Cecelia
Finished
August 27, 2011
March 12, 2012

Cecelia

Project info
Sally Cardigan by Nikol Lohr
Knitting
SweaterCardigan
me
S
Needles & yarn
2,549 yards
White Alpaca
1590.0 yards (1453.9 meters), 1596 grams
natural white
Wendy's Knit Shop
Yarn Hollow Merino Top
959.9 yards (877.7 meters), 267 grams
Moroccan Blue
The Spinning Loft
April 24, 2010
Notes

March 12, ‘12

Oh the heartbreak & disappointment: the button band, as written was puckering, as noted on 11/4. Then the double separating zipper was too heavy-duty for this knit, though I sewed it in anyway and ended up stretching & distorting the front openings too much because the zipper was too long and, as I later discovered, I put a replacement needle in my sewing machine incorrectly. I abandoned the zipper idea in favor of a 1x1 ribbed button band picked up along the edges and of course picked up too many stitches the first time around. Frogged them and did it a little more sensibly, more of a 3st/4rows ratio, though the slipped stitch patten makes that a bit difficult.

Having finally knit a button band wide enough to not pucker and that has a bit more give than the original (ribbing can expand/shrink some without looking wonky), I tried to attach a button & realized that the bands needed reinforcement. Rifling through my fabric stash I came up with a few possibilities (and one offer to use a knitting machine to knit a backing - thank you Lisa!) and settle on what I used - soft cotton from a favorite pair of pajama bottoms.

After trying to machine sew the fabric to the button bands with bad results (I don’t have a walking foot, so the fabric + knit got out of sync & squished & it just looked bad, despite all the adjustments I could make), I ended up handsewing it and using the machine for button holes, carefully keeping the yarn/knitting out of the way so that only fabric was sliced (kind of ridiculous when you consider the steeks). 11 buttons later, I have a functional sweater, at long last.

November 4, 2011
She’s not done. Washing and blocking helped a bit, but the buttons aren’t going to work, it’s too tight. It won’t stay buttoned & when it is buttoned/stays, it’s gappy. Have double separating zip (2 pulls) to put in.

Oct 30, 2011
She’s done. Tight around the arms & armpits and very fitted overall; I’m hoping washing & blocking will ease things just enough to make it wearable. I made the buttons bands long enough to cover the raw edges of the steeks; wish I’d done that with the Blue Palm Cardi.

Sept 14, 2011

I’m well past the great divide, about 1/3 of the way down the body (2nd picture/2nd from last) and I think Cecelia’s going to give the illusion that I’m more boobalicious than I really am. It fits snugly but with a bit of ease, enough for a shirt underneath.

Prior to the divide, I did work 2 (or 3) extra pattern repeats without increases; my shoulders are wide/bulky & I needed some extra room. Also: need to remember to measure gauge again before starting the sleeves to make sure i’m on track for sleeve shaping.

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Finished
August 27, 2011
March 12, 2012
 
About this pattern
86 projects, in 463 queues
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  • Originally queued: April 16, 2011
  • Project created: September 2, 2011
  • Updated: March 12, 2012
  • Progress updates: 4 updates