I finished the Alchemist sweater (design by Wool & Pine) and I am really happy with it! This was an interesting knit for me and I learned new skills as I worked my way though the pattern. I’d like to unpack the whole process a little for you.
Look at that yarn!! I had to have a sweater made from it and as soon as the Alchemist pattern hit the Ravelry pattern stream I thought that it would be a good fit. As I knitted along, I felt better and better about the match between the yarn and the pattern. There was a lot to appreciate (and some YouTube watching as I got new skills) along the journey. The first big “aha!” that happened was around the shoulder shaping.
That shaping at the top of the picture is a top-down, seamless, set-in sleeve with a saddle shoulder. It all messed with my head at first until I understood what was happening, but it was absolutely worth the headache. The sweater fits beautifully and there isn’t extra bulk in the sleeve as often happens in my sweaters. Pretty cool, right?
Then there was the ribbing that finished the neck opening. The back of the sweater was a little wonky, and I was not exactly thrilled with how the shoulders were looking at the neckline. I figured that all would become more clear in time, and that’s what happened. The directions on how to pick up the neckline stitches were a little open-ended as the designers give you flexibility in how many stitches to pick up and how deep to knit the ribbing. I picked up the number of stitches per row as suggested, and as luck would have it the stitch count was right on. As I reached the bottom of the front “V” I realized how to balance the ribbing around the center stitch (as it turns out, as long as you mirror the ribbing on the other side everything will be fine…) and the whole neckline pulled things together. The top of the shoulders became perfect, and the upper back of the sweater is formed by the ribbing. Oh. That’s why there weren’t any short rows to shape the upper back. The ribbing takes care of that.
Then there was the side slit in the deep ribbing at the bottom of the sweater. Before it was blocked the ribbing pulled in and the gap in the side was… not flattering. Blocking fixed that.
I did have to do some tidying up at the top of the slit when I did the final finishing, and now that the sweater hangs well, I’m happy with that divided ribbing. I wear long sleeve shirts under my sweaters, and the ease of the open sides is surprisingly comfortable. Who knew?
Finally, the pattern called for a sewn bind off. Ugh. So slow. So much stitching. So much whapping by bothersome kitties while doing it. It is really tidy and stretchy while keeping a nice edge.
Here’s the final sweater, all blocked and ready to head out on a new shopping spree at the yarn store. The color is a little off (too pink) as I took the picture in the room with my grow lights, but you can see how nicely that ribbing and neckline came out in the end.
So, what am I up to now? I cast on some yarn to make arm warmers and started playing with my cat doodle pattern. It’s fun! I’m not sure how to handle decreases at the bottom of the warmer, but that what ribbing is for, right?
Was it fun to knit with four colors at once? No. It was not. Was it worth it? Absolutely!! I also cast on for another Weekender Crew sweater, but that is another post… Next on in the pattern sequence is some toy mice and then cat paws. The next time I go in for medical testing, these will be the arm warmers that I wear!!!
p.s. I am including some jade plant extras.
From left to right: a bloom on a jade plant, a bonsai plant, and the miniature jade plant that I bought to maybe make into a bonsai myself. I thought I would give it a few weeks in its new home before I put it into a smaller pot.
Yarn, Books & Roses 
Beautiful sweater. And Hannah doodles! I love it!
I’ve ordered some cards with the little patterns on them to help with planning. I can’t wait for them to come!
Well worth the effort, especially for the fit. Hannah is obviously speechless
Hannah just wants me to turn over the sweater so she can use it as a bed!
That sweater is so beautiful ! I am curious if it will hold its shape as well as actual set-in sleeves.
And go Hannah ! Next time you’ll have to go in for medical testing, you will surely steal the show with those.
I’m curious about the sleeves, too. The conventional wisdom is that the sweater benefits from the structure of the seam at the top of the shoulder. Since this is a saddle shoulder, maybe that makes it work out.
Maybe I will be able to get the matching socks done (on a larger needle!) before the next trip for medical testing in a frigid room.
wow, is that beautiful
I’m hoping it will be a workhorse all winter for me.
Wow! The sweater is beautiful and I love the arm warmers – too cute!
Thanks! Wat until I get more of the cute cat themed patterns knit in! This is a learning project so I’m just having fun.
Something VERY strange is going on with my Dell laptop, Marilyn: I wrote a lengthy reply yesterday evening (it’s now 5:10am on Wednesday), having to struggle wildly with the fact that as I typed nothing would show and then a whole shitload of words would rush out … I am perfectly sure this is closely associated with my having opted out of any further Dell Support, she said nastily …
Oh BUGGER !! – it’s started again. I’ll be back. (I do love Arnie: I know he’s a dyed-in-the-wool Republican, but he’s not a *repuglican*.
Usually when that happens to me the computer is busy downloading something in the background. I hope that it has returned to normal function now.
You sure it isn’t WordPress up to its nasty tricks again?
Yeah … it’s been going on when I don’t have WordPress open, Colorado. 😦
Computer is bogged down with… who knows. Can you clean up the memory (cache) or check for viruses? There must be a YouTube video for this…
It seems to’ve lost enthusiasm for maddening me, Marilyn: I’m going to stop even thinking about it …
I have been struggling with WordPress for sure lately. I may need to change to another theme.
Lovely morning I had (not !) trying to ascertain and solve the laptop problem. 😦
Unsurprisingly, nobody seems to grasp what I’m talking about, let alone help me with it. Sick of writing emails about it; sick of phoning people about it. The only saving grace is that it’s a transient problem: right now it’s not present. You may pray things remain this way. Grrrrrrrrrr …
Marilyn, the Alchemist deserves its monicker: SEWN bind-off ?? Had it been me making it, it would have had a normal bind-off. I have spoken. [grin]
It’s your usual succès fou, however: you’re a top knitter, mate, and that’s a fact. Compliments, lamb !!!
I’m currently trying to sew the second sleeve onto a recently-finished sweater and having the devil’s own job. I can’t seem to site the centre of the shoulder correctly onto the body. Do not let that interrogative issue from your lips, or I will bash you by email !
The jades all look great. I had mistakenly thought that bonsai-ing was done to an adult plant. Goes to enlighten you re my brain-power. Sighh …
Now going away grumpily to cook chilli con carne – which will make me happier.
XO
I have discovered that the sewn bind off originates with Elizabeth Zimmerman, so I am inclined to feel more kindly towards it now. Her quote, “knit on with confidence and hope through all crisis” has become kind of a mantra for me. I think that she meant knitting crisis, but it works for a whole gambit of disasters in life.
I think that you can do it with normal jade plants, but after looking at the ones at the nursery I decided to go with the cute little dwarf plant that I found, I can always take a cutting from the big plant that I have now to do another one and we’ll see what happens. It’s an experiment! Next trip to the nursery I will pick up the pot, some of the recommended soil and a book to help me. That’s me… I need a book or YouTube video for everything!!
Oh, ME TOO !!! Once there was a lovely husband who could and did do everything, including instructing me !
I love the sweater! I’ve been considering what I want to do as my next sweater and this one looks like it turns out so well that it’s now near the top of my possibilities list!
I am becoming a big fan of Wool & Pine knits. This is my second sweater, and both fit really nicely. I did find that I needed to print out the pattern so I could write on it to help me understand what was happening at different points in the shaping. I may need to make another one of these sweaters!
Oh, good to know! I’ll have to check out their other designs as well.
That sweater is just so perfect. My favorite under t-shirt is the dark purple. The V neck looks fantastic.
The cool think about the yarn that I didn’t realize at first is that the color of the shirt that I wear under it really makes a difference to the appearance! Because of the deep neckline (and winter weather) I will always be wearing something. I wore black with it yesterday and it made it look dull. I think that purple or plum is the best!
I know less than nothing about knitting (other than a certain amount of kitty whapping being necessary), but this sweater is beautiful. I especially love the neckline.
I really like that neckline too. I was a little concerned before the ribbing went in, but now I love it!