I probably would, except the yarn I’m using is cheap acrylic and bright bright rainbow. :lol:
But, that’s ok. As long as I can manage the pattern. 
Damn, now I have to order more yarn to wait for. I’m waiting for the stuff I got last week so I can start my stepmom’s b-day set. And then my dad’s. Ugh, I hate waiting for yarn orders. -_-
I’m glad to hear that! Just keep on working on it and I’m sure you’ll get into it.
While waiting for the yarn to appear at my door I think I’ll cast on for a baby blanket or something and do the Banana Tree pattern on it. Just to practise some more, but in a useful way.
Good luck! We’d love to see you in our KAL! 
Hi guys!
I just wanted to hop on here and let you know that once you get started on this pattern, it becomes sooooooooo addictive! I’ve gotten the back done and I just started the left front.
Be careful once you get to the armhole shaping on the back though. It gets kinda dicey, since you have to decrease into the pattern, but still work in pattern. Well, this was for the large size, anyway, I can’t speak for the other sizes, but I imagine the same is true.
I can see that the sweater will need some blocking to really bring out the banana tree pattern, but it’s really neat pattern.
Hope you guys are having fun with it!
I’ll be starting soon. Gotta finish a scarf and hat for my step mom first though. And there’s a few other little ones I’m supposed to be doing, but I really really wanna start this one.
Now that I know the yarn I want to use, I’m going to have a hard time not buying it. I’ll give my little projects another week I think. Then, it’s me time, baby. :happydance: :lol:
I’ve started the back. I love the yarn, Sierra in Cinnamon, and it has a really pretty finish to it. Here in Louisiana, this sweater will probably serve as a coat most of the winter. Hopefully it’s going to be finished by next winter!
Welcome MMK! Glad to have you here! Sierra is fun to work with, isn’t it? Here in Colorado Springs, I hope to wear the sweater this Spring, but of course we will be under a severe weather alert today and tomorrow. LOL Right at the beginning of Spring! We might get 12" of snow in the next 24 hours. The most I’ve seen since moving here in December is 6-8".
Ok, guys, here’s my weekly progress report…
I’ve gotten the back and left front done and blocking. Here are the pics. I’m really enjoying this sweater, even if the armhole and neckline shaping drives me crazy sometimes! I’ve totally had to scribble things all over the pattern and I’ve found that it’s actually much easier if you can sit down and do the whole “shaping” in one shot. I got to do that today with the left front and I had a much easier time than I did with the back.
I took the second picture to show how the banana leaf pattern looks. The stitches on mine aren’t too even because of cabling on the front and back, since my knit and purl stitches’ tension differs, but I’m still happy!
Not even!? That looks gorgeous!! :cheering:
Thanks Ingrid! In person, up close, you can see the tension is different on certain twisted stitches. I guess we are our own worst critic, huh?
I got a lot done today, since the weather here has been a little icky. Nothing like knitting when it’s cold, rainy and now snowy. 
Up close we can always spot the glitches. Nobody else can, though. 
Wow, that’s coming along great!
I’m trying to decide what color to do mine in. I sure like the look of the color they used in the pics on the site, it looks really vintage to me for some reason. But…I’m not a light color person. I’m much much too dirty.
I also want a color that I can wear with everything since that’s what I’m planning to do with it.
The duster I currently wear to work, that I’m planning on replacing with Starsky, is a nice mid-grey color. But, I don’t know if I want it in grey.
I love black, which goes with everything, but I dunno how the banana leaf pattern would show up.
Once I figure out which color I want, I’m gonna order me some yarn.
And I decided to go with Encore Chunky yarn instead of the suggested one. Working with it to make this scarf just makes me -really- wanna make something for myself in it. :drooling:
Here’s the Encore colors (gotta click on the color card link for chunky). I was thinking of using #403.
What do you guys think, colorwise? Any suggestions?
I like either #403 or #240 if you want something in grey tones. 
I don’t know how the banana tree pattern would show up on black, but I think this sweater would look really good in black! I chose a bright color because that’s what I currently like wearing. I wore neutrals for so long that now I love color. I loved the natural color that the pattern suggests, but like you said, FK, I’m much too dirty for it. I can see the cuffs being brown in less than a day… LOL I play with my dog way too much to stay clean for more than a few minutes.
I liked #240 too.
I wish I could find a swatch of the #403 so I could see what the color differences would be. I did a search online, but was unable to find anything.
Gee, maybe I’ll just buy a ball and do a test swatch myself. Sure couldn’t hurt to have more Encore. :lol:
Thanks for the input.
I’ve completed one ‘chunk’ of the pattern - so 12 rows after the ribbing…
It looks ok - apart from the fact that I think on a couple of stitches I held forward instead of back - But hey ho - it’s home made!!!
I have had to tink in a couple of places where I ‘knit’ 1 stitch less than I was meant to but it was ok in the end.
Also, to my complete surprise, I am finding reading off the chart easier than reading the text … now I did colour code the stitches (as Catownedanna suggested) so I still don’t get what the different lines mean although I have worked out that a slanting line from top left to bottom right means hold front and bottom left to top right means hold back :?? I think that is right 
but I still haven’t a clue how to distinguish the knit and purl within the cable sequence - so I have to check the instruction for that particular colour/stitch sequence.
Anyway, I am off to Prague for work this week, but I don’t think I will take this with me as it takes too much concentration, so I will do some more on this tonight and tomorrow night and then that will be it til Sat night 
YAY Starsky!!!
I’m doing mine in a beige colour and it is sooooo soft!
Wat to go!!! :cheering: I’m practicing the pattern on a baby blanket while waiting for my Sierra to arrive. Hoping for next week… I haven’t tried looking at tha chart as it only confuses me. I go with the text lines and my colour coded explanations. Maybe the chart will make more sense when I’ve done a couple of “chunks” of the pattern so I can see it sort of next to the chart… :??
I like 'em both. If you can’t decide on your own; flip a coin!
It looks gorgeous!!! 
I can’t believe your progress. I’m sooo envious as I want to get started on my own… Waiting for my yarn to arrive. 
So, the shaping of the armholes was difficult? Any specifics I should keep in mind when getting there?
So, I’m guessing the Sierra is worth waiting for then? I have ordered the Natural one. Was thinking about the Cinnamon as well but let my boyfriend make the final decision and he chose Natural.
I’m hoping my cardigan will be good for summer nights and for fall. With the weather I have here in the south of Sweden I might be “unlucky” enough to be able to wear Starsky all year around… I guess I shouldn’t hope for a 25-30 Degree-summer this year! 
Well, the problem is that you’ll be decreasing right into the pattern so you have to figure out what stitch you need to start the pattern with. I found it a bit difficult to figure out sometimes. The worst was when you’d have to start the pattern with the second half of a cable, but I worked through it. :happydance:
Ok - here’s what I’ve done so far:
As of this morning, here’s what I have done. I am working the armhole shaping of the back panel. I’ve got 21 inches done.
Jax, is that just plain black? (You never know with computer monitors)
it’s grey. Knitpicks Sierra in Mist.