I remember buying the yarn for Salina from Rowan Vintage Style way back in 2004 (too lazy to look up the actual post), so I figured that I should probably get to knitting this thing already. I started it sometime in Spring 2008, and had all the pieces finished and blocked by July:
I seamed it up and tried it on, and discovered to my dismay that the sleeves were actually too long. Well, too long to be 3/4 length sleeves, which is what I was going for, but also too short to be full-length sleeves. It looked pretty stupid.
I let the sweater languish for several months (August-November), then around mid-November I decided that I had to do something about the sleeve issue. So some surgery was called for.
Step 1: Determine optimal sleeve length. See how there's at least 3 inches of extra stockinette in there? Duh.
Step 2: Put stitches on dpns, unravel sleeve seam. It's a good thing I hadn't woven in any ends yet.
Step 3: Cut yarn (!!), unravel back to marked stitches. Fingers crossed that all the stitches on the dpns were actually from the same row of knitting.
Step 4: Join new yarn, reknit the cuff in the round. And voila, a sweater that I'd actually wear out in public!
There are 4 buttonholes, but I only used 3 buttons. When I wear it, I generally only have 2 buttons buttoned anyway.
This was a fun and pretty successful knit overall, the only thing I don't love about it is the fact that the collar doesn't sit down properly in the back. It's not wide enough, so it keeps flipping up. I'll have to try to block it down, or something. Other than that, all is good.
The pattern is Salina from Rowan Vintage Style, the yarn is Rowan Felted Tweed in the Crush colourway (Rav link). I had to go down to US3 and US1 needles to get gauge (recommended needles are US5), which actually wasn't quite as painful as it sounds. I love this yarn, it's tweedy and soft and I haven't noticed any pilling yet. I will definitely be using it again.
7 comments:
Looks fab!! Great fix job. :)
The sweater looks fantastic on you! I'm glad you were able to fix the sleeves.
BTW - If a good blocking doesn't fix the collar, why not try tacking it down in one or two spots?
I love it!! It looks great on you - very flattering. Good job on the sleeves too. And I completely understand the fear and trepidation that hits right when you have to cut the yarn.
I've been on a bit of pause with my knitting, unfortunately. Hoping to get back to it when I don't have to be cleaning this place up every other day so that people can come to look at it.
I think this is the sweater you were wearing at the football party, right? So I can report it's even more gorgeous in person.
Nice!!! I wouldn't have thought of cutting the yarn!
Thanks, everyone! =)
I will definitely consider tacking down the collar if I can't fix it by blocking. As it is, it's not so bad except that I can't put my hair up (and my hair is pulled back just about all the time at work).
Heidi: it was a different sweater that I was wearing at the party, but I'll blog about that one soon. =)
Love the sweater. It's a beautiful color. Kudos for finishing it. Often I wonder as a 99% complete project of mine sits for months, if I will ever get around to doing the 1% to make it wearable.
Enjoy wearing it!
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