Within hours of first seeing this photo:
I bought the pattern book to make the sweater.
Isn’t it a beauty? I can see wearing this cardigan all year long. The pattern is so new that the book is only available for pre-order. I’m not even sure that the yarn the book supports, Blackstone Tweed, has even been released. And, of course, there are no example sweaters on Ravelry yet so I can’t do any body-double stalking or study the knitty gritty details of the pattern (ala, “be sure to lengthen the waist blah blah blah”).
Oh, how long must I wait? In the meantime, I will fantasize. I like the color of the sweater in the pattern book, though I wonder if a pretty grey would be more functional. Also, the called-for yarn is rather pricey. I wonder if there’s a generic, suitable substitute at Valley Yarns (my favorite!) or Knit Picks. And since I’m a loose knitter and this is a sizeable garment, I’d love to knit at a slightly bigger gauge but make a smaller size. Ideas?
June 14, 2009 at 3:07 pm
Lovely sweater pattern! It doesn’t count as an impulse buy if there’s any delay of gratification involved.
What about Cascade yarn? They’ve a good deal of variety and are always very reasonable price points.
Their Eco Wool looks very nice and looks to be a good value at 478 yds. per skein.
http://www.dancingewe-yarns.com/p/Cascade-Eco-Wool/ST-1049/YRN/
June 14, 2009 at 3:15 pm
Great idea, Kathy. Thanks for the link!
June 17, 2009 at 9:58 am
It really is a beautiful sweater. I wonder what the weight of the Blackstone Tweed is. I can’t wait to give in to my impulse to buy some of that City Tweed at Knitpicks.
June 17, 2009 at 10:16 am
I’m using City Tweed right now. It’s a bit splitty but knits up nice.
August 16, 2009 at 6:27 am
[...] knitter I am, I have to see what others have done before committing to a project. (This is why I still haven’t cast on for Nonpareil – I’m waiting to see how others knit it.) I’m glad I waited on Emma because [...]
November 1, 2009 at 6:48 am
[...] Then, of course, there’s still good old Nonpareil: [...]
January 23, 2010 at 6:18 am
[...] I recently came across a few versions of Napoleon from the Blackstone Tweed book. (Once again, I bought that book for one garment pattern, which I haven’t made. I did, though, make a hat from the book.) This is another example [...]
August 25, 2010 at 6:17 am
[...] in making either one of those sweaters, at least right now. (The same thing happened with Nonpareil and the shawl-collared vest.) Since then, the new issue of Knitty came out and I’m [...]