April Goal #1: Jacket #41

Backstory

Pattern: Jacket #41 from Rebecca 33
Yarn: Rowanspun 4ply, held double
Needles: US 5 and 7
Exposition: It has risen from the ashes like a brilliant Phoenix! Jacket #41! New, improved and wearable!!!

I chronicled my adventures on Saturday afternoon, as most of the frogging and reknitting was done Friday evening. And being so close to the finish line, I decided that the rest of Saturday should be spent completing Jacket #41. A FO is way more important than reorganizing my closet.

Like you would have made a different choice.
Yeah, I thought so.

As you can see, there's not much difference when looking at it from the front, other than the bottom ribbing being longer. Wearing it, however, was a huge difference. It was much more relaxed and comfortable, mostly due to the cable band being looser and relaxed across the back of my neck.

The biggest difference, as you can see, is from the side. NO MORE PUCKERING! The longer bottom ribbing has helped it lay down and behave! Yipee! This sweater has finally reached its potential!

As for the Rowanspun yarn, I think it's really nice to work with. I had read that it has a tendency to break, but I didn't run into that problem. I love the color and although this is a cropped, 3/4 sleeve sweater, it's really cozy warm. Perfect for wearing in the subarctic office during the summertime over a cute dress or a tank!

The Return Of Jacket #41

With my freshly received hank of Rowanspun in my hot little hands, I came home last night and plucked Jacket #41 from the "To Fix" pile.

First a status check. I hadn't put it on in months, so maybe the fit miraculously fixed itself.

As usual, it looked okay from the front...well, it looked okay after some pulling and tugging and adjusting and readjusting.

The truth can be seen from the side.

UGH!
A totally tragic handknit.

So I got to work. I wound the new hank into a cake, removed the buttons, pulled out the bottom ribbing and detached the cabled neck band.

I knitted a few extra cm on the neckband. Easy peasy.

Then I sewed it back in place.

Once I got the neck band back in place I tried it on.

Perfect! It's amazing how much difference just adding that extra bit of length to the neckband improved the fit!

Guess they write those instructions so specifically for a reason, huh?

Next was the worst part of this whole project. Picking up 142 stitches for the bottom ribbing. I picked up almost every variation of stitches until I was finally able to get it down to 144 stitches. Good enough for me. I was able to adjust for the ribbing and am about 1/2 way through.

Should have a nice new finished object before the weekend's out!

Mail Call!

Last week, I posted my April To Do List. The first 'To Do' was fixing the Rebecca Coat #41.

Like I said before, I practically ran out of yarn on this project. So to remedy the situation, I figured that knitting the cable band a few inches short and shortening the bottom ribbing would do the trick.

As you can see, it didn't work out. The shortened cable band caused the front to ride up and the shortened ribbing just looked sad.

The only solution to the problem was to find a extra hank of the now discontinued Rowanspun 4ply. There are quite a few Ravelers that have some in their stash, but none have it listed as willing to sell/trade, so I figured I'd ask people as a last resort.

A quick Google search lead me to a retailer in the UK who had one lonely hank listed on their site. $2. Seemed like it was meant to be. It arrived today, in all its Rowanspun Tweedy glory, so I'm planning on fixing this project as soon as I get home today.

Wish me luck!

How Now?

What a great weekend! First off, I love the Olympics...what a great win for the US in the Men's 400m Relay last night! WOW! So awe-inspiring...I am totally on the Michael Phelps bandwagon. Also this weekend a friend of mine got married, I met a cousin from England that I didn't know I had and I went to a party at a house with a magnificent view of the Pacific. What a great time!

I also was able to tear my eyes away from the Olympics coverage long enough to start on the back flap of the Textured Tunic. Thank god for stockinette, I can watch the action and get some knitting done at the same time. Am I the only one who gets sucked into all sorts of crazy sports...like the 20,000 rowing events that were happening this weekend?

Now that I've gotten reveling in my wonderful weekend out of the way...I realized I never posted pictures of the semi-completed Rebecca Jacket #41.

You must be saying to yourself, 'Semi-completed? That looks pretty completed to me!'
Well, yes and no. Technically, the knitting is done. But...and there's always a but...I'm not 100% happy with the fit. As you may or may not remember, I didn't have a lot of yarn left over when I completed this baby. I did a lot of yarn conservation during the ribbing and cabled collar, and the sweater has suffered because of it. I think that the adjustments I need to make will remedy the situation.

Now the issues I have are the ribbing is too loose and the cabled neckband is too short so the front of the sweater tends to wing out [as you can see in the side view above] and ride up. Not a cute look. So, I plan on taking off the cabled neckband and frogging the bottom ribbing. Then I'll pick up less stitches across the bottom edge, lengthen the cabled neckband and put it all back together.

Right after I finished the Textured Tunic, Galaxy Tank and Punk Bunny.
The list never gets shorter, does it?

Buttons? That Must Mean...

Cable #41 is done!

Yes...I finally finished it! Of course, you would think finishing would mean a long and lengthy Button Quest. And for once you'd be wrong. You see, the pattern calls for covered buttons and what did my loverly sister give me this past Christmas? LoRan Creative Button Buttons. A bit of leftover yarn and TA DA! Perfectly matching buttons! My yarn weaving wasn't as tight as I would have liked so add a little hot water and some friction, TA DA! Perfectly matching felted buttons! There are still a few spots where the plastic shows through, so I'm adding a little around the edges. A little more felting and I'm calling this a finished object.

And just in case you thought my fears of running out of yarn were unfounded, here is the amount I have leftover. That's a large paper clip for comparison.

Hello Again...

Thank you everyone for the kind words about my Great Aunt Becky. I've been taking those in-between moments during the day to reflect on life. I can't say I have any answers, but I am realizing more and more how much I need to renew my goal to spend more time with my loved ones and celebrate every moment we have together.

There was a small memorial for Aunt Becky on the East Coast this past weekend and although I really wanted to be there, the $400+ air fare kept that from happening for a lot of us on the other side of the country. So we did the next best thing. We had a West Coast memorial for her. It was a nice afternoon of good food and better company. And I found out that Aunt Becky knew Ella Fitzgerald when they were both Lindy Hoppers at the Savoy Ballroom. How cool is that? Although she told me she loved dancing, she didn't mention that little detail.

And as far as knitting goes, I finally finished the body of Jacket #41. I'm now working on the cable neckband edging. I am sweating a bit, since I think I may not have enough yarn. I was planning on skimping a bit here and there so I would have enough, but I think I'm just going to go along with the pattern as written and see what happens. I'm pretty sure I should be able to get an extra hank from a Raveler or something. No worries. I guess I should start checking around if I plan on wearing it to a wedding this weekend...

Punishment

So I'm knitting on Jacket #41. And I'm thinking to myself...this bit of yarn seems to be lasting much longer than it did for the first side. Then I'm thinking, wow, this side is going much faster than the first side. Then I think, wow, I'm already to the bind off for the front...strange that I don't have enough stitches left over after binding off the front. How am I 24 stitches short? How is it that the two fronts aren't the same size? Is the pattern wrong, because it certainly worked for the first side.

Yeah, I forgot to do some increases. Like 24 of them. So I frogged back 16cm of work and have to redo it all.

Somehow I think the yarn won't last much longer than the first side. And first item on the day's agenda: sulk.

Spring Sprung

Jacket #41

Despite my best effort to start a new project [the words 'short rows' in my intended pattern scared me into staying faithful], I continued working on the Jacket #41. Since the right side is the same as the left, I doubt you really wanted to see a picture of my progress.

I do have a picture of the first completed side. Since this pattern's largest size is a 34/36", I was a bit concerned that it might be just a tad too tight. I consoled myself with the notion that the modeled picture looks a little baggy at the side seams, so maybe me being a little larger in the bust and ribcage might do it justice. So I clipped up the bottom of the sleeve's seam and tried it on.

Not bad! Now things may change up a little since it hasn't been washed or blocked, but at least it's a good sign that the fit should be perfect. My only concern is the bit of bagging under the arm. Pulling the neckline up alleviated the problem, but there is still a 6cm cabled edging that needs to be knitted and attached around the neck. I'm going to think that it's going to be okay and that it will all work out. Rebecca hasn't let me down too badly in the past, let's hope that doesn't change with this project.

Babies!!!

Hey, did I mention to y'all that I'm going to be an aunt again?!?! Yes, my brother and sister-in-law broke the news when they were down in So Cal last week. Seems the baby items in my queue is ever expanding. Not only do I have to knit something for my friend who had a baby last month, I have a new niece or nephew on the way and my sister-in-law's sister is also pregnant and due around the same time in October. Thank god I have a lot of ones and twos of random balls hanging around.

Spring...

Ah, Spring! Such a wonderful time, no? Well, I've been doing a bit more Spring Cleaning to my queue over the past two days. I've taken a hard look at what yarns I have and what I've been really wanting to make and tried to match the two up as much as possible. Then, with Project Spectrum's elements in mind, I arranged my queue accordingly. I know I won't be able to get to all the queued patterns, but it seems a little more manageable if I can see what projects I have to choose from over the specific two month elemental period.

Speaking of Project Spectrum, April and May is the Earth element. Of course, I've started a little early. I could only take so much orange, red and pink, people.

I've also acquired some new yarn for one of my Earth projects.

Why does the stash keep getting larger rather than smaller?

I was clicking around Ravelry last week when I noticed a fellow Ravelrer was wanting to sell 10 balls of Plymouth Royal Bamboo for $20. $20? Um. Okay.

This will be my first experience with 100% bamboo yarn [perfect fiber and color for Earth, right?]. It arrived today and it's so shiny and soft and puuuurrrrtty. I'm resisting chucking Jacket #41 out the window and starting A Streetcar Named Desire with my new pretty yarn.

I don't think the Rowanspun would mind? Do you?

Left

I did quite a bit of knitting this weekend. Of course there were other things I should have been doing, but honestly, it was just too hot to move.

I worked almost exclusively on the Rebecca Jacket #41. This little jacket is worked sideways from sleeve cuff then the two sides are grafted at the center back. Totally cute!

Working the back, front and sleeves all at once got pretty tedious. The only thing that kept my interest was the cable. Thank god for the cable!

Needles to say, I was able to push through and finish the left side during a marathon of HBO's John Adams. I'm feeling a little stressed about having enough yarn, but my calculations say I should have at least 70 yards leftover when all is said and done. If not, I can always shorten the bottom ribbing if necessary.

Time to cast on for the right side!

A Little Bit Of Everything

This inability to decide on a pattern for the Contrasto yarn is really beginning to bring me down. I keep going back an forth.

I do love the Rebecca cabled sweater. As I was looking through the magazine again yesterday, I was bothered by how bulky around the middle the model looks in this side shot. Could just be the way the sweater is being pushed up by her leg...but it raised a few flags.

Then there's this sweater from Rebecca #30 that I've been in love with for the longest. The drape of the Contrasto would be perfect and the gauge is spot on. Then there's the Slouchy Cardigan [Rav link] from Greetings from the Knit Cafe which would be the perfect comfy sweater. Ugh. I need to stop thinking about this. I'll just give myself an aneurysm or something. Then who will knit up my stash yarn?!?!

Let's talk about something else.

An unimpressive progress shot of the Jacket #41. The color is actually more green than it appears. The sweater is knit from cuff to mid back then grafted together. Different and unique construction techniques! Whoo hoo!

And lastly...yesterday I had the distinct pleasure of meeting one of our fellow bloggers who was visiting Los Angeles! I met up with Vy at the Knit Cafe and we did a little shopping and a lot of chatting...it was just too cool! She wore her Athos, which was just so lovely. Such a beautiful pattern. That Norah Gaughan...wow! Vy and I talked for a while with Sarah and Suzan [the owner of the Knit Cafe] who told us that the store is moving! SOB! I'm hoping that she'll find the perfect place [closer to me] and have lots of space for pretty yarns and stuff.

Speaking of pretty yarns and stuff...
My weakness for unique buttons continues. I saw these in a random jar at the Knit Cafe and had to have them. I think they may be the perfect buttons for the Textured Tunic with Side Buttons from Fitted Knits. I haven't put them next to the Rowan Summer Tweed, but I believe with all my heart they'll be perfect. Hmmm...maybe I'll forget the Contrasto fiasco for the moment and start this sweater instead...

I also bought a pretty glass shawl clip? Holder? Pin? Closure? Perfect for the Ram's Horn Jacket that I also plan on making. Hmm...maybe I'll start that instead. With all these options, why am I so stuck on finding a project for the Contrasto?

Close up detail of the aneurysm begging to form.