28 Thirty: Done

Thanks so much for all the comments on the Weekender Bag! My mom just received it yesterday and is really happy with it (or so she says!). The weekender isn't the only FO in these parts...

Over the past year or so, I’ve developed a bad habit of finishing a handknit, wearing it a bunch, but never managing time (or motivation) for a FO shoot. Even my ravelry project list is crowded with FOs that show only half finished project pictures. I’m going to blame it on the fact that my knitting picks up when it’s cold and dark out and I’m loathe to photograph a FO in bad lighting.

I swear, I used to be able to button it all the way!

Now that the temps are cooling off in New England, I’ve been pulling out my handknits, most notably one of my favorite knits from earlier in the year, 28 Thirty. I reach for this one not just because it’s cute and comfy, but because it (sort of) works with my belly. Who knew when I finished this project, the FO shoot would feature a pregnant me? Not me, that’s for sure!

Long Neck

Pattern: 28Thirty. Another top-down winner from the Zephyr Girls. This sweater really flew off the needles, despite a few project breaks. Comfortable and infinitely wearable, I would definitely consider making another. I could see going with the shorter version as written in the pattern or going in the opposite direction with a long sweater-coat.

Sleeve

Source: Zephyr Style
Yarn: Farmhouse Yarns, Andy’s Merino in Cranberry (1 skein), Mahogany (3 skeins), and Wine Berries (1 Skein). I bought this yarn during the Farmhouse Yarns bag sale (you pay $100 for all the yarn you can fit in a shopping bag. Pay $200 and you get to fill up one of those ginormous Rubbermaid bins!). I bought two different colors of the yarn convinced they were close enough to blend. I didn’t start to question this until I wound the yarn and found one was a bit more of a cool berry pink (Cranberry), the other a warmer rich pink (Mahogany). Because the yarn is more of a semi-solid and I only had one skein of the Cranberry, I just decided to roll with it. I didn’t introduce the third color (Wine Berries) until I finished the rest of the yarn and the sweater was a couple inches about my waistband. I always add a few inches to my sweaters (apparently, at 5’5/5’6, I’m an Amazon woman in the world of knitting patterns), so I decided to keep knitting with the Wine Berries, which I had leftover from a hat I made my mom over Christmas. The Wine Berries is significantly darker, more red than pink, but I think it creates kind of an ombre appearance (or so I’ve convinced myself). For a merino, the yarn isn’t super soft like a Malabrigo, but it’s certainly next-to-the-skin wearable. I still find veggie matter caked into the sweater, but that’s just a friendly reminder that at Farmhouse the sheep are raised and sheered, and the yarn spun and dyed, then sold all in one place. I’ll take a little VM over an over processed wool any day! While visiting the farm for the yarn sale, I even saw Andy, the merino who made this sweater a reality! Where else does that happen?



Needles: Size 9 Addis
Time to Knit: February to March 2008
Raveled: Here
Mods: Other than the obvious lengthening of the sweater, not much. I added some waist decreases and just kept knitting until I was happy with the length. I think it’s longer when I don’t have a huge belly, but it’s been so long I can’t remember!

Action Shot

I'm still plugging away at my dad's sweater - it's my only WIP, the first time that's happened in a LONG time! My fingers are already itching to cast on for another project - my baby's Christmas stocking!