Just in time

As soon as warm weather hits I finish a sweater that I want to wear! I purchased yarn for this sweater on my 30th birthday trip to Port Townsend and decided it was finally time to knit it up. After taking Janine Bajus' class at Madrona in February I finally felt ready to knit my very own Fair Isle Yoke Seamless Pullover a la Elizabeth Zimmermann. It was a welcome challenge and I love the result.

Pattern: Fair Isle Yoke Seamless Pullover by Elizabeth Zimmermann (from Knitting Around)
Yarn: Cascade 220 Sport
Needles: US #5 & US #6
Mods/Notes: I worked this at a sport weight gauge (6 sts/inch) on the larger needles. I added some gentle waist shaping and short rows at 5, 10, and 15 inches. My sleeves are 17 inches but could be a tad longer but I always shove long sleeves up to my elbows so it works. I knit the yoke to just under 4 inches before starting the Fair Isle since I like a shallower yoke. Short rows at the back of the neck and 6 rows of ribbing on the smaller needle before a loose bind off. Love!

BTW, 220 sport does not have 220 yards but 164. However, it retails at about 4 dollars per skein so I think it's still a great deal! I used just over 7 skeins of the main color for my 44" bust and small amounts of the other 4 colors for the yoke.

February Baby Sweater

My first ever February Baby Sweater! Hooray! I love this pattern and can't believe that I haven't knit it before. This puppy flew off my needles in a record three days. Don't let the Little One's sad face fool you. She loves this sweater and dragged it around the house with her until I put it on. The picture was taken very very shortly before a nap.

Pattern: February Baby Sweater by Elizabeth Zimmermann from The Knitter's Almanac
Yarn: Dream in Color Classy in Blue Lagoon (approx 1.1 skeins)
Needles: Size 7 & 8 Harmony Circs
Mods: I used heavier yarn to upsize the sweater to fit Little One. I used #7 needles for the garter yoke and #8 needles for the lace since garter stretches a bit. There are 3 buttonholes added at the yoke instead of all down the front of the sweater. The body is knit to 10 inches before adding the garter at the bottom but I kept the sleeves 4-ish inches long before adding the garter so they're a little bit cropped.