I just ordered the yarn for this last week, and was looking for a knit-a-long, and here one is. I’ve heard a lot of things about errors in this pattern so I’m a little afraid to do it by myself!
The yarn I’ll be using is Knitpicks Essential in Grass. I hope it works, and I know it’s wool, but I do live in Seattle, so it’s chilly a lot anyways. The modifications I’m thinking of are shorter sleeves, not cap sleeves but like midway between shoulder and elbow.
Hopefully my yarn will arrive soon and I can join in! Although, I may have to buy new needles. If I remember correctly, I left my #3’s on my bed and sat on one and bent it.
Ok, I’m getting really frustrated with this pattern pretty quickly. Silly me just realized (2 rows too late) that as I decrease, I have to alter the pattern so that the clovers line up and don’t go crooked. So now I have to try and rip out two rows without splitting the yarn too badly. .
Well, I’m pretty much finished (I haven’t finished the left front completely yet but I have done the right and the left is the same but reversed) and I have not encountered any problems. What I have read of people having problems came from not doing the yarn overs properly. I do not believe there are any errors in the lace pattern, or the sweater pattern itself.
Doula, what worked for me at first when I was trying to ‘get to know’ the lace pattern was to chart it out on graph paper. So I knew where the decrease and increase rows were and could actually SEE how it was supposed to look in order to keep the lace pattern lined up from row to row. I really used my little chart A LOT during the back piece, less so on the front right piece and I have hardly looked at it on the left front piece except to remind myself which rows are decrease/increase. You really do get to know the pattern and it becomes second nature.
Let me know if you need any help - I want both of you to make this with me!!!
If you follow the lace pattern exactly you WILL get it to line up properly. The confusion begins when you have to figure out how to fit the decreases and increases into the lace pattern but you can do it!! I figured it out and so can you, and since I’ve done it already I’m here to help. I can help you with the reverse shaping too once you get there.
That’s a good idea, I’ll chart out the pattern with the increases and decreases so that I can get the to line up. I did fine when I did my gauge swatch, no mistakes in the lace, but now that I’m having to throw the decreases and increases in, I’m all confused :lol: .
I’ve learned my lesson, I’m going to use a lifeline now. I’m determined to finish this!!
Yarna rrived today, excitement. It’s 8 though, but I’ll see what kind of start I can get tonight and hopefully I’ll have photos soon. I think I will also chart my increases and decreases, because a chart will make more sense in my mind.
THANK YOU for the chart idea, it worked wonderfully and I’m now almost done with the decreases. :cheering: I’ll take pictures once I get a little further along. Don’t know how much knitting I’ll get done today, though, since 3 year old daughter is sick :crying: .
So glad it’s working out for you. The chart helped me so much too, I found it invaluable when learning the pattern. Forgive me if you’ve already mentioned it, but what yarn are you using??
In this issue of simply knitting in the US you get the free circs - in the next issue (the current UK issue) you get a free tote and there’s a pattern in there very VERY similar to this.
Its for a cardigan with a ribbon through it to tie with - hard to explain but you’ll see what I mean soon enough =P I loved the look of this in S&B but it scared the pants off me!
One thing I would suggest when you get to this point – for the front left and right pieces it says to leave 4 sts at the edge as 1x1 rib. In my opinion, this is not nearly enough to control the curling. Unless you are using a highly blockable yarn (which I’m not). I’ve experimented with it a lot and ended up having to do a few rows of crochet to control it enough on the right side that I finished, and on the left side which I’m working on now, I’ve done those 4 edge stitches in purl. So those 4 stitches kind of curl towards the right side of the garment and it actually makes a nice neat little edge. I figured it didn’t matter if the two weren’t identical since one will always be on the inside of the ‘wrap’. Just a heads up for those of you starting!!
The left front is neeeeeearly done, literally about 30 rows to go and the stitches are decreasing quickly over those 30 rows so a good 20-30 minutes of knitting should finish the LAST big piece. Then seaming it on and doing the neckline, and did I mention I’m having my wisdom teeth removed this afternoon. Eeeeeek! Lucky clover may have to wait a few days
Ow, good luck this afternoon! I can’t wait to see your finished wrap!
How was/is seaming, by the way? I’ve never done a sweater before, and although I have seamed other things and know how to do mattress stitch, I’m still nervous about seaming this together. Is it pretty easy?
I’ve recently become a convert to slipping the first stitch of each row and knitting the last stitch of each row a la these instructions and it makes for very easy seaming. The stitches are very easy to see and it goes quickly.
Other than that though, on this project in particular, I think that seaming would be fairly straight forward anyways. The pieces (front and back) are symmetrical so the seams line up perfectly and I always find a raglan sleeve waaaaay easier to seam in than a set-in sleeve.
Mattress stitch is wonderful (and easy) once you get the hang of it and it produces a very finished looking seam.
Well, my wisdom teeth are gone and I’m doing surprisingly well. Enough so that I was able to finish seaming my wrap this afternoon!
True to form, I’m not doing the neckline as the pattern tells me to :rollseyes: . If what I’m doing doesn’t work out I’ll go back and do it the right way, but I’m trying to pick up stitches rather than knit a bit long neckband and have to seam it. I’ll let you know how many stitches I picked up and how it turns out once I’m done.
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I figured it out and so can you, and since I’ve done it already I’m here to help. I can help you with the reverse shaping too once you get there.
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