Skip to main content

2018: Year of Sweater Knitting

I haven't made many (or any) resolutions for 2018, but there is something I want to do more of: sweater knitting....for ME! Last year, I was a lot choosier with my knitting projects due to a busier work schedule and the addition of several new crafts which reduced my amount of knitting time. Additionally, there are some projects that I simply can't knit (or have to knit slooooowly) thanks to ongoing issues with my hands and arms. I have a ton of hats and cowls and unfortunately socks are on "knit sparingly" list, it finally dawned on me that I should focus on making myself a wardrobe of sweaters that match my existing wardrobe of mostly black and grey clothes AND actually fit me.

The two sweaters I knit last year, the Rockling Cardigan and the So Faded Sweater (which I'll be sharing on a later post), made my realize how much I like to knit and wear the sweaters I make provided they actually fit me. And that is the hard part, because I have to do something a lot of us struggle with: accept my current body weight/shape and knit patterns which flatter it. That means that not every sweater pattern that I see and fall in love with will be one that I make, and I'm finally ok with that I've accepted that I can't knit a sweater for the size I wish I was or aspire to be. It also helps that I now have a better idea of what looks good on me, what my actual measurements are and how much ease I like (spoiler alert: quite a bit).

I got a head start by casting on for Sticks and Steel by Veera Välimäki with some skeins of Berroco Vintage Chunky that I originally purchased for an intricately cabled sweater that I could never get gauge on (also, let's face it - I don't have the brain space for something so complext these days). It's coming along well, I tried it on after taking off for the sleeves and I think it's going to be a perfect fit!

SticksSteel

Of course, I have many other sweaters in the queue that I am dying to make. I went a little crazy at the start of this year and purchased two sweater quantities from Webs with a gift certificate I got for Christmas; the first is 9 skeins of Malabrigo Twist in Black, which I intend to pair up with some skeins of Rios in Glazed Carrot to make From Another Place by Leah Coccari-Swift.

Malabrigo
I
also purchased 5 skeins of Brown Sheep Prairie Spun DK to join the half-skein I have remaining from the Maize Hat, and I'm planning to make the Cormac Sweater by Leah H. Thibault.

BrownSheep

I was gifted these tantalizing skeins of Bijou Basin Ranch Lhasa Wilderness in some OOAK (one-of-a-kind) hand-dyed colors and I am 99.9% sure that they are going to become a Comfort Fade Cardi by Drea Renee Knits:

ComfortFade

I've been hoarding four skeins of Knit Picks Diadem in Emerald; while that might not seem like sweater quantity, each skein has generous yardage and I have enough to make a Hitofude Cardigan by Hiroko Fukatsu in my size with about 10 yards to spare (I should probably get a safety skein, though, just in case....yarn chicken is never a good situation when knitting sweaters!!).

Hitofude

I was also gifted this assortment of Harrisville Flywheel and have been thinking about knitting the Bethany Wrap by Amy Miller.

Flywheel

Lastly, I had started what appears to be a children's sweater (but was actually supposed to be a sweater for me) with some Fibre Company Canopy Fingering. I'll probably frog this project and I'm not sure what sweater pattern I'll use for it, or if I will end up knitting a sweater with it since it really doesn't fit my color scheme these days. But here is the photo for posterity - if anything, it can be a reminder to avoid aspirational/delusional sweater knitting!

IMG_1171

I think a lot of knitters have decided to knit more sweaters this year, so I am looking forward to seeing what other people are making, too. I also came across a year-long Selfish Craft-along happening in The Corner of Knit and Tea Ravelry group which might be a good source of support and inspiration.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Easy DIY: Beaded Vintage Snowflake Ornament Kits from Solid Oak Inc.

I was really excited to step outside of my comfort zone and try something new as part of my "Christmas in July" theme this month. The kind folks at Solid Oak Inc offered me a chance to review one of their Nostalgic Christmas beaded crystal ornament kits I couldn't resist. My tree is already full of ornaments I've inherited or been gifted from other family members and friends,  so these pretty crystal beaded ornaments will fit right in I think! I was super impressed with  this compact little kit , which includes everything needed to create three gorgeous vintage-style ornaments - just add a pair of round nose pliers (I found mine on Amazon for less than ten bucks).  The instructions had some fabulous tips for newbies like me; for example, it recommended sorting the beads and laying them out in order on a towel or beading mat to prevent them from rolling away. That may seem obvious, but I was totally ready to start beading on my kitchen table without a

What If I Didn't Add Heels?

Last weekend, I finished the first sock with my Waterlilies yarn , and just for yuks, I tried it on even though it was basically just a tube sock. Much to my surprise, it fit really well, even without a heel. Who knew? So, that got me thinking: what if I just didn't add the heels?  I never thought a tube sock would actually fit nicely, but I genuinely like the fit, so...why spend time to add the heels? As the saying goes, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.... Let's say I decide not to add heels once the second sock is done - there will still be placeholder yarn for the afterthought heels, as you can see above, so should I leave it in and just weave in the ends? Or should I remove it, put the live stitches back on needles and at least graft them together using more of the Waterlilies yarn? I plan on mulling all of this over as I knit the second sock, and I'd love to hear your opinions of what you think would look best (or if you think this whole "n

Overdyeing A Finished Knit

Even after just a few years of knitting or crocheting, you're bound to have some finished projects lying around that never get worn or used. After 10+ years of crafting, I have more than just "some" or "a few"....and with my ongoing quest to declutter my house this year, I've become obsessed with going through these forlorn projects and making some Big Decisions. Sometimes, they are perfectly fine and just need a new and loving home. Other projects may have not turned out quite right: there might have been some mistakes in the knitting that I thought I could live with, or the yarn was gorgeous but not well-matched to the pattern, or my  taste has drastically changed since I finished making the project...in any case, why on earth did I keep knitting?! Who knows, but I don't feel good about gifting anything that falls into this category to someone else. These projects have been relegated to the "frog pile" (or should I say, frog pond?), to b