Ta da! It’s finished. Nice and quickly, too, relatively-speaking. That’s what you get when you choose a pattern that uses bulky yarn and fat needles, and that’s precisely why I chose it!
I’ve now made three sweaters in five months, and I must say, at this moment I feel very much OVER knitting in general and sweater-knitting in particular. So much so. I am turning all of my evening-tv-time energy towards crochet now. Eamonn is getting his promised granny square blanket – I’m four squares in. 140 or so to go.
But back to this sweater…
Despite my frequent whining on Twitter, I found the knitting of this sweater to be relatively easy. I had difficulty with the lace pattern, but I that can be chalked up to two things:
- I had never done lace before. Ever.
- I was paying more attention to the TV than I was to the pattern in front of me.
So, really my own fault. I ripped out and re-knit that diamond lace section more times than I care to count, but once it was over, the rest of the sweater was pretty simple. And I have to say that I did really appreciate the lace pattern being there. I get bored easily, and the lace challenge was enough to keep me interested.
If I could change anything about the way I knit this, it would be the sleeves. They are so crazy wide, I think it really adds more bulk to my frame than it should. I’d rip them out and reknit them, if there were an easy way, but given the raglan construction, I might as well start over, if I did that. I’ll just live with them as-is, thankyouverymuch.
If I ever do make another one of these, I will knit eight fewer yoke rows (four fewer garter ridges). That will make the sleeves a welcome two inches narrower, or so. I can then just knit four extra stockinette rows above the diamonds, and four more below to make up the length. Eight extra knit rows in the sleeves, too. I’d probably have to fiddle with the number of stitches in the back, left front and right front, so the width of the sweater wasn’t affected.
[You know, the idea of trying again with this is actually sounding appealing. Somebody please kick me in the head.]
Aside from the poofy sleeves, I am really happy with the way this turned out. I thought it was knitting up too long in the torso, but it’s just perfect. The sleeves, too, are a good length.
The button, I am not entirely sure about. It wasn’t part of the pattern, but I wanted the ability to close the sweater in the front. I am wondering if I’d like it more, if I chose a smaller button. Or maybe one that blended in with the color of the sweater better. Or, maybe it should be in a different position. Perhaps there should be more of them? A zipper maybe? What do you think?
The details
Pattern: Common Ground by Elizabeth Smith
Size: Large
Modifications: Added a button and a crochet chain loop
Yarn: Valley Yarns Northampton Bulky in Old Barn Red
I love it! It looks great.
Thanks, Jill! It’s really warm 🙂
I think if you had 3 buttons on the top part instead of just the one, it would pull the top in a bit and fit better..
Also, just roll the cuffs up on the bottom of the sleeves, and that will take care of the sleeve length problem.
I was just going to say three buttons might be better! All in all the sweater is lovely. And I really admire the button, is it fabric covered?
Thank you! No, the button is one that I made from polymer clay. That’s kind of my “thing” 😉 There are more examples here if you want to see!
Good idea. I’ll have to pin it closed on top and see if I like the 3 button look.
The sleeves, actually, are a good length, so I don’t want to roll up cuffs. They’re pretty poofy at the shoulders – too many stitches up there – and they remain wider than necessary all the way down to the wrist. I don’t really think there is a good way to fix that, unfortunately.
Beautiful job on the sweater! I would go with a zipper closure because then I could grab, zip and go. But that’s just me. Great job on seaming.
I agree. I’m especially fond of the double-sided zippers, so you can open it up a bit at the bottom. I just ordered one online, and hopefully I can install it without making a mess!
I love the sweater. I used the same yarn and color to knit a sweater for my sister – with one polymer clay button made to match. I love the button you chose and the size is great. Three buttons would be good too but I like the single button. The pattern said that it was top down so it should not be too big of a deal to reknit the sleeves making them narrower. I think it would make you happier in the long run and you would wear it more. I love the hoody, the garter stitch yoke and the diamonds. The fit looks perfect except for the too baggy sleeves.
Good luck.
The problem with re-knitting the sleeves is that they start to get too big way at the top, so I would have to re-knit a good portion of the yoke, and to do that, I’d have to re-do the entire body. It’s just not worth it.
Love the sweater. Love the color a lot. I followed your
link to the Ravelry page. I like it without a button as well. But your buttons are so beautiful, I’d definitely put one on it. I thought your proportions looked better than the grey one on Ravelry. On that one the hood was a little overwhelming for the shorter length. It looks like a great sweater and one I would wear all winter.
You did a beautiful job on it.
Thank you! I ended up taking off the button. I found it too conspicuous. I’m going to put in a zipper, and save the button for something else someday 🙂
I think the grey one looks like the wool is less bulky, but that may just be because her sleeves are not as poofy as mine have turned out to be!
Great job! A wonderful sweater, maybe I’ll make one for myself…
Love the way your holding the remote for the camera!
Heh. Thanks. I considered using the remote’s timer function so I had time to hide it before the picture snapped, but then I decided it was kind of fun (not to mention easier) to just leave it there 🙂
Wonderful sweater! I love it. I enjoy knitting but I’m not good at buttonholes. This would be a great sweater for me.
I really like this sweater and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with the sleeves at all – they seem very balanced with the shape of the sweater. The only thing I can see as being a problem with the sleeves is they seem to be too long but I actually like that in my sweaters. I love the button you chose for the closure – the background is a great, complimentary contrast to the color of the sweater but the flowers in the button match the sweater almost exactly. It looks perfect to me. Make me one LOL
I don’t know why it’s linking to my etsy shop – sorry, Lisa.
P.S. If you really want to stop it, though, there should be some “commentluv” options below the comment box.
It may be that I didn’t photograph it at the right angle to really show off what I dislike about the sleeves. There is a lot of extra fabric there.
Still, since posting this, I’ve worn it a LOT. We had such a mild winter, that I used it as my jacket most days. I did replace the button with a zipper, though, since I wanted it to close properly.
Oh, and I don’t mind at all that your comments are linking to your Etsy shop – please feel free!
[…] this, the last thing I knit was my big red sweater, which totally ruined my enthusiasm for the craft. Burnout. That was six months ago and I had no […]