When we last visited PT’s Christmas present I was dumbing the pattern down like nobody’s business. I was getting increasingly worried, though, as I was getting closer and closer to that collar.
A Little Neck Magic
I separated for the neck when I got to the front shoulder ribs and just did a simple wrong-side slip stitch/right side knit rolled edge. Then the pattern was talking about casting stitches off, and I wasn’t about it.
I followed the decreases like it said in the pattern, but the stitches that it said to bind off I just held on spare double pointed needles, with the thought that I would pick them up when I tackled the collar.
I wished I would have thought of that when I was binding off the back! I hate picking up stitches when I could easily just hold the stitches to be worked later.
Magic!
Ok, so it wasn’t as easy as ‘magic!’. I picked up those stitches so many times, trying to get the numbers right, trying to get my ribs to match up, trying to get my back ribs to match up, trying to make sure there are enough stitches on both collars so they weren’t lopsided! The part that was magic was when I threw my hands up and stopped counting, deciding to just work the ribs out and not worry about the number of stitches. And how many stitches did I end up picking up? Oh yeah it was the right number of stitches.
I kept up with the rolled edge in the front and followed the decreases as the pattern calls for three stitches in, kinda. I wanted to keep the rib, so I fudged it a little.
Douche Collar?
Now, of course, I’m all worried that it looks like a douche-bro popped collar! Does it? If it’s a sweater, does it count as a popped collar? I don’t know the popped collar rules!
Big Enough? Cute Enough? GAH!
Freaking out isn’t the right way to put it, but I’m a little concerned that it is too small. I put it on when I was done with the collar and it seemed short, even though I did that trick where you pull out a sweater your boy liked and wears a lot and measured it to that sweater. I’m hoping my boobs are throwing off the dimensions.
I can always block it a little longer. Right?
Sleeves Two at a Time!
I’ve got a pretty good start on the sleeves, though I haven’t picked them up in a while. Since PT and I had those baseball issues, and the Tigers lost, and I couldn’t even look at him much less his stupid sweater he didn’t deserve.
I’ve read the ravelry.com notes on this sweater and many people who’ve knit it have said that the sleeves were too big. So I’m keeping the increases at a minimum; I’m sticking with the first instructions, of increasing every 6th row however many times. I’m just going to keep doing that until I feel like they are big enough. Or something.
Yeah, I don’t really have a plan for the sleeves. That is why I have to do them at the same time. I don’t take good enough notes to duplicate soup, I’m not going to be able to knit two sleeves that look the same.
It looks great, good job! Were you planning on leaving the collar open or putting in a zipper/closure? I called the boy over for his opinion as a boy, and he thought the sweater was great, but the collar was a little on the feminine side/needed a zipper. Then he asked why I’ve never knit him a sweater and did the puppy dog eyes thing. Damn it.
I vote zipper for the collar itself, which still preserves it being a pullover sweater as a whole but firms up the collar a little bit.
Comment by Gil — October 15, 2009 @ 11:57 am
Thanks guys! I was thinking, like, wood toggle buttons? I’m still on the fence about it. I’ve been looking at the other sweaters knit on the ravelry page and most people do a zipper… GAH! I don’t know. I liked how the buttons look on the few sweaters who have used them. My plan is to wait until I’m finished and see what I think then.
Button anxiety!
Comment by allyson — October 15, 2009 @ 12:04 pm