In Love with Autumn Rose

Sleeve Steeks?

2009-01-03T15:35:00.000-08:00

I am making Autumn Rose as a gift for my sister who has requested solid color sleeves. I am ready to join the sleeves to the bodice, but the more I think about it, the more I wonder if life wouldn't be easier if I steek the armholes, finish the sleeves, and then attach them. Has anyone tried anything like this? I know raglan sweaters are often made this way, but since the neckline on this is different than most, I wasn't sure. Thanks for your help. Everyone's sweaters look lovely!

From Start to Finish Line

2008-07-07T04:21:00.000-07:00

Just wondering.......of the 50 of us signed up for this knit along, which started, lets see......almost a full year ago.....how many have finished?

Was this your first fair isle?
If it was, what made you take the plunge with this particular design. (ie was it the fit of this particular design versus the traditional boxy fair isle pullover? was it Eunny's reputation as a designer?)
What did you like about this sweater visually?
What didn't you like?
Were you happy with the knitting experience?
Now that you've knit it (or part of it) what would you change if you did it again?

I'm wondering if you would knit fair isle again?

It's all over bar the blocking

2008-07-02T07:21:00.001-07:00

At last, Jamiesons delivered the long-awaited yarn and I could finish off the neckband. Obviously I couldn't wait to weave in the ends and block it etc before I tried it on!

Initial reaction is good. When I'd tried it on before doing the neckband I had felt that it was way too wide across the shoulders. Indeed, several people had commented that theirs kept slipping off their shoulders. So I boxed clever and did some small decreases at each raglan point and that seems to have made the difference. I'll take close-up photos when I've blocked etc.

There is a bit of bagginess above the bust along the raglan line and I think that perhaps the decreases didn't taper quite enough for my shape. Maybe that will even out in the blocking anyway. We shall see.

My only other comment at this stage is that perhaps bust darts could have helped under the bust rather than relying on the stretch and cling of the fabric for the fit. Just a thought, but I suppose that might have been overly complicated given the already complex patterning.

I'm Done!

2008-03-21T11:48:00.000-07:00

I'm done. I love my sweater. I have received many compliaments. I wear it every chance I get.

I had a problem maintaining row gauge (too few rows) so I had to add the band of the sunrise/madder to the sleeves and the body. Too maintain the length of the yoke, I also added more rows of the medallion pattern . I did run out of yarn but it turned out to be ok. I was going to be short 8 decreases but I made up for it by making my last decreases during the body bind-0ff. For the neckband bind-off, I used a tubular bind-off which looks great but took FOREVER. My mods in general were to make the sleeves longer and raise the neckline. A note about the neckline is that because of my problems with row gauge, it isn't much higher than the pattern calls for. The fit is ok but if I were to redo this, I would start the shoulder decreases a inch sooner to shorten the armscye. My sweater wants to slip off the shoulders. I also notice that the back neck on mine scoops down a tad lower than I want. Otherwise, I love this.

Off to the Frog Pond!

2008-03-17T04:29:00.000-07:00

I cast on all 296 stitches for the hem and started knitting. My circular needles were new and quite curly-wurly and it was hard to straighten them out properly (can you see where this is going yet?) but I struggled along merrily. It was good Saturday-night-whilst-watching-a-film sort of knitting and it progressed well.

The next day, after running the Hastings 1/2 marathon, I picked it up to do a little light knitting whilst I had a short rest. The twisting wouldn't straighten out and that's when I realised - yes, it was totally twisted when I joined and I was making a Mobius Strip! Oh dear. I twisted and turned it thinking I couldn't have been so daft but I had to accept it and so it was that rather than knitting yesterday afternoon I was ripping.

I didn't cast-on again last night and had a couple of glasses of wine instead to numb the pain!

Swatch this!

2008-03-14T03:41:00.001-07:00

I didn't start too well. After all the notes I've made about doing this I started swatching with the background colour in my left hand and the pattern colour in my right instead of vice versa, DOH! Not the end of the world as I realised after the 4th row. The pattern is not especially helpful as the chart shows dark colours as light boxes and light colours as dark boxes. How silly.

Here's the reverse of it before washing and blocking. I love the way the woven threads form their own pattern. It was very curly and hard to stretch out!

The front before washing and blocking.

I washed it in a gentle liquid wool wash then rinsed it and patted dry. When I first saw all the colours in the flesh I thought they looked rather drab and I was a bit disappointed. Now I've seen them together I've totally changed my mind as they really sing out. They are beautiful!

Having done the swatch I have several questions:

i) I'm using the pattern colour in my left hand and background colour in my right hand. When there is a big block of colour in the background colour (say 5 or more stitches) I can easily catch the pattern colour in to secure it. BUT, how do I do it when it's reversed? I don't see how I can catch the yarn in my right hand under the left hand yarn. Do I need to worry about it?

ii) Some of the rows use just one colour. This means the fabric is thinner as the patterned sections have 2 yarns. Is this OK?

iii) The Shetland Spindrift is very variable in thickness. The Old Gold is really chunky but the Shetland Black is incredibly thin and weedy. Does this matter in the scheme of things?

At least my gauge is OK. I've noticed that people have recommended knitting a size smaller than their actual bust measurement as it is meant to be close fitting. My actual measurement is 39" so I think I shall knit the 37" version as I don't want the neck to gape which it might if I did the larger size.

The other thing I wondered about is whether to increase the length a little. I'd better make a decision on that soon!

Another newbie

2008-03-11T08:18:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

I've been following the KAL for a while and have finally plucked up the courage to tackle my first big FairIsle project. I've got the book, I've got the yarn and this evening I shall be casting on to swatch. I am quite a slow knitter so this project will probably take me a while but I'm really looking forward to it. Wish me luck!

Finished!

2008-02-13T15:54:00.001-08:00

I'm done! I cast off last Friday, blocked Monday, and today I tried it on!

I'm happy with the depth of the neckline and I think I could wear it without a tshirt under it. The sleeves are actually a bit too tight despite my trying to block them wider - which is ironic because I was worried that my gauge was too fat there. The rest of it fits nicely, however, and I think I could get away with just a camisole under it because the Palette yarn is softer to the touch than the real shetland.

I agree with whoever on Ravelry said they had a slight problem with pooching in front where the raglan seams meet the neckline - I think it is the nature of the way the pattern is put together, and it's not very noticeable when being worn.

I did two fewer rows of ribbing on the neckband because I was down to the last couple of yards of Garnet Heather and I was not about to order another ball! If you want to make ANY size other than 35 inch you will need two balls of Palette in that color.

If I were to do it again I would knit one more round with black before setting the neck steek, as I think it looks slightly odd to have the gold blend up into the neckband like that - it needs the extra row of black to finish off the horizontal band there. I might also make a size larger - I am kind of uninterested in floppy sweaters these days but I am afraid I will find it too slim once I get wearing it. It's supposed to be chilly here tomorrow, so I might try it out with just a camisole under it and see how it fits when worn that way.

I enjoyed this project a lot, and I made a TON of use of the charts that Debbie made - I took the time to make myself chart pages for the front body above the armholes so that I could map out my neckline decreases, and also for the sleeves. I couldn't have knit this half so comfortably if I was trying to use the book charts. Thanks Debbie!

Help!

2008-02-12T12:09:00.000-08:00

I've done two repeats of my Autumn Rose and I think it's going to be too small (Yes, I did swatch and I tried it on after I'd knitted the rib). I'm knitting the 41" size and would like to some measurements to help me decide whether to frog and start again (I could always turn what I've already done into a handbag). It would also be useful to have a hip, waist and chest measurement to help me decide what to do.

Thanks

Above the armholes

2008-01-30T10:54:00.000-08:00

It has been awhile since I posted! I have joined up the sweater at the armholes - aren't those first few rows on a yoke sweater always awkward to get around! I liked what 'Spinning Jenny' on Ravelry did by raising the neckline, but I wanted it higher than level with the underarms. So I rejoined my yarns at the center front like the pattern said, intending to knit the band of crosshatch and then set my neck steek.

That was a dumb thing to do. It put the 'jog' between rows in the center front. After 6 rows I realized I just could not do that. I ran a size 1 circular into the gold joining row as a 'lifeline' and ripped back, tinked the joining row but left all the parts on the needle, then joined my yarn again at the left back raglan line and started again. Much better. I am going to set the center steek after I knit the solid gold row above the crosshatching.

Here is how it looked on Sunday right before I resigned myself to ripping back to the join.

I am happy with the way the colors are working out, but I do enjoy seeing other color schemes that people are devising, and I would love to try that myself someday.

A Question about neck shaping

2008-01-29T23:29:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone,
I'm getting to the point where I will be doing the neck shaping on the sweater, and I have a question for those who have finished. Where does the steek actually go? Is it in the middle of the neckline stitches I'm holding on the stitch holders or is it to one side? Thanks for the help.

Oops, I did it again!

2008-01-29T06:19:00.000-08:00

Hi,

My second autumn rose is done. Now I think I will take a break with knitting for a few days :o)

It's an "autumn violet" with loganberry (4sk), mulberry(2sk), lemon (<1,5sk) and white (<1sk) instead of the original red and yellow shades. I made the bigger size, added length (one more repeat on the sleeves and the belly) and was a little short with mulberry : i have accelerated the diminution at the end to finish 4 rows earlier.

I've used Harmony wood circular needle this time and it didn't tension the yarn as much as with metal one. The result is bigger this time... luckily not too big.

Have fun with this pattern!

Finally cast on

2008-01-26T16:06:00.000-08:00

I have started my Autumn Rose after completing my previous project. I love the colors, but I'm not in love with this yarn; I'm finding it very scratchy. I think it will be better once it gets blocked, but I'm a little worried. How has it blocked up for people who have finished the sweater? I'll post pictures once I get to something interesting.

It has begun...

2008-01-18T18:48:00.000-08:00

The beginning of a my first semester back at university may not be the best time to start a new relationship, but I'm afraid I had no choice. Love moves at its own pace, and I could resist no longer.

I received the Knitpicks Options needles in the size I needed (2.75mm) and cast on almost immediately. I am already in love with the shifting colors, the tiny stitches, the clever shaping... I can tell this feeling will last.

Autumn violet

2008-01-16T01:04:00.000-08:00

I received yesterday some other violet shades for my mother autumn "violet".

I tried a few combinaisons, nothing is exactly what I wanted but here is the best match I could find.

I don't have enough time to order others shades...

I hope she will like it!

Finally blogging the finale

2008-01-15T04:35:00.000-08:00

I actually managed to finish my Autumn Rose before the end of 2007 (just barely!) but because I've been at half-speed lately, I didn't get round to telling you guys about it before now (sorry).

All in all, I'm really pleased with it. Not only does it fit, I'm happy with the evenness of my knitting, it forced me to learn how to steek (!!!), and I can now say that I've actually knit and finished a sweater!

The only thing I'm not pleased with is the fit around the shoulder area. I assume has more to do with my body shape than the pattern itself; it's as though I have too much fabric in the shoulder area so unless blocked rigorously, the shoulders puff out slightly at the front between the neckband and the arm. Maybe I need a set-in sleeve shape, or less ease above the bust line?

This has been the most fun I've ever had knitting, and apart from the weaving in of 15 billion yarn ends, I enjoyed every second of it. Yes, even the parts where I had to rip back to the armholes.

I had so much fun that if I can figure out how to adapt the pattern to fit my shoulder area better I will certainly be making another one, albeit in a colour scheme of my own devising.

Long-winded details are on my blog along with a few more pictures.

Purple Autumn Rose

2007-12-29T06:05:00.000-08:00

Hi All,

This is my first post, although I've been reading the blog for a while. My pattern book and yarn arrived over Christmas. I'm attempting to do this in an alternative colour as rusts and golds are not really my colours. Now I'm just trying to get the balance right. Here is my first swatch. I think I'm going to change the black to a softer grey and the coral needs to be one of the purples.

I'm going to do a second swatch with what I think will be the colours that I will use in the garment.

Got some of my yarn

2007-12-22T09:38:00.000-08:00

I went to the LYS yesterday to pick up the yarn for Autumn Rose. They were out of several of the colors, but they have them on order, so I'll be picking them up next week. I sat and did my guage swatch at the store, and the guage was off, so I'll be going up a needle size. I'm going to be making the 39" size, planning to cast on just as soon I finish the sweater I'm working on now.

New to this

2007-12-18T21:11:00.001-08:00

Hi everyone,
I'm new to this sweater, but I'm really excited to be casting it on over the holidays. This is going to be my second fair isle sweater so I'm really excited to get it cast on. I'm making it as a gift for a friend who likes the pattern and says that she will wear the sweater. I'm not sure how much time it will take me to actually finish this as my knitting time is pretty limited, the first fair isle I've been working on since August, and I'm just wrapping up with the sleeves. Hopefully this one will be a bit faster due to the fact that I'll be starting over Christmas break and should get a good chunk done then. I'll be heading to my LYS this week to pick up the yarn and pattern for this since they have a kit.
I'm really excited to be able to join in this KAL, even though I'm coming late, because all of you have made such beautiful sweaters or progress on them, and you're obviously a very talented group. Thanks for having me; I'll post again when I've actually started this beautiful project.

Fini

2007-12-12T12:08:00.000-08:00

My Autumn Rose is finished and overall I'm happy. Pattern notes and final specs in this blog post including a small pattern error for the size 39. Thanks for all the help from the KAL group! It was so nice to have a resource for my first fair isle project.

Arghhh

2007-12-12T11:51:00.000-08:00

Two days ago, I was putting on my autumn rose pullover when I heard a scratch (again).

In fact I had already done a repair one the back of the cowl, and this time, it was in the front.

I think that I have knitted the last row in old gold to tight (in US0).

I will have to reknit the cowl. This time I will CO more stiches and I won't use the US0 for the last rows...
I hope the problem will be solved this way.
(It also may help for the puffing out of the shoulders in the front (blocking helped but it's not perfect...))

Started!

2007-12-10T15:58:00.000-08:00

I started last week! Here is the ribbing - at least, 3/4ths of it. I'm ready to move into the body pattern now!

I think I've already run across an error. If you look at the book photos, there is only one row of Old Gold at the top of the ribbing, then you get the black row. In the directions they tell you to knit the setup row in Old Gold and then start the chart - this would give you two rows of Old Gold, which is clearly not what is in the photos. So I think the setup row counts as row 1 of the chart and I'm heading in that direction (I'm making the small size so the charted knitting starts with the medallions).

Home stretch

2007-12-07T12:17:00.000-08:00

I am so excited to be coming towards the end of this project! I can't wait to cut the steek and see if it fits (one of the frustrating things about knitting this way...I usually try on my sweaters quite a bit as I go to customize fit). I've had a few questions and mistakes along the way but overall it has gone pretty well so far. More details at my blog: http://www.divaknitting.com/blog/2007/12/07/just-rosy

Mods, mods, mods

2007-12-04T10:14:00.000-08:00

One concern I have for this sweater is length. I prefer top down construction because it is rather easy to adjust for such things. Personally, I like my sweaters a little long in the body (no bared mid-riffs for me, please) and since I have a long torso, I frequently find most of my commercially made sweaters a a bit shorter than I would like. So my question for the KAL is this:

Could I do a provisional cast-on for the body then add the corrugated ribbing last in case I need to add length to the sweater? Specifically, would anyone notice if my stitches change direction?

Thanks.

Casting on the steek stitches

2007-12-01T17:18:00.000-08:00

I have reached the 10th increase round (size 39)of the body. Stitches for the steek are cast on at this point but I am a little confused because it seems like if I do the instructions as written the center of the neckline will be off??? (I am sure I am reading this wrong but I can't seem to figure out what I'm reading into it. Hopefully the wine isn't affecting my judgement.)

Could someone elaborate/reassure me on the instructions here? They are as follows: "begin working front neck shaping on same round as 10th inc round by slipping the center 31 sts of front to holder. Place marker on left hand needle, co10steek sts, place marker and continue chart as set."

To me it seems like the CO steek sts should be the center of the neck and if I CO AFTER the center 31 sts that would make them off center. I'm also unsure of how to treat the center sts on the holder? Am I to work in pattern across the 31 sts then place them on the holder? What do I do when I come to them on the next round?

I'm so glad you guys started this KAL. I'm hoping you can get me through my first fair isle project! It has been a real godsend so far!

Another one?

2007-12-01T05:12:00.000-08:00

Hi,

My Autumn Rose is finished, and after wearing it a few days, I have to say that I love it. To me the yarn is not to itchy.

But I was so impatient to wear it, that I didn't take the time to block it.
I realise that the shoulders are puffing out in the front. I hope that blocking will help!

I had a lot of fun knitting violet and white mitts and hat adapting the autumn rose pattern.

As I have a lot of yarn left I thought I could knit another Autumn Rose pullover as a gift.
I was considering a violet variation, here is a swatch :

And here a reconstruction of what the pattern would look like :

Now the problem will be to find the good shades of violet in shetland spindrift.
I was considering Aubretia, Loganberry heather mix and Clover or Violet and Anemone.
It's hard to choose without seeing the yarn...
And I am not sure for the yellow row, cream could be a better choice.

Advices are wellcome!

Swatch #234,531

2007-11-29T07:21:00.000-08:00

This is the color combo I settled on, what do you guys think?

How about an Autumn Rose Tam?

2007-11-26T07:11:00.000-08:00

I have been pondering how to make an Autumn Rose Tam. I have to knit my sweater first but since that is on hold in favor of Christmas Knitting, I have been thinking about an Autumn Rose tam a lot. So, here's what I have so far.

The band done in Autumn Rose corrugated rib.
Increases done in the triangular pattern between the medallions.
A band of the Sunrise/Madder pattern that is between the medallion bands.
The Center done in one giant Autumn Rose Medallion with decreases in the background color to maintain the gold frames.

I have been hunting hi and lo for a stitch marker for the top. I think a gold one with fall colored beads but it would really make my day to find one with a little leaf on the end.

As for my progress, I did start a sleeve which is doubling as my swatch. I did allow myself a little time to work on this because I think I am ahead of schedule for the gift knitting. I am knitting the smallest size based on Anne's recommendation about negative ease. When I checked my gauge, I was off, 32 and 34. I was using 3.25 bamboo needles because I am a tight knitter. I ripped but now I have to think about what to do about the needles. Do I use size 3 metal needles or go down to size 2? Frankly, the clover bamboo I was using, not a fan. There was too much memory in the cable and I felt I was constantly fighting with them but that may simply be because I like the 2 circ method. Oh, well. I guess you can never have too many needles.

New to the KAL

2007-11-25T15:59:00.000-08:00

Hi All!

Lots of firsts for me--this is my first ever KAL, and my very first post to a blog! I received my yarn and pattern book for this beautiful sweater a couple of weeks ago from Two Swans Yarn (thanks Karen) and have just been waiting for a free moment to take the plunge. I hope to get started in the next day or so. I have found all your finished sweaters and works in progress to be very inspirational. Thanks for sharing and wish me luck!

I did it!

2007-11-25T12:28:00.000-08:00

Iata! I did it!

My Autumn Rose is finished. I am soooooo happy! It's sooooo beautiful!

I had enough yarn to make the sleeves longer and honestly I have a lot left. I didn't touch 4 skeins and I just use a little of 4 others.

But I am quite sure that I will find what to do with them :o)

New...

2007-11-25T11:37:00.000-08:00

I am a new member planning to start Autumn Rose sometime next month. I don't have anything except a swatch right now, I have done up colors in Knitpicks Palette because I am risking so little money to have a shot at slightly recoloring it (I just don't look good in so much of an autumn palette). Here is my swatch - the one on the right. The one on the left was my first shot which tried to keep the green family (bracken and pistachio) in the mix, but it was a flop. So I'm going with the one on the right.

The preponderance of Old Gold was what really killed the original yarns for me. I substituted a more golden color, which seems a bit bright, but which reminds me of Elizabethan brocade when combined with the two reds in the diamond band.

I won't be posting for a bit as I am finishing up other projects and need to request the wonderful recolored chart that's been done here (BOO to Unicorn for that awful chart! where the dark blocks are the light yarns and the light blocks are the light yarns and the squares are microscopic!). I normally blog at KnitMe with three other friends.

Sorry!

2007-11-23T19:15:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure how I got confused and posted here instead of at my personal blog. I'm sorry you all got a random post about socks. I'll try not to let it happen again. I swear it wasn't a misguided call for attention.

Out of steam right before the finish

2007-11-21T06:03:00.000-08:00

I have been horribly lax at actually posting anything as I've been knitting my Autumn Rose, so now that I'm almost finished it I spouted a long, and picture-less blog-post instead. Most of which boils down to the simple fact that I've run out of yarn 6 rows to the finish line. I have more on order, but still...

However, I was surprised at how easy I found it to knit this sweater, and simply gob-smacked when the steek turned out to be a doddle! I can't believe I've let steeks frighten me so much for so long *sigh*. I can't wait to actually bind off the last stitch, sew in the last end, and block it; once that is done, my Autum Rose will have the distinction of being not only the first sweater I've ever steeked, but the first sweater I've ever finished. Yay for me!

DOH!

2007-11-20T10:02:00.000-08:00

I was just sitting here admiring the first sleeve of my sweater and noticed a mistake. WAY. DOWN. AT. THE. BOTTOM. Where the white arrow points there should be another row of "old gold". NO WAY am I frogging this so now this question is do I repeat the mistake on the second sleeve so they match or do it correctly?

If I do the second sleeve correctly there is a small chance I would go back and cut off the bottom of the first sleeve to fix it instead of ripping all the way back. However, if I repeat the mistake on the second sleeve do you think it will then look ok with the body will look done correctly?

Mvoing along

2007-11-20T07:54:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Anne, my patterning looks so much better! More details at my blog.

Hello again!

2007-11-16T10:59:00.000-08:00

Hi,

I received the yarn and the book last saturday. I have been working on it everyday since.

It's the first time I work with the Spindrift and to tell the truth it broke twice when I was casting on (when I had only a few more stiches to CO). No problems since but I nearly went crazy.
Am I the only one?

Another question : how to know if I have enough yarn to increase the sleeves length?

Which yarn in which hand

2007-11-15T19:55:00.000-08:00

Hi Cheryl

I think your problem might be the position of your yarns --

In Autumn Rose -- the reds are the background and the golds are the pattern --

If you are knitting two handed fair isle -- hold the red (the background shade) in your right hand, and the pattern shade, the gold, in your left hand.....that way the pattern shade is always coming from underneath the background shade -- it makes the pattern stitch ever so slightly larger and it stands out more.

If you're working with both strands in one hand -- just make sure that you're always carrying the background shade above with the pattern shade carrying along below -- never twisting.
If a piece of knitting is done with the yarns changing position -- it does stand out -- I was surprised the first time I saw this.

Anne

What's wrong with this picture?

2007-11-15T15:11:00.000-08:00

I posted about my gauge issues today at my blog and I thought everything was solved. I may still be having trouble though! When I look at other pictures, the section at the beginning of the sleeve with the diamond shapes in sunrise and madder seem much more defined than mine. Any idea what I might be doing wrong?! I'm getting gauge now but it still looks funky to me.

finally started my Autumn Rose!

2007-11-11T11:19:00.000-08:00

I´ve been wanting to knit this sweater since I saw it on eunnys blog some time ago.

Unfortunately... I created myself a little problem. I didn´t swatch, as I´m normally right on gauge for nearly everything. So I just got started. After about 12cm I realized that the sweater was HUGE, and rechecked everything.
Ooops! I was using 3.5mm needles instead of 3mm as called for in the pattern. But the sweater was really huge, so I did a swatch with 2.5mm, which turned out to be perfect. Ripped the whole thing, restarted a size smaller on the thinner needles.

Et voila! I´m about 1cm into the 3stockinette-1purl edge at the bottom. A bit of a deja-vu, really...
Oh well, I´ll get there, and I´ll share some progress photos when I get a bit further.

By the way, living in Norway, I was a bit at a loss about how to get the yarn. She Ewe Knits in Canada solved the problem for me, and I´m very happy with the service :)

Visit my blog at http://strikkebloggen.blogspot.com

Eek!

2007-11-04T13:18:00.001-08:00

Eek! A Steek!

More pictures and verbiage here, but right now? I think I need to go sit down....

--Deb

a tip

2007-10-24T16:04:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, I'm a lifelong knitter from Lexington MA and I'm absolutely loving this pattern. One tip for those who haven't yet taken off the center neck stitches: Eunny says to place them on a holder, but I found this really tricky when trying to continue to knit across the gap. Instead I put the center stitches on a loop of yarn and just pushed them inward, allowing me to knit across the gap comfortably without having to get around a cumbersome metal holder.

I'm now on the sleeves and things are humming along. Good luck to all!

Hello!

2007-10-24T08:52:00.000-07:00

Hello from France,

I am a french knitter and I fell in love with the pattern Autumn Rose on Eunny Jang's blog.

I am actually waiting for the yarn and the book.
I am so excited!

I love fair-isle and it will be my first KAL.

I will give news when the yarn will arrive.

Progress Report

2007-10-22T18:14:00.001-07:00

It occurs to me that I haven't shown a progress photo in a while.

So, here we go. The body and both sleeves all on one needle, with raglan shaping in progress.

It's all looking very nice. I just hope it fits when it's done!

--Deb
www.chappysmom.com

Blocking

2007-10-19T09:15:00.000-07:00

No, I haven't finished but I do have a rather basic question. What is your preferred method of blocking for fair-isle knitting and why?

I wet-block everything. Even lace (shhhhhhh). I really want to make sure that my knitting is clean and I just don't trust my iron around my knits. Period. My logic is that the animal in question never went near a hot iron, its hair (or silk) was never intended to go near a hot iron, and I have put far to much work and effort into knitting whatever it is I have just knit to potentially damage it with an iron.

How about you?

Hi everyone!

2007-10-16T09:12:00.000-07:00

Hi! I'm Bea and I have been working on finding the perfect for me color combo for Autumn Rose. This

is what I have so far, but I think I'm going to rip back to the cuff and replace the white with dark grey. I just received a shipment of some new colors from Two Swans Yarn, and I'm going to incorporate some blues and purply pinks in the medallion area. I'm really excited to be a part of this group and I look forward to seeing lots of other Autumn Roses!

Weaving in ends

2007-10-09T07:18:00.000-07:00

For those of you not looking forward to weaving, I came across this while researching another (non fair-isle) project. Sorry, still getting the hang of blogging protocol so I hope she won't be offended by linking her post here. Happy knitting.

Details

2007-10-08T18:51:00.000-07:00

Thanks for all the nice comments. I was so excited that the sweater was done that I forgot to mention the details. I used the suggested yarn and a 3.25 mm needle. I knit smallest size and my only modifications were to the neckline.

I wanted something not quite so plunging so I started the neck shaping 18 rows later than written. I didn't change the shaping, just the starting point. The way it worked out I started my neck steek at the same time I attached the sleeves. Because I had fewer neck stitches I picked up 232 stitches for the neckband. It seems to lay pretty flat, thank the knitting goddess.

Once the weather returns to normal and cools down, I'll take some more pictures. 30 degrees C is too hot to wear a fair isle wool sweater for long, though it does give insight to where the term "sweater" comes from.

Finished

2007-10-08T15:15:00.001-07:00

... but not yet blocked. I'm really happy with how this came out.

OK, another newbie question

2007-10-07T22:06:00.000-07:00

Thanks for the help with my last question! I totally get the yarn dominance thing now. But... now I have another question (you'll never get rid of me now, he he).

I've finished the ribbing and am on the first row that uses two colors of black and old gold. My question: Is the medallion pattern supposed to work out evenly over the seams? I'm knitting the smallest size and I ended up about 1/4 way through a medallion at the side seam. How is that going to work out properly? Am I missing something here?

TIA!

Am I thinking about this right??

2007-10-03T22:03:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody! I just got my kit yesterday and cast on for my swatch tonight. I'm so excited about this sweater.

However, I do have a question. I'm not very experienced in fair isle knitting, but I have heard that if you hold a strand in each hand (like I do) you have to worry about which hand has the "dominant" yarn (I think that's the right term). While knitting my swatch, I'm just taking whatever color is first up in the row in the right hand and the second color in the left hand, but I'm pretty sure this isn't the right way to do it.

Sooo... on to my question! I can't tell from the chart which colors are supposed to be dominant in each row. Is there any way to tell? Does this even matter?

Thanks in advance for any help!

Hello Fellow Knitters!

2007-10-03T08:23:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to drop a line and introduce myself. I got my kit on Saturday and started one sleeve and while it is too early to check my row gauge, my stitch gauge seems fine. I am using bamboo needles because they were the only needles I had that were the right size. Gotta say, not a fan. So it's off the LYS to pick up yet another set of metal needles. I am trying to maintain my discipline as I also received a ton of supplies for my Christmas knitting and while I hope everyone will appreciate MY Autumn Rose, they probably want their gifts more. In the mean time, I will keep watching all of you lovely people and your lovely sweaters.
Leah M

Almost sweater-looking

2007-10-02T13:44:00.000-07:00

I am now at the point that I can attach my finished sleeves to my sweater. I'm going to try to force myself to tuck in the ends in my sleeves before I start knitting everything together. Since I'm also making the neckline higher, I'm about to start knitting my steeks.

Pattern Errata

2007-10-01T12:43:00.001-07:00

Hi all!

Just in case you're on auto pilot and are casting on for the sleeves, there is an error in the pattern. You should be using US2's for the sleeves, not US3's as the pattern calls for.

Knit on :)

Milestone

2007-09-30T15:14:00.000-07:00

Well, we've reached a major milestone, Autumn Rose and I.

We've reached the armholes.

Which means that this piece gets to rest for a while now while I start the sleeves.

Of course, I haven't printed out my revised-to-fit-my-row-gauge sleeve schematic yet, so that's just a little . . . tricky . . . at the moment.

But, no matter! It feels really good to have gotten her this far. There's still a lot of work to do, but the main part of the body is such a huge chunk of it, it's very satisfying to have it done.

And I'm looking forward to how fast it's going to feel that the sleeves are going, compared to this, too . . .

Going surprisingly swimmingly

2007-09-30T10:28:00.000-07:00

I've had some mild fair isle experience before (a swatch, a mitten I never finished) but this sweater has surprised me with how well it's been going so far. I'm into waist increases and am really enjoying the process of this technique. The pattern rows are also relatively easy to memorize--didn't think this was something I'd be able to do on the subway on my way to work, and am glad to have been mistaken!

I gotta give a big thanks to Karen at Two Swans Yarns...she only had the old gold in the DK weight and suggested I might be able to get away with using it if I didn't feel like waiting for the Spindrift. It's been working out really well. I'll post a pic soon.

Stalking the postman

2007-09-26T19:42:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!
I can't wait for the mail to get here. I called a dozen places yesterday and was able to locate someone who had everything in stock! I ordered the kit immediately and I can't wait for the mail to get here :) Meanwhile, I'll just keep drooling over all of the lovely wip's. Knit on! And please post more pics. BTW...I've been checking out the cast on edges in the photos...does anyone have any suggestions for casting on for the corrugated ribbing? I have read that a firmer cast on is desired so as not to have the curling or "ruffly" look at the edge. Any ideas?

Flying Along

2007-09-26T14:01:00.000-07:00

The body of my sweater is just flying off the needles. I was a bit worried that my tension would be off since I'm using slippery addis instead of sticky bamboo but I haven't had any problems yet. I've finished my waist decreases and I'm about to start my increases and I'm having so much fun.

Just starting

2007-09-24T18:08:00.001-07:00

I cast on for my Autumn Rose last night and I'm working my way through the ribbing. This is my first colour-work sweater. I am so excited. I'm planning to change the neckline so it doesn't plunge quite so low. I'm not entirely sure how I'm going to do this but I still have time to work it out before I get there. I'll post a picture, hopefully some time tomorrow.

Jenny

How to Put Up a Button on Your Blog

2007-09-16T19:43:00.001-07:00

Well, I certainly is no expert on software and websites, but I think I can help a little on the whole button thing. By all means this is not the only way to write the code, but it is the easiest for me. Also, as far as I know, this works for blogger only. I am not familiar at all with all the other blog sites out there, but I think the concept is the same. You can try using it as it is basic HTML, but I can't guarantee that it will work.

Go to your blog dashboard, and click on "Template".
Click on "Add a Page Element" and a window will pop-up, click on HTML/JavaScript.
Add a new title, and on the blank spot, copy and paste this code (Replace "#" with "<" and "*" with ">"): #center*#a href="The Link of the KAL"*
#img border="0" src="The Picture Link"*#/a*#/center*#br/*
Viola! You now have a link with a button!

One thing to note on the images - if you load them to your blog, you can load it as a post in the "Compose" stage. Once the picture is loaded, you can click on the tab "Edit Html" to get the code for the picture. The code is usually a long string of letters begins with "http://". There will be two of them there, and be sure to read the whole code, and choose the one with "s400" in it, instead of "s1600-h". If you use the latter, you won't get an image. One way to check if the link works is to copy that link and paste it to a new browser, the picture should show if the link works. After you get the picture link, you can just delete the picture and post without losing the picture for the button.

Another way to load the pictures is to upload them via picasa, flickr or photobucket, basically a photo website. When you load the picture, they usually give you a link and all you have to do is to copy and paste the link into the above code where it says "The Picture Link".

I hope this helps! And if someone knows a better way to put the button on a blog's side bar, please feel free to post about it!

Silver Lining

2007-09-16T18:56:00.001-07:00

Well, as usual, my gauge is completely bizarre, and true to form, my row-gauge is way, way off. I've got the ribbing and 47 rows done and the sweater is about 8.5" long . . . meaning I'm getting about 25 rows to 4" rather than the 32 called for in the pattern.

This isn't exactly a PROBLEM, per se, but it is definitely something that needs addressing. As in, obviously, I'm going to need to rework some thing. Like, say, the entire layout/chart of the sweater. And the sleeve, too.

On the plus side, it means the sweater's going to be done that much sooner, huh? I mean, a 23" sweater at 8 rows to an inch is 184 rows. But at only 6.25 rows to an inch, that's 144 rows, which means the whole thing will go faster.

Well, at least, it will once I've recalculated all the shaping on my handy-dandy excel chart....

And, no matter what the gauge, it sure is pretty . . .

Autumn Rose Buttons?

2007-09-15T16:36:00.000-07:00

Hello - I have created a button for my blog to link to here, and figured if anyone else wanted to share it they are very welcome. Basically, as I am not technically minded all I can say is that you save the image to your PC and then upload it onto your blog and then create a link and er, do stuff. So anyway, please don't ask me how to do it - as I really am clueless and have the memory of a goldfish, but it beats winding the yarn into little balls this evening (I also procrastinate), my theory being that the yarn has just had a long journey from Shetland to Scotland and needs to rest first. So anyway, in case anyone is wanting a button, here are two possible images to save onto your PCs and then like I said "do stuff"...

One Band Done

2007-09-12T18:59:00.001-07:00

Well, I've got the first band of color pattern done . . . slowly, slowly, I'm making progress. That's something, right? (grin)

And, wow, this throw pillow is exactly the right color for modelling this . . . especially with the red chair in the background!

--Deb
www.chappysmom.com

My colors

2007-09-11T20:58:00.001-07:00

Since so many people have asked I took the time to make a little chart of the colors I'm using for my Autumn Rose. I used a mixture of Knit Picks Palette and Digit Yarn. They are marked on the picture below. Sorry to say that it's not all cheap KP yarn but it is almost half and the main color (which you need the most of) is KP yarn. I tried a few swatches with just KP yarn but none of them were exactly what I was looking for. Hope this helps someone!

This is how I replaced the colors:

Shetland black = KP Black
Old Gold = KP Bark
Sunrise = Digit Lapis
Madder = Digit Bayberry
Pine Forest = KP Navy
Bracken = Digit Walnut
Admiral Navy = KP Marine Heather
Pistachio = Digit Brindle
Peat = Digit Indigo
Yellow Ochre = Digit Hickory
Scotch Broom = Digit Sagebrush

Off like a turtle...

2007-09-10T13:59:00.000-07:00

Hi, everyone! I am finally getting around to my first ever post on my first KAL. I have been waiting for this sweater ever since Eunnie showed a glimpse on her blog. Here's my yarn and a teeny-tiny beginning to a swatch. Thanks to chappysmom for sending me her fabu chart. I modified it a bit for Calc, an open source program. If you don't have Excel, I'd be happy to send you the edited chart if you provide me with the cast-on counts for each size.

I am mixing a couple different yarns to try to save a little cash. We'll see how the gauge comes out, but I am pleased that the other yarn seems just a bit softer.

I did the mental math yesterday and figured out that in the medallion portion of the sweater there are 4 ends to work in for every three rows. Ugh. It'll be worth it, right?

Gauging Issues

2007-09-08T07:15:00.000-07:00

Gosh . . . something like 9 rows into the pattern now . . . hoo-boy, this is just zipping along! (grin).

I need to take a closer look at my gauge, though. It seems tighter than it was in my swatch, and that, um, could definitely make a difference in, you know, being able to wear this later on. (At this rate, it will be much later.) But of course, since I DO want to wear it, I'd better make sure now rather than later, right? If I have to tear back to the ribbing to switch up to a bigger needle now, it's the loss of about a week's worth of knitting, but that's still much, much better than having to rip later.

Of course, the swatch was washed, which might have affected the gauge. The only problem is that I didn't bother to measure it before I washed it, so I don't know if it "bloomed" or not . . . and therefore, don't know if the sweater itself will stretch slightly upon washing, or not.

Anybody out there know off-hand whether Jamieson's Spindrift tends to grow, shrink, or stay the same size once it's washed?

Edited to add: Good news! I tranferred half the stitches to another circular and then tried the whole thing on . (Right now, it makes a lovely belt.) Luckily, it fits, so . . . we're good to go!

Making progress...

2007-09-07T23:59:00.001-07:00

So far I'm loving it, I can't even believe I'm the one making this! For my first color work I think I'm doing pretty good. I made some major mistakes in the beginning but they are on the back and I'm too lazy to start over. I'm pretty sure no one else will notice anyway. I also mixed up my colors this time round. I ended up putting each combo in it's own bag a al chappysmom. I haven't decided if I'll continue in the incorrect colors or consider all of this the border and change back to the order from my swatch on the next repeat. I'll have to see how it looks after it's been topped by the blue checked stripe.

Soon but Not Yet

2007-09-06T14:24:00.001-07:00

I will admire your Roses for a few more weeks, my kit will not be shipped until then due to lack of a color. It is a major color, lol. But it is ok with me as I know AR would take precedent over all other WIPs so they at least stand a chnce for another few weeks, LOL. I love the color substitutions you are making, beautiful work ladies.

Black and White charts

2007-09-05T05:14:00.001-07:00

Well, in the case of Autumn Rose, grey and white charts.....I'm with you Deb, I knit two handed fair isle (background with the right and pattern with the left hand) and I had trouble with this chart too when I started out.

I usually convert my charts into strictly black/white -- get rid of all of the symbols or the coloured charts that are hard to tell when a shade changes - and do exactly what you see in the SS4 book -- black and white chart with columns to the right and mark out which shade is used in which hand on each row.

Background yarn in the right (white boxes) and pattern yarn (grey boxes) in the left. Then it struck me -- the columns on this chart are reversed -- the white boxes are the left column and the grey boxes are the right column.....could it be something this simple that has our brains confused? It's early, maybe this is just too easy a solution, but if I had recognized this before I knit Autumn Rose, I would have changed this to make it more knitter friendly (for me).

I also did use markers to identify where each repeat was....and marked the chart accordingly - it made it much easier.

Don't put a marker before your side seam purl stitch, just put one after it -- you'll feel the marker, pull your yarn to the front, purl the stitch, put the yarn to the back, slip the marker and continue knitting.

Like anything else, it takes a while for your hands, eyes and brain to all get coordinated when starting a new project.

Now it really begins

2007-09-04T18:38:00.000-07:00

I've knitted the first few rows of my Autumn Rose (beyond the ribbing, that is) and am going to have to put in some stitch markers. Every time I knit to the center point and then turn around and go back on the chart I get lost, reading the chart left to right. At least with stitch markers I'd be able to figure out where I am a little faster!

And yes, I'm well aware that I could take my excel sheet of the 1/4 and duplicate the other half . . . that, apparently, is too sensible. Although, speaking of my Excel chart--if you, like me, are having trouble with the dark squares being the light yarn and the light squares being the dark yarn, I've just changed it on the chart . . . It was driving me nuts.

Oh, and the "seam stitches" . . . The design has a faux seam stitch at the sides, which I think is a lovely touch, except they're made in the background color, which I carry in my right hand, and marked by stitch markers on either side . . . having to slip the stitch marker, pull my right-hand yarn into the front to be able to do a single purl stitch, wrangle the yarn to the back again and then slip the second stitch marker . . . this is driving me a bit crazy. I'm not sure what I want to do about it. I don't think it would look right in the foreground color. I don't want to just knit the stitch. I could certainly ditch one of the stitch markers, but . . . still, for me at least--a Continental-style knitter--two-handed color work with purl stitches from the right hand just does not work! I certainly do know how to purl with my right hand, but the juggling of both colors is frustrating. Not to mention throwing off my gauge and making the "seams" look sloppy. Clearly, I need to come up with a solution fast.... Suggestions? Commiserations?

Meanwhile, plugging onward...

--Deb in NJ
www.chappysmom.co

Hello from a Kiwi in Scotland

2007-09-04T14:51:00.000-07:00

Hi, I'm smitten with Autumn Rose like the rest of you. Thank you to Bryna and Jenn for responding so nicely to my garbled email asking to join - I'd seen the adverts in IK, but only just got the book and seen Autumn Rose in full glory so was somewhat beyond speech and probably not making a lot of sense with all the excitement. I am now happily trying to choose colours as although Eunny chose some gorgeous hues they won't suit my colouring (I am aiming more for a Winter Rose I guess), now back to the yarn cards to do justice to this project - just wanted to say hello. Normally I live over at Knitonlybutalso .

Hello Peeps

2007-09-04T06:24:00.000-07:00

I am so excited...I tried, honestly I tried to not fall in love with this sweater. I wouldn't look anytime the photo appeared, but in a moment of melancholy, DS2 went to college, I faltered and ordered the kit. woohoo! Once ordered I knew there would be a KAL somewhere. SO as soon as the kit arrives I will be co...limited time to devote due to other WIPs but they will all get their two days of time on a rotating basis...lol

2007-09-03T13:08:00.000-07:00

Roses and Frog Ponds

I initially didn't follow the written instructions for the sleeve because I looked at the picture and didn't see a black/gold band at the bottom. Anne set me straight but it meant ripping back to the cuff. I'm now chugging along and I love the colour-play.

I wish I had more time to work on this! I do plan to weave in the ends as I go (every 5 inches or so) to avoid being overwhelmed with ends when I'm near completion.

I also charted the design on Stitch and Motif Maker. When I look at a chart and see a black square I automatically process it as the darker colour. For some reason here, the darker shades are represented by the lighter squares so I was not zipping along until I laid out the chart as I see it in my mind.

Details on my blog here.

Beginnings

2007-09-01T19:14:00.000-07:00

I have officially begun my Autumn Rose pullover but I guess mine is more of a summer tide than and Autumn Rose, LOL! It took me two days to do the 15 rows of corrugated ribbing. I sure am glad that's over. I've started working on the pattern using two hands with one color to either side of myself. Seems to be going a lot faster. I think it was the purl stitch in the ribbing that was really slowing me down.

So far the tension on the ribbing is looking pretty good. I'm hoping to keep that up as I move on to the body. Wish me luck!

Cross posted to my blog.

ETA: Tension not going so well on the body stitches. For some reason I've gotten really loose. I'm going to put summer tide to the side for today while I look up some other two color knitting techniques. Maybe I should have chosen something a little less ambitious for my first time out *smile*

Slowly

2007-08-31T18:41:00.001-07:00

Slowly, but at least we're moving along . . . 10 whole rows of ribbing! (Let's hear it altogether . . . "Oooohh . . . Aaaahhhhh . . . ")

--Deb

Excel

2007-08-28T18:57:00.001-07:00

I'd be willing to email my Excel sheet with the colorized chart to anyone who'd like it IF you can prove that you have the pattern.

For proof? . . . Tell me the number of stitches you need to cast on for each of the sizes . . . that should do it!

Send me an email at chappysmom AT gmail DOT com

(Although please note that I'm offering this to members of the knit-along ONLY.)

--Deb
www.chappysmom.com

Ready, Set....

2007-08-25T15:49:00.000-07:00

Got my yarn....

Got my chart colorized in Excel....

Got my yarn organized into pairs in ziploc bags for organization's sake....

Got my swatch started....

....And, in fact, finished. It's washed and drying as we speak, and I'll measure it in the morning. I started with #2 Suzanne's Ebony needles, but quickly switched down to Addi Lace in US size #1 since my gauge is always notoriously loose. I think I might actually be close to the 30/4 inches required, though, which is something of a miracle. (When I knitted the Celtic Dreams aran last year, I ended up using size 3 needles with aran-weight yarn to get gauge.)

Now I'm just worrying about whether I've got enough yarn, since I plan on modifying the neckline to be not quite so low, and to make fewer decreases for the waistline since, well, my waistline isn't exactly as concave as it should be. (I really need to do more situps.)

But, basically, I'm ready to start! So, hello, everyone.

--Deb
www.chappysmom.com

Somebody stop me...

2007-08-25T00:32:00.000-07:00

I think I have finally found the colors I like. I'm going to post all the swatch pics here again so sorry if I slow down anyone's computer. I'm just entirely too anal and I need someone else to look at these and tell me if the one I've picked is crazy. Ok, so the winner (right now *smile*) is the swatch on top. Let me know what you think. I've knit so many swatches I'm worried that I might not have enough yarn for the actual sweater now! I'm also a few stitches off on gauge (too big), don't really know what I'm going to do about that yet, I'm already using size 1 addi's. Sigh...

Cross posted to my blog...

Autumn Rose finale.....

2007-08-21T17:02:00.000-07:00

It's done.....well, I think I'll give it a steam press to set it now that I know it fits. After steaming, I'll clean up the neckline steek and tack it down. But other than that, it's done!

This is me trying to replicate one of the photos in the Simply Shetland 4 book......

This sweater is my favourite fair isle.....I love it.

More photos and thoughts on this design at Shades of Shetland.

This sweater has to be close fitting -- no ease to speak of -- or the neckline won't sit close to the body. Don't make your sweater too large.

I started Autumn Rose on Friday, June 29 -- so this was an 8 week knit for me -- don't forget, I got a head start on most of you. But I can attest, the pattern is error free, follow the written instructions as well as the charts, and you'll be okay!

Happy Knitting.

Still swatching

2007-08-20T19:02:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

I'm new to the group but not to this sweater. I've been swatching like a crazy woman for the past few days trying to decide on colors. I wasn't too happy with all the red in the original so I'm trying to make a mostly blue and brown color scheme. I'm not really liking any of them yet though.

Here are the swatches

I knit only half of each chart cuz I'm lazy and knew I would be doing quite a few of these. I've photoshop'd them to get an idea of what the entire motif would look like.

But I still don't know that I'm in love with any of these and since I know this is going to be a long project for me (my first fair isle) I want to make sure I'm happy before I get started. I'm thinking of ordering some other colors to try out (I'm using Knit Picks palette and Digit yarn). Pretty much all the yarn I'm using was already in the stash so this will be an almost guilt free sweater, YAY! LOL.

I'm loving all the other sweaters I'm seeing here and can't wait to see how they fit as people start finishing up. Thanks for allowing me to share with you all!

Cross posted to my blog.

My Kit Came!

2007-08-20T18:01:00.001-07:00

So Excited! I can't wait to get started, but I'll have to finish my dad's vest first. Hurry up Vest, knit yourself!!!!

Gauging the gauge

2007-08-19T21:14:00.000-07:00

I got gauge -- both row and stitch gauge! I used size US 4 needles. I'm a tight knitter and I knew the US 2's called for in the pattern would be too small for me. I know that row gauge is critical for a raglan sweater, so I was really sweating it. (If I couldn't get row gauge, then this was not going to be a project for me.)

I really like the jewel tones of the green, blue, and red.

I'm almost ready to cast on. I love the look of corrugated ribbing, but I think I'll go down a needle size or two for that part.

Can't wait to get started

2007-08-19T08:57:00.000-07:00

This is my first knitalong, my first kit purchase, and my first sweater that I've fallen passionately for. The kit and book will be sent out to me on Monday for delivery on Thursday...and the sights of sweaters-in-progress and gorgeous swatches are making me ever more impatient to begin. I'll be spending Christmas in Rome, and have hopes that this'll be done in time to come with me.

My Blue/Green Autumn Rose - Swatch

2007-08-18T19:08:00.000-07:00

Here is my swatch! I soaked it in water hopeing to get the yarn to bloom a bit to get a more accurate gauge, but I havn't measured it yet. This is my first real fair-isle ever! I'm very excited. I like the yarn too!

More info on my blog

Cutting the steek

2007-08-18T18:39:00.000-07:00

I've just cut open the neckline steek on my Autumn Rose.....video on my blog Shades of Shetland.

I've tried it on and it's very flattering -- when I've done the neckline rib, I'll block it out a little bit to give me some "ease".

Autumn Rose finishing

2007-08-18T07:48:00.000-07:00

I've finished knitting the body -- right now I'm tiding up the yarn ends on the inside, and will be grafting the underarms later today.

Photos and details on my blog Shades of Shetland.

I'm knitting the 43" size and I'm pretty sure that I've used significantly less yarn that called for in the pattern.....but in the frenzy of knitting, I might have missed some balls somewhere.....I'm going to weigh my sweater to get a better idea of how much yarn I've used.

Sizing

2007-08-15T16:51:00.000-07:00

Mikaiya - the sizes given for Autumn Rose are finished sizes -- knit to gauge -- so it's up to you to decide how much ease you want it to have.

Personally, I'm a 43" chest and I'm making the 43" sweater, because it is a very deep wide neckline, and even though I will be wearing a little something underneath, I want it to be snug fitting across the chest -- to keep that neckline in check.
I'm 13 rows from the shoulder -- so I'll be cutting my neckline steek VERY SOON......and I'm very excited (terrified) to see how the neckline looks.

In love indeed...

2007-08-15T11:55:00.001-07:00

Hello! I am so excited to get started on this knitalong. I am purchasing the pattern and yarn this evening or tomorrow, I hope, and I aim to cast on at the beginning of September (once I've completed the Mystery Stole 3 knitalong- which surely I will have done by then!). I have knit a few fair isle stockings and little projects, but this will be my very first fair isle sweater. Scary! Fun! I am extremely pleased to know that it is all charted, meaning I won't have to keep track of shaping separately from the fair isle. This is by no means a true beginner project, but I think I am up to the challenge.

I do have a question for those of you with the schematics already- or consider it a request for your knitterly advice. I am torn between two sizes, and there is a significant difference in kit cost depending on which I choose.

Arguing for the smaller size (37), this is a very form fitting sweater. I wouldn't want to knit something that will be loose. I envision wearing it with a little silk or cotton cami, for work and for play. In general, I choose to knit a size 36-38, depending on the pattern. I believe my Bobble Blue was a 36, for example.

On the other hand, the larger size (39) is much closer to my actual bust measurement, and I know that with the fair isle this will be a much heartier fabric and not as forgiving as a simple stockinette, or stretchy like a rib or cable pattern.

How did you select your size? What sort of ease do you think is built in? I welcome your comments! I'm leaning towards knitting the 37, but purchasing the yarn for the 39- worst case, I'll have extra and can make some of the cute mitts Eunny designed.

My book arrived!

2007-08-13T18:28:00.000-07:00

I came home tonight to the wonderful sight of a package waiting by the door. And when I opened it, guess what was inside?

My book!!!

The first page has a close-up of the Autumn Rose fabric, and it is just exquisite! And here's the main picture with the pattern:

It's probably the most challenging project in the whole book, and I must admit to feeling just a teensy bit nervous about it, but if there's one thing I've learned in knitting it's that if I take things a step at a time, I always seem to get there somehow. Now I just need to last until my yarn arrives!!

The Rules

2007-08-13T11:48:00.000-07:00

This KAL is a place for people to have fun while sharing the adventure of knitting a great sweater. So we don't want to seem bossy, but for this to remain a fun and enjoyable experience, it will help if we all abide by a few simple rules.

Rules for Knitters:

1. Be nice.This should be obvious. But in case you need clarification: Don't insult people, their backgrounds, their religions, their knitting, their work, their ideas, their hometown, their photographic ability, or anything else. If we all respect each other and our differences, this will be a great KAL.

2. Even if you are just a knitter, not a retailer, please try to refrain from mentioning particular retailers by name in your posts and comments. We really want to avoid favoritism or free advertising and keep the focus on the knitting itself. If you know of a retailer who sells the materials for this project who does not appear on our list, please email us at inlovewithautumnrose AT gmail DOT com and we will add them. You don't need to mention it yourself.

3. When you post, please don't steal bandwidth. If you are using a picture from another site or blog, please download it to your own computer first, and re-upload it to blogger. Don't just link directly to it.

4. Please do post! What will make this KAL fun, interesting, and informative for everyone is if we can inspire and help one another by showing our work, asking questions, answering them, and just generally keeping up each other's enthusiasm.

5. Have fun!!

Rules for Retailers:

1. If you are a supplier of the book and yarn needed for this project, you can email us at inlovewithautumnrose AT gmail DOT com, and we will add your name to our alphabetical list of retailers. If you have a special deal or discount to offer, please indicate that on your own website.

2. We will not advertise for any retailer beyond listing your name. You are responsible for keeping your website up-to-date with information about special offers, products, and ordering options.

3. If you are a retailer and also an individual knitter participant in the KAL, you may not at any time advertise your products when you post to the blog. If you do, you will not be allowed to participate in the KAL anymore, and your name will be removed from the list of retailers.

4. If we get enough participants to warrant holding one or more contests, and you choose to donate a prize, email us and we will mention who donated the prize in the post about the contest. You will also be mentioned on the Prize Page, along with all other prize donors, whether private or retail.

One final word:

We can't anticipate every possible issue, so if something comes up that requires a new rule, we will add it here. Thanks for following the rules and making this an enjoyable experience for everyone!

How We Fell in Love

2007-08-10T12:53:00.000-07:00

All the way back in March, we were reading through our usual blogs, when we came accross this entry on Eunny Jang's blog. It was love at first sight. The waist shaping! The colors! The neckline! We loved this sweater with a passion we had never known before. We knew we had to knit it. Right away!

But we had to be patient. Eunny had just sent it off to be published, and the book was not going to come out until the end of the summer. Well, finally, that time has come, and the book is here! If you want to see a slideshow with two nice views of Autumn Rose (as well as pictures of all the other projects), click here.

If you don't have the book yet, we have a list of known retailers in the sidebar. You can visit their websites for more information about prices, availability, and discounts. As we learn of more options (or if you tell us about any--via email, please, not the comments), we'll add them.

How to join the KAL:
If you would like to join the Autumn Rose Pullover knitalong, please email us at inlovewithautumnrose AT gmail DOT com. We will send you an invite, and you can join the blog as a contributor. We will probably also be creating a Flickr group, but one thing at a time.

So, start your engines, order your books, buy your yarn, and LET'S GET KNITTING!!!!