Fitted Knits Along

Final pictures of Elizabeth

I finished the Elizabeth Bennet cabled cardigan a couple of weeks ago but now that she's washed and dried I thought I'd post a final, finished object shot.  I always like to see how a sweater really looks on a person, not just on a hanger.

More pics and details on my blog here and here.

Elizabeth is done!

Well it took me three months from start to finish, but I'm pleased to say that I've finally finished my elizabeth bennet cabled cardigan. 

I used the called for yarn, Cascade Cloud 9 and it is fluffy!  When you look at the fabric, you see nothing but lots of softness.  I'm really pleased with the cable on the sleeves as well.

I've put lots of other details and photos on my blog.

Elizabeth Bennet... she lives!

It's been some time since my first post on Elizabeth, but I have been making progress.

I'm pleased to say that I've made it through the miles of stockinette stitch on the bodice down to the exciting cables.  Now the real fun begins!

So far everything seems on track for this sweater to fit.  The fabric is turning out quite well... very drapey and soft (I'm using the called for Cascade Cloud 9, a wool & angora mix).

I'd love to see a few more people join in on this sweater.  I think it'll be a winner.

You can check on the mundane day to day progress (past and future) on my blog. Happy knitting everyone!

new group and spare yarn

Hi everyone! just quickly thought i'd mention a couple of things that might be of interest....

• There is a new Ravelry group for Fitted Knits. Either the old KAL group got moved over, or as seems more likely, someone got bored of waiting and set up another one :) Come and say hello! i'm rubbishknitter
• I have enough yarn left over from my Elizabeth Bennet cardigan to make another one, so i've put it on ebay. It's the recommended Cascade Cloud 9, in a nice cheerful yellow colour, and will probably go for a bargain price!

Getting to know Elizabeth Bennet

Hey everyone!

It's been some time since I posted here.  After a flurry finishing several fitted knits projects (drop stitch tank, bold and bulky cardi,  cropped cardi with(out) leaf ties), I took some time off to do some knits by (gasp!) other designers. 

Now that the weather is getting cooler I'm interested in starting a winter sweater and have selected the Elizabeth Bennet Cabled Cardigan.

I swatched night before last (although I don't really trust those little swatch guys at all) and then cast on last night.

I'm looking forward to working on this sweater. I purchased the called for yarn (got it on sale in a color discontinuation deal) and find it very soothing. I'm a little wary going into the sweater... not too many people seem to have completed this project thus far. Is it because it looks intimidating? It did to me when I first bought the yarn. Is it because it's hard to get gauge (I seem not to get the same gauge as Stephanie with any of her patterns even using the recommended yarn)? Do people not like the look of the sweater? I do so I guess that part doesn't matter.

Concerns aside, I've made my best guess about the size to knit and have started the journey. I'm hoping the pattern is accurate (without the security of previous completed projects I do think about this).

My guess is that this sweater will take some time to complete so I may stop in once and awhile just to give an update rather than waiting for the final FO. I may post about it in between at my own blog too.

I'm enjoying reading about everyone else's progress... keep up the good work everyone!

Fitted Knits Trunk Show

I was at Webs yarn store (utterly fabulous place if you've never been there) in Northampton, MA yesterday, and was delighted when I saw that they had a Fitted Knits trunk show!  I had a chance to try on several items that I had been thinking about making: the Cozy V-Neck Cardigan, the Two-Toned Ribbed Shrug, and the Cropped Cardigan with Leaf Ties.  I was especially hopeful that the last would look nice, as last week I bought some yarn to make it: Classic AL by Elsebeth Lavold, so it won't be as fancy  as the one in the book, but I think it will get a lot of wear. The Two-Toned Ribbed Shrug wasn't my favorite, so I am glad I never did buy yarn for it. (It may also have been that the one on show was a bit snug for me.)  I also didn't really have any plans to make the Elizabeth Bennett Cabled Cardigan, but it looked very nice on. The sleeves in whatever size it was (if only they'd mark the size on trunk show garments more often!) was a bit too long, so I'd have to watch out for that. There were also several other items from the book: the Turtleneck Tube Vest (couldn't exactly try this one on in the middle of the store), the Saturday in the Park dress (ditto), and the U-Neck Back to School Vest (which I've already made). I really wish they'd had the Carrie Cropped Cardigan. I am not sure how long the trunk show will be there, but you could always call and ask.

fluffy duck adventures

*Fanfare*!! The rain gods paused in their month-long continuous bombardment of my house just long enough for me to walk the dog and get some photos of the new cardie. So here it is in all its yellow fluffy splendour. Some readers of this KAL (Eva, I'm looking at you!) may note that wearing the garment outside cleverly avoids the need to follow it round with a hoover. I haven't dared test wearing it for a night on the sofa yet :) I made a couple of modifications to the original pattern, and if you are really interested or suffering from insomnia you could look these up on my blog. Alarmingly, I seem to have only used half the suggested amount of yarn. Not sure how that happened, it's a bit worrying - like assembling flatpack furniture and having screws left over. Ah well. I need to find something else to knit now... and fast! *runs to LYS* :)

block rockin beats

Finished this on Friday YIPPEEEEE! And as it was a little tiny bit more of a snug fit than i had originally envisaged, yesterday I thought perhaps I'd try my hand at a little blocking. I've never been bothered to do this before. But this time, I handwashed it and pinned it out then got out the tape measure... would you believe it had grown by a whole 10 cm lengthwise!!! And about 5 cm round the waist. Which gives me plenty of scope for future pie-eating. Hooray!

Will take some proper pictures when it stops raining outside. I made a couple of minor modifications - made the button band wider, and made the sleeves narrower round the cuff. Also reversed the cable pattern on the second sleeve so it's nice and symmetrical. The yarn is the recommended cloud 9 angora / merino mix, with a high fuzziness quotient. I'm quite pleased with the result. The only bad thing is the room where it's been blocking smells faintly of wet rabbits now. My dog is very confused and keeps looking under the sofa.

Arm Divide!

Well, its taken me 10 years. Or felt like it. And finally I am here.

I hadnt gotten the right amount of stitches by the time I got to the arm divide, so I just increased in a couple of places to fudge it. Its a little tight across the bust, so as i'm working down the body i'm going to increase under the arms a few times to get it nice.

Doing the 40" bust (based on my incorrect gauge) :)....

EB Cardi is coming along...

Well, after thinking my gauge was right on and discovering it was a little too big - here is take 2. I'm not at the armholes yet, but am way past the start of the sleeve puff.

I'm making the 40in bust size to account for the bigger gauge. Its 12cm long now, or about 5inches. The yarn (Bendigo Mills Classic 8ply) is a bit splitty, but the colour is nice so i'm not to worried about it.

Sorry about the pic - i'm using 4mm 60cm long Addis and cant get it to lie flat... ;)