This might be waaaay too ambitious - or, what next?

Pattern Central
1

I am lusting over this sweater, and was wondering if conventional wisdom says that this is something that is too advanced for me. I can knit, purl, increase, decrease, and read a pattern, so it shouldn’t be TOO hard, right?

Knitty’s description calls it “tangy” and for those who are “tired of squares” which sounds about right, even though I haven’t done too much yet. I was getting tired of a scarf by the time I finished, and this blanket - I am forcing myself to the halfway point so hopefully the momentum will carry me through the slow part of the second half.

To add to the fun, I am oh-so-tempted to mess with the pattern. I’m, erm, ridiculously big-busted for my frame (120 lbs, 34D) and something like this - if it fits my bust it looks like I’m concealing a pregnancy. I’d like to make it in size small until the increasing rows, and then add in an extra 13 stitches (why 13? not sure) over the 20 rows of increasing to make the bust a medium. I know it’s probably better to just make it a darn size medium, but what if it hangs funny? Frog it?

Am I way off the mark here? I think a big part of why I’m bored, bored, bored with garter stitch and bulky rib knit is because it’s the SAME. I think a pretty little easy pattern that is almost constantly changing might just be what the doctor ordered. Has anybody else jumped in with both feet and not had it go horribly wrong?

I’m in a warm part of the country, so scarves and shawls are out, socks and DPNs freak me out, I have a hate for knitted hats, and I don’t know any babies to knit for. Argh, the frustration.

2

Go for it! I would suggest you make a swatch with the lace pattern to practice it. But I think with the skills you have, you could make this sweater. And you never know until you try.

About the alterations you are thinking about–here are a couple of articles you might want to read from Knitty:

But will it fit?

Short rows (This article talks about using short rows for bust shaping–and if you can do all the stuff you mentioned, you can do short rows. They aren’t hard, just somewhat counter-intuitive at first because it doesn’t seem right to turn your knitting before the end of the row!)

3

13 sts is the stitch count repeat I think, or it may be 9 plus 2. 13 may be the stitch number difference between size small and med. That would probably work better than the short row trick will be okay on this sweater because of the lacey stitch pattern.

4

Thank you!

I pulled out my husband’s tape measure (he’s the one who does more sewing - except he sews military gear by hand with dental floss) and I’m 33 in at the ribcage under the bust, and 36 over my regular bra. So I’m thinking, if I can put in short-rows in the stockinette… Hmm. The designer of that top is the model, and there’s NO way she needs the kind of allowance I do.

I’m fairly certain I have a comparable yarn to the one indicated - they’re both mercerized 100% cotton; the Lang Golf is supposedly 5-ply and the Omega Sinfonia I picked up is 6-ply - but still sport weight. Once I finish my swatch, I’ll know the gauge better, but it looks promising. It’s stretchy horizontally, but not vertically.

I tend to wear my sweaters fairly form-fitting, with lots of V-necks and scoopnecks, so I think if I experiment, (chart out beforehand) I can wear a size small - the smallest point is 200 stitches in the round, which, hmmm…

Those articles were great, and have given me a lot to think about.

edited to add:

The bust portion is all stockinette - the lace is below the smallest point - almost an empire waist. If I weren’t a full two inches bigger than the chest size on a small, with close to even at the waist, I wouldn’t think about modifying it.

5

I know your feelings about being bored with the same old squares, I’m using old tension squares to form a quilt, which I’ll whip stictch together. I’m working on a very pretty hat that I’m soo lost and stuck on, and currently working on a bib (another square with a longer square attacted) for my son. I have a sweater I’m also working on but I’m so sick of stockinette stitch, I too can purl but how does one make this think called a cable knit sweater, I always see how people gets the beautiful works of art done in no time is it werid it takes me months to finish a scarf?

6

I am literally forcing myself to finish the last 5-10 increase rows in this BB - that’s another 600-1300 stitches - tonight. Then I can start decreasing. But 600 stitches, that’s 32 rows at the beginning/end so the end will go fast.

I don’t think it’s weird for you to take months to get something done - there’s no motivation to pick it up when it’s boring unless you’ve got a time crunch. The only way I got a 2x2 rib scarf done before Xmas was because I hadn’t gotten my MIL anything and we were staying with her for the holidays, and she had said she wanted one.

Cabling - ohh, that scares me - extra needles, and moving stitches. Almost as much as socks (DPNs! More than 2 needles! so teensy!) and colorwork (carrying along and changing colors! Argh!)

If you look at that lace, it’s simple - k1, YO, k2, skp, k2tog, k2, YO, k1, and a bunch of purling alternate rows - but it’s pretty, and you’re working decreases on some of the purl rows. Then you don’t do much straight stockinette before you start increasing and start shaping, so you have to pay attention.

Of course, I’m in for more swatching - my swatch came out at 23 stitches/4 inches, not 26 st/4 in - I have to drop a needle size and maybe tighten up my knitting. I got enough yardage (almost) for a L at that gauge, so I’m not worried about running out of yarn. Of course, that makes me want to stick with knitting a S pattern - 23 st/4 in would make 200 st = 34ish inches at the smallest point rather than the 30 1/2 it’s supposed to. Argh. No, I’m going to do this right, and if that means moving down 2 needle sizes, I’ll do it, as long as the fabric doesn’t come off the needles too stiff.

Can anyone else tell that I’m an OCD math geek? Compulsive overplanning combined with precision as long as I can be lazy about it.

7

So glad to hear its normal to have to push yourself to finish something right now I’ve found a fairly simple bib/washcloth that hangs pattern that I’m working on my hands hurt (doing fairly tight gage) and I’m bored as its so cold outside here, good winter hobbie though right :wink: lol. I’d make a sweater for my son but I’m so afraid by the time I get it done he’ll have out grown it. The hat I’m working on has me at my wits end so back into my craft box it goes. lol, I’d love to have this bib done before bed tonight but I don’t see that happening lol maybe I’ll have it done tomorrow and that will motivate me to another. I have DPN’s in the bottom of my craft bin they scare me too and I’m fairly lost on how to use them though I was given a link that helped show me how to use them, I also have a circular needle no clue how that one works at all. lol Good luck on your sweater it looks very cool.
oh yeah heres the pattern for that bib, the pattern says it works as a washcloth too, my thought was it would be a good thing to travel with as you can hang it from a shower head so its always useful.

http://www.bevscountrycottage.com/bevs-washcloth-bib.html

I’ve tweeked it abit I’m using size 8 needles and I cast on 33 stictches though I’ve lost a stict fairly early on and NOT going back to fix it lol.

8

Nothing wrong with planning–it (usually) helps save you reworking in the long run! I always end up with pages of notes when I make a sweater. :slight_smile:

I would definitely wash and block your swatch in whatever way you’ll take care of the finished sweater. It may change your gauge somewhat and/or the way the fabric drapes.

9

I know I should wash my swatch - but I read that cotton gets weak when wet and doesn’t have much memory - which says to me that it shouldn’t draw up very much. But then I remember cotton items shrinking like mad.

I’m more worried that this would stretch out horribly width-wise but not lengthwise, leaving a strange shape. Since the gauge isn’t as tight as called for and is very stretchy in that direction, it seems likely.

Haaaate doing things the right way, but it’s less painful than frogging the entire thing. sigh Guess it’ll be another week until I co this one for real, between work and getting this darn BB finished.

10

Well I’d wash it in whatever way you would plan on taking care of the sweater. I have been surprised about how my swatches change sometimes when I wash and block them–I think (I could be wrong–but it seems to be my experience) that the way the fiber is spun can also affect how it blocks.

yeah, all that prep work is a hassle, and I know that some people can just cast on without even swatching and make it work, but for me, I have learned the hard way that I like my end products better when I do that prep work, tedious as it may seem. :slight_smile:

I hope you do decide to make the sweater. You should definitely post progress pics as you go!

11

Depends on the cotton, some say it stretches. I made a top from sugar and cream and it stretches a little when I where it, but goes back to the knit size when I wash a dry it. I do a regular wash and put in the dryer for 10-15 minutes so it’s still quite damp and lay flat to finish drying.

12

If I had worked with the specific yarn extensively, or if I had years and years of experience, maybe I’d just jump right in. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned in the military, it’s that you can do hard things right the first time if you slow down and do all of the boring prepwork.

For example - rifle shooting. M16s and M4s are fun and easy to shoot, but nobody is going to go out on a range and start shooting well the first time they pick one up. First you learn what a sight picture is, and you learn about breath control and trigger squeeze, and practice dry firing with a dime balanced on the barrel while lying on the ground squinting at a target. I can put six bullets in a hole the size of a nickle from 25 yds, but I spent a long time practicing before I even got live ammunition.

Hah, pictures! I’m not even sure where my camera is. I have the yarn; I’m quite pleased with the look of it, almost slick in a shimmery navy blue. Also, unless I get my tail in gear, I’m going to be away from the computer for most of the knitting process. That’s not to say I won’t be doing the finishing once I get back home, but I’m going to drop out of sight for a few months.