If at first you don't succeed...

Well, I frogged the sweater and started all over again using a pattern from Knitter's Magazine 2008 called Career Check. You can see the pattern here: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/career-check

I'm using the same blue yarn from the sweater I frogged and here's what the pattern looks like so far:

I've actually completed about 11" of the back. This sweater is worked from the bottom up with the back, two fronts and sleeves each knitted separately, then sewn together. I knit most sweaters top down and seamless. I know many people avoid seams like the plague but I don't really mind sewing seams. Hopefully this sweater will fit me when it's finished. :)

Frogging - again!

Well, after starting my sweater, frogging it and starting again - 5 TIMES, I worked it, starting at the neck, down to about 5" below the underarm. I tried it on and decided that I'd been knitting along in denial for a week because the darned thing is way too big for me!!! Now, I'm no tiny little person, but this thing could fit Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum together! sigh

So, yup, I frogged the whole thing - all 3 1/2 skeins of yarn, but at least I wound it all into cakes as I frogged it. I think a big part of the problem was that the pattern was rather stretchy and I could never decide which gauge was accurate.

Now I need to do some searching through my stitch dictionary books and come up with a new design and start again. Wish me luck. :) 

Frogging!

I started my sweater using size 8 US needles and worked a few inches, but I now can tell it will be too big so it needs to be frogged. I've figured out the correct (I hope) numbers and now will use size 7 US needles. I'll do a 2x2 cable on each raglan "seam", a two 2x2 cables leaning toward each other with a twisted knit stitch between them (pattern is called staircase cables) beside each front band and do a garter stitch rib between stockinette stitch for all the rest. We'll see how this works out. Now I need to frog and cast on again.

Ribbit, ribbit! :)

A sweater for me!

I've decided I need a sweater - for ME,  this time. :) I've designed lots of tiny baby sweaters, but never an adult sweater. Over the years I've knit probably dozens of adult sweaters from other people's patterns. Sometimes I've knit them exactly as the pattern says, but other times I've changed them to suit myself. But I've always used the pattern as a guide for all the numbers - you know, stitch count etc.

Well, this time I'm doing my own pattern. I have Barbara Walker's book Knitting from the Top Down (the title has a down arrow symbol at the end, not the word down, but I don't know how to put that here - my knitting skills are better than my computer skills sigh). The book was a gift from my daughter, Colleen a few years ago. Thanks, Colleen. She's an accomplished knitter herself (among a ton of other crafts).

My sweater will be a raglan cardigan with a double cable panel on either side of the front bands and cable panels at each of the raglan "seams". I'm in the process of working out the number of stitches. I'll need more than a plain sweater would require because of the cables, so I hope I figured it out correctly. The proof will be in the knitting. I'll knit the neck band and front bands after the sweater is complete. We'll see how it goes.

Here's the yarn I'm using. It's Knit Picks Brava Worsted, an acrylic yarn in their Denim colorway. I have several cardigans in wool but I want one in acrylic this time. There are times of the year here that I need a sweater, but wool is just too warm. This is the desert after all.

Sweet Baby Dress

I finished my latest knitting design, a cute baby dress. I've named it Sweet Baby Dress and the pattern is for sale now on ravelry.com and also on craftsy.com.

I like the way it came out and it was a fun knit. It's worked top-down and is seamless except for the cute little puffy pocket that is worked separately and then sewn onto the skirt of the dress. I love the puffed sleeves too. Two of the sizes (I made all 4 sizes - 3mos, 6mos, 9mos, and 12 mos) have little store bought satin flowers sewn onto the yoke while the other 2 sizes have cute buttons sewn onto the yoke. I just love them all. :)