botched (mismatched) sleeve lengths on that first sweater, nor did I manage to figure out where to fasten it closed for the most attractive fit.

Once the original thrill of having knit my very own sweater wore off, I never wore the darn thing again!

18 buttons

The placement of my buttonholes on this new vest leaves something to be desired, but I probably won’t close the front up all that often anyway. I prefer it open. And speaking of buttons, I could not for the life of me find eight buttons that matched. I ended up using eight similar-but-different ones. No two are exactly alike.  I know I could have made my own, but I’ve been resisting setting up the clay table until after a family birthday party this weekend (a certain Boring Office Guy is on the verge of teenhood. Oh my.)

It’s 8pm on a Tuesday night as I write, and it will be a miracle if this post has made any sense. Usually my boys are great at doing their homework on their own, but tonight for some reason, there has been a lot of math and science talk floating around the room as I type, much of it requiring my attention. It’s very distracting, but I refuse to put off this post any longer – I’ve been trying to find a moment to write it for three days!

Ah well, slice of life stuff, eh? My evenings would be boring if I always got to do exactly what I wanted to do without interruption (or so I keep telling myself…)

Want more details about this pattern, the yarn I used, etc.? I’d write it down here, but my kids won’t stop talking to me (seriously, there hasn’t been more than 30 consecutive seconds of silence for the last hour), and I just can’t seem to string together one more coherent sentence. I appear to be done for the night.

So, those details? They’re all on Ravelry 🙂

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Posted on 8 Comments

8 thoughts on “Finish line

  1. That is GORGEOUS!!

    1. Thank you! I am currently trying to resist the temptation to wear it every day 🙂

  2. It turned out great! There is nothing worse than a poorly written pattern. I always fear people have a hard time with mine when I share them.

  3. This actually made me laugh. The idea of 30 seconds of silence not happening. Very funny. I love your new green sweater! You did an awesome job on it. I love those cables too!

  4. My first sweater turned out exactly the same and it’s sitting in my craft room waiting to be unravelled and turned into something useful, but so far i can’t bring myself to do it. Just imagining all the hours spent making it only to be undone…… But your lovely vest is inspiring and maybe someday soon my ugly sweater will turn into something lovely also 🙂

  5. That is a stunning creation! I really love it 🙂

  6. Bravo – what a transformation. I wondered if you needed more than the top buttons? Do you think you will do it up all the way down? I love the cables too. Well done.

  7. […] also made two different sleeve lengths. I wanted one that was longer so I could wear it with my Milady vest, and another that was shorter and would be good for the summer with shorts and beachy pants and […]

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