Before I embarked on the NaKniSweMoDo KAL, I was hard pressed to finish a sweater in less than two months. The challenge I set for myself is to get about 8 or 9 knit-from-scratch sweaters done in 2009, and perhaps with the WIPs added in, which is permissible, I may get close to 12. And so it may seem to the untrained eye that I am hardly bettering my record, with my first sweater truly off the needles and modeled only last week. But although I am off schedule, it isn’t by that much.
On Friday night, I finished the back of the second sweater, Arbor Rose, and wet blocked it on Saturday.
The advantage to me of blocking now is that I now have a huge piece to use as a gauge swatch, and I can abandon my 4-in x 4-in square. This will help me plan the sleeves so I can align the sleeve pattern horizontally with the body pattern. The blocking was a bit tricky because this is really just ribbing, and it stretched all over. After momentary panic as the soggy mess sagged in my hands, I pushed it back into its desired size, which will allow the ribs to conform to the torso when worn. It dried into the expected shape.
While it was drying, I swatched for Sweater #3—a lovely name to be decided at a later date. I chose the Aurora 8 (for the purple sweater) and the Berroco Pure Merino (the maroon) for their stitch definition, and I selected a cable pattern stitch from Barbara Walker for the third sweater that needs to pop from the reverse stockinette background. I’ve always liked this cable, and it didn’t disappoint.
The tricky part will be figuring out how to put it into a sweater. Unlike the stitch pattern for Arbor Rose, this will require some coaxing to get body shaping. I will have to play with the spacing of the bottom vertical cables and come up with side panels to create the waist region. I also haven’t decided on the edging, although I have ruled out just plain ribbing. I will try a few rows of purl to make a curled edge before I finish the swatch and block it.
This was a rather enjoyable puzzle to work out on the first weekend in a while that I wasn’t inundated with chores and work. I had intended to spend it buying seeds for my vegetable garden, but I mostly caught up with laundry and bill paying, read newspapers, and stared into space, when I wasn’t thinking about Sweater #3.
It appears that nature is also a little off schedule. This is what it looks like from my front window. Not an inducement to think about planting. But definitely weather to consider bundling up in a warm sweater.
I haven't been finishing as many sweaters lately either. Between Habanero with its 6 stitches to the inch, and my dithering about Tang, I've really been slowing down (not to mention the afghan sampler that I've been working on.) Arbor Rose looks great so far.
Posted by: Robin | March 02, 2009 at 03:17 PM
Or as an alternative for sweater #3, you could knit it for me - I have no body shaping! Seriously, I am straight up and down with no waist. I have tried knitting things with waist shaping to give the illusion, but I'm not sure that has been all that successful. On the other hand, it seems to relieve me of agonizing about how to shape sweaters! I forgot my camera on my walk, but actually saw blooming crocus and daffodils about ready to bust. However, there might be some temporary snow later this week!
Posted by: Dorothy | March 02, 2009 at 08:25 PM
Yay for snow! That is going to be another great sweater!
Posted by: tiennie | March 03, 2009 at 04:44 PM