OK, y’all, here it is: A neck, a body and two sleeves. I realize the way I’m standing in some of these pics, it looks like one sleeve is shorter than the other. I swear it’s not — I’m just too lazy to reshoot. I actually wanted the sleeves to be a hair longer than they are, and hedged my bets thinking they’d get longer when I blocked it, but I’m super happy with this. See: I’m even smiling in a picture!
I’m pretty proud of how well I did customizing the fit, even though it’s really not hard (and not quite perfect). When I took that class from Barry Klein back in January, the most memorable thing he said was, “If your top-down sweater doesn’t fit you, you have only yourself to blame. Because it means you didn’t try it on enough.” I could have knit this strictly to the pattern, or even left out the hip shaping entirely, and it would have been great, albeit a different shape. But I challenged myself to make a truly custom-tailored sweater. So each time I was working on it, when I was ready to knit my last round for the night, I instead knit half a round onto a second needle of the same size, allowing me to pull all four needle ends loose and ease the sweater over my head. And that way I knew exactly what i needed to do next, session by session. That was the key to my success. Thanks, Barry!
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The yarn is Malabrigo Rios in Aguas, about 645 yards. Pattern is the HIGHLY recommended Classic Raglan Pullover by Jane Richmond. I’ll detail my minor mods at Ravelry. Thanks for all the cheerleading!
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Bravo! Bravo! That. looks. beautiful!!! I love how perfect it fits you too. Well done Karen! Everything about this sweater is fantastic. I’d wear it. A lot. :) Way to go!!!
Wow! Really impressive! Way to challenge yourself! I’ve only customized on sweaters for my son, which usually means making a small, but increasing the length of the body and sleeves to account for his long arms and height. (He’s a long, skinny, tall drink of water!) Beautiful job, Karen! Beautiful color!
WordPress ate my curtsy.
:0)
Beautifully done! And that neckline looks great on you.
I am forever in your debt.
It looks wonderful!
Thanks, Jennifer!
Absolutely beautiful! I do not notice the changes in skeins and usually they show up in photographs. Know you will receive many, many compliments wearing. Wear with pride and never, never point out what you perceive as “flaws”!
…and those shoes! Love.
They’re one of my all-time favorites.
shoes?!?!? what shoes? where’s that picture?! not that i just spent the last half hour looking through your entire instagram in feverish delight trying to find it…..
Fabulous! It looks great.
KB, hi — and thanks!
you have really hit it right on the mark, this is a great fit and wonderful look on you! this is where i often have issues — it doesn’t fit well or the style ends up being a bad choice. wish i could try a sweater pattern on first before all that investment in time and money. congratulations on your success!
Thanks! Although I still haven’t worn it because it turns out it’s not quite perfect. The yarn at the gauge I did the waistband ribbing tends to want to bunch up or curl under, sort of, and that’s compounded by its hitting right at my waistband. So it looks terrible after I’ve had it on for 10 minutes. I need to rip it out and knit it longer and then decide what to do about finishing that lower edge. But I’m on to other things … argh.
i can so relate to this as there is so much more to knitting a sweater than getting gauge and knitting the right measurements. the wearability and comfort are huge issues.
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