Fiber #49 // Stripes of gold

The first FO from my autumnal plans!  I know what you're thinking.  "Yawnzers, Jessica, another sweater?  It doesn't look all that fancy."  Well, I'm here to tell you folks, this was my first time winging a sweater pattern, start to finish, and it turned out pretty darn well, if I do say so myself.  Boatneck secured with little buttons at the collar, 3/4 sleeves, cream and gold striping?  Yes, yes, yes.

I believe I used a purchased sweater pattern as a general guide for shoulders and sleeves, even though my gauge was 22 stitch/4 inch instead of the prescribed 19st/4in.  Living dangerously!  You'll notice I even did some stripe matching at the sleeves.  How's that for getting overly fancy, and all that.

Fiber #49 // Stripes of gold
Pattern: slapdash/seat of my pants
Yarn: recycled mystery yarn from cowl purchased on Etsy; Louet Gems Sport (merino) in cream or ivory, 2.1 hanks
Needle: size 5
Notions: 4 buttons harvested from this refashion

Boring construction notes:
*Used 3 sets of short rows at each shoulder, front and back, so that the pieces would overlap sufficiently to attach the buttons
*No button holes, just stitched the buttons straight on, and secured the seams with some stitching along the ribbing (using the Louet)
*Jogless stripes, going towards the back, and when I got to the underarm split I just switched colors along the edges, which does mean I have one not-exactly-parallel stripe somewhere near my right shoulder blade.

Winging your own sweater pattern does slow down the process considerably, and is generally prone to increased frustration over ripping and re-ripping back sections.  However!  The more I both knit and sew, the more confident I become in figuring out my body, and, just as importantly, getting a sense for what types of shapes, and at what proportions/measurements, create the type of garment I like.  For example, I know I prefer cropped blouses and sweaters - its a petite thing, but it also lets me pair tops with both pants and skirts, which is important for me since mix-and-match versatility is a high priority for me.  Don't have enough hours in the day to go crafting clothing that just goes with pants or with skirts ...

This also means that, armed with a ruler (which I'm often missing when  I knit on the road ... I try to substitute in various body parts of which I have a vague sense of their length ... NOT recommended), some math skills (mine often disappear on me), and a general working knowledge of construction options, increase/decrease possibilities, and stitch patterns ... there is no end to the possibilities!  So expect more of these in 2013.

I am immensely satisfied with this sweater. In fact, I may go so far as  to get big-headed and proclaim myself as making significant progress on this whole "10,000 hours to becoming an expert" thing, and at crafting a handmade wardrobe, no less.  Now, ahem, have I invested more total hours towards crafting or writing?  Erg ...