Pattern: Cobblestone Pullover by Jared Flood, Interweave Knits, Fall 2007
Yarn: Cascade 220 Heathers in Whiskey (8013)
Size: 43 1/2"
Yardage: 6 skeins
Needles: 4.5 mm bamboo


I've loved this pattern and wanted to knit it since it first came out two years ago. At the time I was already working on a sweater for Rob so this automatically went onto a back burner. It stayed there until this spring when one of Rob's favourite sweaters started to show a little too much wear and needed to be replaced. When I went hunting for patterns like the sort of thing Rob usually wears I was happy to include this one and even happier when it was the one he chose (that I had been mentioning it off and on for nearly a year and a half may have been slightly influential).


My next hunt was for yarn and I was disappointed at how difficult it was to find a tweed yarn (Knit Picks City Tweed came out shortly after I'd bought my yarn - I'd really like to try that stuff - it looks wonderful). I'd settled on Cascade 220 pretty quickly; I'd already used it for a few projects with very good results and they had some nice tweed colours on their website. The problem was that no one seemed to carry the tweeds even though they'd have mountains of every other colour. In the end I went for a heather called Whiskey and when it arrived we both liked it. I think it actually felt even softer than the solid colours. It was such a treat to knit with.


Except for having to knit the sleeves first - while waiting for a long needle for the body - and a slight hiccup in the garter pattern of the yolk, the knitting of this sweater went very smoothly and relatively quickly. I got through both of the sleeves and most of the body when we took a short trip in June. I worked my way through the yolk for the rest of June and July. There was a period of total inactivity while I hunted around the house for my 16" 4.0 mm needle to finish the collar. Followed by a short period of wondering what I was thinking when I realized I was using 4.5 mm needles and the 16" was in the basket under the sweater. Sometime after that I found my instructions for kitchener stitch and closed the underarm seams. The sweater had a little bath, was gently massaged into the correct dimensions (somehow the sleeves seemed a too long) and took three days to dry.


It has been worn most days since then. (Look closely at the pictures - you can see pills - I love that.) I thought it was a little looser than it is supposed to be but Rob likes the fit so it is perfect. It goes easily over a dress shirt or a t-shirt and while loose is not baggy so it looks really good. For some reason the collar looks too big (though it seems perfect with a dress shirt); part of me wishes I hadn't noticed I wasn't supposed to use the 4.00 mm needle but it might just be the weight of the sweater that makes it stretch (it could also be my imagination). I love the squashiness of the garter stitch and the way it works with the heathered yarn. This sweater is nice enough to go to work and cozy enough for Saturday morning; a perfect garment in my world.

I'm getting so close to being done Rob's sweater. It's very exciting. I got it out to work on last night after Abby went to bed. I thought I would start into the second set of short-rows; maybe even finish them and do a decrease round or two; while I was at it I might even just finish the neck and cast off; I'd probably put off kitchenering the underarms and weaving in ends until another time - it would depend on when I finished ...

I brought my basket out to the family room. I got all settled down on the couch with a blanket on my lap and the cat next to me and my tape measure within easy distance. I was sure I would need it shortly. I got out the pattern so I'd know when to do my short-rows and decreases. I pulled the sweater out and spread it on my lap.

And that's when I saw it ... for twenty stitches roughly three inches down in my knitting I'd knit instead of purled. I stared at it - this scar in my knitting - I didn't even think of taking a picture. There was only one thing to do. At least I wasn't going to have to frog out the whole sweater for three inches. Though now that I'm done I realize it might have looked better if I had.

I laddered out the affected section and knit it back up properly. Every stitch is now as it should be. I was careful to make sure the decreases went into the correct round and in the right sequence. But oh the tension - one side of the section is just a bit tight but the other is horribly loose. So loose I thought I might have missed a stitch but no ... just very, very loose.

I always hope while I'm knitting that I'll be able to get away with not blocking before an item can be worn. Rob's sweater was behaving very well in this respect. The fabric looked good and the tension was close enough to it's blocked state that Rob could have tried on and even worn his sweater without waiting for me to block it. But no longer. It will have to be blocked. In fact, it will probably have to blocked, worn, and blocked again before those hideously loose stitches disappear into their even siblings.

Perhaps tonight I will finish the short-rows ...

I was in my studio this morning and just loved the way the sun looked on my blue walls. I probably should have tidied this shelf before I took a picture of it but I don't think it would have had quite the same feel if I had (and the sun would have moved anyway). I kind of like the clutter that collects here: there are bits and pieces from past and current projects (especially on the pin board above), jars of buttons and pincushions at the ready, miscellaneous items that really belong in other rooms (like the earring jar) and even a papyrus scroll left over from a Egyptology course I took at university (we had to write our names in hieroglyphics - my friend Kim and I got papyrus from a stall in the mall and then got fancy with paint and gold pens).

What was I doing in my studio? Oh right. I was working on this.


The top for my scrap scarf. The backing is going to be some pink flannel I ordered but it hasn't arrived yet. Since sewing time with Abby can be iffy I decided to take advantage of the time I got (she's always more manageable on weekend afternoons) and start the project before I had all the materials. As soon as it arrives I'll throw it in the wash and then just sew it on. I still need to do the outer layer for the muff but I only have so much space for laying things out (I don't tempt fate by putting things on the floor).

I also finished the swatch for Rob's sweater. I'd expected to have to go down a needle size but it looks like I'll actually be using the needles called for in the pattern for once. It also looks like I'm going to have to order a longer circular because I don't think the 24" is going to cut it for the sweater body (especially once the sleeves are attached). But sweaters do have sleeves so I'm going to start knitting with those and by the time they are done the new circular should be here (how I long for a local yarn shop).


I laughed when I stat down at my desk this afternoon (after the swatch was washed and laid out to dry) and saw the rest of the yarn cake sitting by my screen. I'm apparently too lazy to put away my swatching needles until I know which ones I'm going to be using.


Notice the new package of 2 mm dpns - I can finally knit socks again.