Easy Street Pullover
Pattern: Patons Street Smart
Yarn: 4 skeins, Malabrigo Chunky in Indigo
Source: WEBS sale, stashbuster
Needles: Size US 9 and 10

When I was binding off on Sunday evening, I was less than thrilled with this knit. It seemed too short, despite adding almost three inches to the torso, and the reverse stockinette proved to be very hard to seam properly. (It never looked as clean and crisp as a stockinette edge…) Yet, when I put it on, and the luscious Malabrigo touched my skin, I forgot all of the little things and just enjoyed how nice it felt.

It is very simple – modified from the original pattern to be even simpler. The Patons Street Smart version includes rope cables at each of the stockinette portions of the ribbing. While I liked the look, I thought it may be a tad too “busy” with the variegations of the Malabrigo yarn. I am happy with my decision, although it means that it is not like the one in the book. I did keep one little element, however…

The Malabrigo caught my eye during a WEBS sale last year, and I bought it with no pattern in mind (this is not a frequent things for me!) but I was able to match it quickly with the pattern for a nice and comfy knit. This color, labeled as “indigo”, straddles blue and violet in the traditional Roy G. Biv spectrum, and seemed like an overall “purple” yarn for me. So, I chose to knit it during the purple months of Project Spectrum. Like many handpainted yarns, there are some large color repeats in the Malabrigo that can cause pooling – to combat this, I alternated between two balls of yarn on every alternate row, carrying the other yarn up the side. This probably contributed to the seaming problems later, but I managed to get a seam I was okay with, although it is not my best work.

It is a very soft sweater, and although I wish it was a little longer, it is still quite wearable. With the temperatures dropping and autumn on the way, this sweater will be kept closeby…

… and oh yeah, I got a big haircut

I wasn’t sure how the Malabrigo would look knit up with the cables and reverse stockinette for the Easy Street Pulli.

With sleeve one complete, I realize that it works quite well.

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Ravelry’s new group feature is splendid! Have you joined any groups yet? I joined about 20 groups myself, but I also started FOUR . All of them have some great discussions going. I would love to see you there! (and if you are still waiting for an invite, join us then!)

GreenCraft
Sustainability and “green” crafting

Project Spectrum
Related to the create-along

Namaste Knitters
Crafters who practice yoga

Traveling Stitches
Globetrotting Knitters and Crocheters

Swatches don’t make for very interesting blog posts; hence the brief silence.  I finally came to a decision on my next big sweater project:  cast on for two!  So, I did just that…

Malabrigo Worsted in Indigo colorway for the Easy Street Pulli

Balling this yarn up is nearly as fun as knitting with it.  Like other kettle-dyed yarns, there is a lot of difference in color from skein to skein.  I decided to use two skeins at once and alternate between the two every two rows – simply carrying the yarn up the side of the seam.  The variegation is very pleasing to my eye, but I was not quite sure how it would fare in the cable pattern.  Variegated yarn with cables can have two effects:  ugly and busy, or pretty and dimensional.  I was going for the latter.

One and a half cable repeats on sleeve one - I think it passes the test!

The Nordic Memories pullover also got the go-ahead.  I am about 3 inches into the ribbing, so it doesn’t quite warrant a picture yet… once the colorwork starts, you will see it!

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Any plans for the weekend?  Only two days and I am hoping to fit in quite a bit:  I have tickets to see the Decemberists and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (together!) tomorrow night, and Harry Potter, and a morning run, and maybe a haircut…