Posted on 16 Comments

September Project

Well, it seems I am capable of learning.

Last September, when I was working on my first Tea Leaves Cardigan, I was living and breathing that sweater. I knit in the morning between school drop-offs, I knit at the dentist’s office, I knit while waiting for an oil change, I knit in the school pickup line, and I knit at night in front of the TV. So desperate was I to finish before the Sweater Weather gave way to Heavy Coat Weather, that I sacrificed all of my leisure time to that cardigan.

And do you know what happened?

I finished it before the end of September. And I was so excited. And I had plenty of time to wear it. Like months of time. Like so much time that people started to notice how much I was wearing it. Like, “gee, that sweater looks familiar” amounts of time.

I needn’t have rushed. Because even if it gets cold right away in October (which it won’t), there’s still all winter and much of the spring, where a cardigan will be appreciated. So what if I need an overcoat? It’s not like I won’t take the coat off when I get where I am going.

So here it is, September again, and I’ve once again given in to the Tea Leaves Cardigan itch. Only this time, I’m obsessing slightly less. I do grab the knitting bag to take with me for school pickup, but it’s not the only way I am spending my free moments.

See? I am capable of learning 🙂

There’s one other thing I am doing differently this time: customization. That’s last year’s sweater on the left, and the in-progress sweater on the right.

Who would have thought, three years ago, when I was still hesitant about knitting with needles at all, that I would not only be doing it, but I’d be making my 6th sweater? And changing the pattern on the fly? Not me.

The jury is still out on whether this change will be a good thing, but I am hopeful. I’ll go into details when I have a finished sweater to show you, but essentially, I am replacing the garter stitch edges on the bottom and on the sleeves with a 2×2 rib. My goal is to make the sleeves less bell-like, so they don’t get in the way when I’m trying to cook, work with clay, or anything else that requires my hands. Wish me luck!

I have both sleeves and the button band left to do, and then I’m done.

No rush, though. I’ve got plenty of time to wear it 🙂

LET’S KEEP IN TOUCH!

Sign up for occasional Polka Dot Cottage news and get a coupon for 10% off your next order!

Don't worry, we won't bother you more than once or twice a month!

Posted on 16 Comments

16 thoughts on “September Project

  1. Wow! 6 sweaters in only 3 years? That’s impressive. I haven’t even completed one. This sweater is on my to-do list though. I look forward to seeing how your changes look on the finished sweater.

    1. Well, two of them were with bulky yarn and one was sleeveless, so they didn’t feel like as big of a deal as these Tea Leaves ones do. I have considered frogging three of my previous sweaters, in fact – they just aren’t that good, LOL!

  2. That’s great. A bunch of us are starting on a project where we make a sweater in 8 weeks. But a month is super impressive.

    1. Ooh, that sounds like fun! I should try a KAL sometime. I always am knitting alone.
      I suspect this sweater will take more than a month in the end, but I’m trying to not be impatient and to be ok with that!

  3. The first sweater was beautiful I can’t wait too see the second.you may even inspire me to take on a larger project.

    1. Thank you 🙂 It’s funny, until I tried it myself, I never thought I could have the patience for a long-term project. And now I’m looking ahead to making more sweaters even before I am finished with this one, LOL!

  4. I can still here the tap, tap, tap of my mother’s knitting needles…..

    Have a JOYful evening!!

    1. Thank you! My bamboo needles don’t tap much, but I’m switching to metal for the sleeves and then I’ll be tap-happy 🙂

  5. Maybe it’s my monitor or the light but your two sweaters look very similar in color. Are they? Just a favorite color? I think it’s awesome that you’re changing the pattern to suit you and those changes will be great! I like ribbing. Also, have you done two sleeves at once? I love doing that so I get the increases and decreases the same. It’s the only way I can make my sleeves identical! ;-(

    1. They are fairly similar. One is a heathered teal, and the other is a tweedy kelly green. I love the tweedy green, but I do kind of wish I had picked something a little more drastically different. Oh well! Next sweater 🙂
      I have done 2-at-a-time sleeves, and I agree it’s great for consistency and for avoiding Second Sleeve Syndrome, but I don’t like that I can’t try the sweater on as I go. I have a tendency to get impatient and quit knitting the sleeves before they are really long enough for me. If I don’t try it on first, I will end up with 3/4 sleeves, LOL!

  6. […] if to prove to you how much I am not a slave to finishing my sweater, I spent a great bit of my stitching time this weekend completely ignoring […]

  7. I’m impressed by your prolific sweater creation. Really, 6??? It’s not as if knitting is your only craft.

    Bravo!

    PS Green is my favorite color so I love your sweater choices.

    1. Well, when you think about it, that’s two per year: one in the fall, and one in the winter after Christmas. And the first few weren’t very good, LOL!

  8. […] The home stretch. Yep, I finished knitting the sweater at 11pm on Sunday night. I still have ends to weave in, and buttons to make, but if I can do that […]

  9. […] I may have been able to pace myself, sweater-knitting-wise, for most of the project, but once that first sleeve was completed and the end was in sight, I was on a mission to finish. […]

  10. […] is weird. I should be happy to be needle-free.  To be rid of the sweater-knitting monkey on my back (and just be wearing the actual sweater on my back) but I still am in the mood for more. […]

Leave a comment!

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.