OhSewCrafty Blog

• Pattern: by Fiona Ellis, from Winter 08 Twist Collective
• Yarn: Fibranatura Baby Merino in “Charles”, 6.75 balls (about 1330 yds)
• Needles/Gauge/Size: 5.5 spi, 8 rpi on US 6, 34″ for 0 ease
• Time to knit: 1 month in Feb/March 09 

I love this sweater!  It’s wonderfully soft, warm but lightweight, and the cable pattern, reminiscent of the vertebrae, reminds me to stand up straight.  The pattern was excellent and error-free, with a clear chart that I was able to memorize after several repeats.  I would love to knit another pattern by Fiona Ellis.  It was easy knitting, but it took a while with the small gauge and cabling every right side row. 

I got the yarn on sale from Herrschners, and used about 200 yds less than the pattern requirements so total yarn cost was less than $25.  It’s a very lightweight dk; the ball band says you can knit this at 5.25 spi but I think it would be best at 6 spi.  I love the color, a true medium purple.  Superwash isn’t my favorite, and this yarn seemed almost too soft while knitting.  It was splitty and so easy to snag; its prospective durability worried me.  I think it will pill quite a lot; it is Merino, so that’s probably a reasonable expectation.  However, after a day of wearing, there were no pills.  The sweater feels divine against the skin, like being wrapped in a soft, warm cloud. 

The sweater looked tiny when finishing (thought it did fit) and some of the knitting looked a bit uneven, but it relaxed, evened out, and gained length with wet blocking.  I lost steam on this and probably would have lagged on the finishing if I hadn’t been spurred along by the SKC’s 1stQ knitalong; I wanted to enter my second FO by March 17th darn it!  But now that’s it’s done, I’m glad.  It’s a beautiful garment and there’s always room in my wardrobe for a warm, lightweight sweater.