The upper left is the original.  Putting them in thumbnails was helpful because I got to absorb the whole garment and seeing them all together helped me compare the different options.  I’m leaning toward one of the reds or the purple/yellow one in the lower right (but with a  slightly stronger yellow).  What do you think?

A couple other things:

• I plan to use Lite Lopi instead of the original Unspun Icelandic, mostly because it’s not a cheap option here in the States and I’m still a stranded neophyte.

lite lopi (l) and unspun icelandic (r)

• I like the white T shirt under it but I think I’d like a color if I go with something other than white for the stranded bits.  It’ll also be a nod to Cirilia and her love of color.
• The yarn will be somewhere scratchy so I’ll need to find a T shirt with a close-fitting crew neck.  I briefly considered knitting a lining for the top of the sweater but I don’t want to add more bulk up there.
• I might want to knit a slit (my first steek!) at the top of the neck – I prefer that line on me than a tighter crew neck.  It will also naturally lay open given the hood.

What do you think?  What would be a good option for me?  Do you have another color combo in mind?

And if you didn’t leave a comment, don’t forget to enter for the giveaway for your own copy of Cirilia’s book – I’m picking the winner this weekend.

I’ll catch you on the purl side…

I’m sure I got some eye rolling and scowls with that last sentence. You say “it’s just a hobby”. But here’s the thing. I like to have something to show for my time. And I think most of you do too. Right? How much fun is it to parade around town in that soon-to-be cardigan shrug? And those pullover bustiers are all the rage.

Some times, I want to walk around Rhinebeck with my new sweater. Complete, finished and awesome.

But with 2.5 weeks to go I have a lot left to do. Almost too much.

Here’s my plan…

• this weekend – finish knitting cabled part of body
• Thursday – finish ribbing on bottom
• next Sunday – finish sleeves
• Monday – wash and block

I realized when I put this schedule together that It’s crazy aggressive. If I don’t hit this weekend’s schedule there’s almost no chance of getting Raspberry Tart done in time.

Mega sad face

Hoping and wishing won’t make it so. A plan makes it a possibility.  Unless I change my mind about that pullover bustier.

Going to Rhinebeck? How’re your projects going?  A girl needs some good ol peer pressure.

I’ll catch you on the purl side.

I’m sure you’re getting close to having heard enough about this design – I’m losing steam too.  I got up yesterday morning and decided I couldn’t bear to work on RT.  You know how the rest of this goes right?

Ravelry browsing.  Here’s how it went down.

Ooh I can fave more things for Rhinebeck shopping!  I forgot about Deep End – it’s a great excuse to shop for mini skeins of sock yarn.   I wonder if Miss Babs will bring any her kits of mini skeins – polydactyl or gradient.  Gradients are fun – I wonder what designs use them.  Traliccio is new to me.  Spectral too.

An hour later and a bunch more designs to shop for at Rhinebeck – and not a stitch more knitted.  Thinking about knitting and looking at others’ knitting was sadly doing nothing to help get my sweater done for Rhinebeck.

So I took RT out of the bag and started knitting.  I made a deal with myself – 10 rounds this weekend  And a couple hours later I hit that magic number.

Here’s the back…

and the front…

and a close up of those cables…

Contrary to what it looks like on the mannequin, I’m about halfway through the bust area.  I think I have 2 more full repeats of cables and then the bottom ribbing.  I tried it on again yesterday and it still fits great!

If I finish this one in time this will be the third sweater I’ll have finished for Rhinebeck in 9 years of attending.  There’s something about that festival that motivates me to get things done.

I’ll catch you on the purl side.

an idiosyncratic belief or impression that is firmly maintained despite being contradicted by what is generally accepted as reality or rational argument, typically a symptom of mental disorder.

Idiosyncratic belief – check. Rational argument – yep. Mental disorder? Clearly the writers never met a knitter.

Ahem.

We’re just under 5 weeks away from Rhinebeck. 4 more weekends to knit. I’m in my second skein for Raspberry Tart (3.5 skeins to go).

I love top down knitting but this one has me questioning the fit. The deeper neckline means the armhole depth is super shallow. I’ve measured and remeasured but I’m still not sure. This is the fun part where I just have to knit some more so I can try it on to verify.

It’ll kill me if I knit all these cables for nothing.

Speaking of, I did have to fix a cabling mistake last weekend.

Before – you can see the mistake right?

So I laddered down 15 sts for 8 rows and fixed it. I briefly considered working away in blind disregard. It was on the back after all.

But that would have been true insanity. Who can walk around with a miscrossed cable on her back at Rhinebeck?

So now she’s all fixed.

I’m hoping this little transgression is a good sign. I had to do something similar for St. Brigid and I made it just in time (can you say 2 am hood knitting?).

The yarn is perfect for this sweater. Soft, saturated and superwash. And since I bought this at last year’s Rhinebeck I’d love to wear it to the Shelridge booth.

And ok, buy another sweater’s worth.

Totally logical right?  I knew I could count on you knitters.

I’ll catch you on the purl side.

I suspect it has something to do with the weather.  Our weather has been closer to San Francisco than anywhere in the Northeast. It already feels like fall. I find myself dreaming about apple crisp, cranberry bread and Halloween.

So my crazy obsession got me thinking about the garments that I have in progress. I have a few…

Elisbeth – perfect color and I think I’ll get a lot of wear out of it.

3 in 1 – fun color combo and a great casual option that feels a bit “more”

Overlynd – love the color and worsted weight pullover will see a lot of wear

Elfe – I like the colors but I’m going to frog it; I’ve just lost the love.

Hitofude – I treated myself to 3 skeins of Dream in Color Jilly the other day – in the Victoria colorway. I couldn’t resist this pattern any more.

And then a couple I’m thinking about…

Crazy Stripes Tee – using the Elfe yarn and probably at least one other.  I like the pop of a different color in there and doesn’t it look crazy fun to knit?

Downeast – I bought the yarn for this over Christmas last year. I know it’d be a weekend staple for me and at that gauge it’ll go quickly too.

And then I need to remember that rhinebeck is only two months away. Two months people. Wow. So I really should hold off on starting more garments until I get up there because there’s never a shortage of inspiration.

Yeah like that’ll happen.

Are you already focusing on fall knitting?  What are you working on?  Let me live vicariously through you for a bit.

I’ll catch you on the purl side.

I wrote last week that I started another project.  Truthfully, I wasn’t at all convinced that this one was going to stick.  I’m not even sure now.

All week I looked at my tiny Elfe WIP and said “eh”.  I didn’t touch it all week.

But then yesterday came and the gorgeous weather just begged for me to sit on the patio and knit.  The beautiful weather and great natural lighting were the perfect storm I needed.

I worked on Elfe a bit.

I have a couple stripes now and I like the color combo.  The surprise though is the shading in Victorian Village – I absolutely *love* it!  Look at those gorgeous subtle variations.  I felt the same way about the yarn for Sugar Maple and it became the first garment I finished in 2?  3?  years.

The other part that’s been fun is working on my first contiguous sleeve.  I’m at that awkward-to-photograph stage so it’s hard to tell but I’ve completed the shoulders and the setup rounds for the sleeve caps.  It’s too small to try on yet but it looks sleeve-ish so I’ll keep going.

I’m not ready to declare that this is *the* project to get me knitting but I am enjoying it.  Baby steps.

And in case you need a distraction, the Spring 2014 Twist Collective went up last night.  One of the best warm weather knitting issues I’ve seen in a long time.

I’ll catch you on the purl side…

Today’s latest is Elfe by Astrid Schramm.  It’s a simple, top-down top made with the contiguous method.  I’m excited to try it in a simple design.

My plan is to use TML in Black Currant and Neighborhood Fiber Company Rustic Fingering in Victorian Village.  I did a little photoshopping to see what I thought of the colors.  I think they work and will work will my wardrobe too.

I plan to make in between the S (36″) and the M (40″).  Reading through the pattern it looks pretty simple to adjust.  I know – famous last words.  But it’s a new day, there’s no snow in the forecast and I get to play with 2 of my favorite yarns.

I’ll catch you on the purl side…

The color, those cables…

that collar…

and those raglan lines

all make for a “can’t put it down” project.

I tried it on last night and LOVE the collar.  I think I’m more excited about the collar right now than the cable.  It does need some blocking so it doesn’t curl but I kinda like it like this right now because I get to see more of the back’s cable this way.

It’s surprisingly efficient with yarn usage too – I got almost the whole yoke out of just one 215 yard skein.

I’m ready to start the body now and you know what that means – quicker progress.  Of course, I will still have to go back and do the sleeves when the body is done, but they go quickly, right?

Feel free to lie to me.

I’ll catch you on the purl side.

I love that cable and the fold over cowl/collar is such a great feature.

I shopped my stash but didn’t have anything that worked, so I headed to my LYS on Thursday and got Berroco Vintage in Aster.

The color is a bit of a departure for me and I’m loving knitting with it.  Plus, the lighter shade means I can knit it even at the pub or while watching TV with dimmed lights.

I’m just about done with the knitted flat part and am ready to join in the round.  I have made one mod – I’m working the sides of the cables in the back in stockinette instead of reverse.  I did this because:

• I don’t love the look of purls in a solid shade.  In subtle handdyeds it’s gorgeous but it looks a little meh to me in a solid.
• I’m lazy and I knit faster than I purl.

I’ve never hidden that I don’t like make 1’s and prefer kfb or lifted increases but given the decorative look of the raglans I wanted to try the M1’s.  I’m so glad I did – I love the way they’re working up.  The raglan is so pretty and the other increases would have had a different look.

Fun color, gorgeous cables and top down knitting.  This may have just gotten my mojo back.

I’ll catch you on the purl side.

I frogged Sprig and started Ease in the Mad Tosh Merino DK instead.  I love Sprig but I finally admitted the loosely spun single was not a great match.

I’m a bit concerned about the neckline size but I need to knit more to be able to assess.  I keep telling myself that I can always address it by knitting the cowl neck a bit tighter.  I do think it’ll be cushy and warm.

I also started the Brimson wrap in Brooks Farm Mas Acero.  I’ve done the edging and started the cables but I’ve admitted the yarn is just not the right match for the pattern.  The varying shades in the yarn and the lack of stretch in the silk and rayon aren’t doing this pattern justice, plus I had to fight to make the cables.  Oh and it was curling like crazy.  There’s gotta be a better yarn choice for this beautiful wrap.

I’m also trucking along on several pairs of socks, and (of course) daydreaming about starting a bunch of new ones.

And yes, it’s Sunday morning and I have no idea which WIP I’m going to work on today.  Do you ever have days like that?

I’ll catch you on the purl side.