In Progress

This has truly been a mild summer, and it seems that when the weather is cooler my mind really turns to wool... and needles.  Last week I had a hankering for some good natural wool and I have to say I love Lion Brand Fishermen's Wool.  I know this might not be the first place one's mind goes to when thinking about a good earthy wool (or even second or third) but it really is great stuff.  And it comes in such a large amount... (227 g) that you can leave the store with two skeins and be ready to knock a sweater quickly.

I also knew which pattern I wanted to pair my wool with as well.  I found it on Ravelry a few weeks ago, Francis Revisted, by Beth Silverstein, and I loved it immediately.  This is my first time to knit a top down sweater, which is fantastic.  Or a sweater with raglan sleeves, which is also great!  This may be my favorite combination by far, and the design ideas are endless. 

I've finished the body and first sleeve, so only have the second sleeve and cowl to finish.  I'm hoping to gain some length on the body when blocking.  I'm knitting the small, which fits perfectly, but is a little short for me.  I know that one of the joys of knitting from the top down means you can try on as you go... but I'm too lazy to put all those stitches on waste yarn to try it on... So instead I hope to pick up a little length at the end.

I love the seed stitch detail on the hem, sleeves, and cowl as well.  I considered continuing the body and sleeves with the stockinette stitch, and may try that later on a different raglan.  Hopefully I'll have my Francis Revisited finished by the weekend!

I also have another sweater almost finished that I'm not convinced about.  I've been working on the Gathered Pullover from Interweave and I'm really not liking the holes created by working the center cable.  If you've knitted this and had a similar issue let me know if you have words of wisdom to correct it!  I'm almost finished with this one as well, but the cable has me stalling...

I hope the weather's nice where you are today!  It's cool and raining here, so I've made a pot of chicken noodle soup and a little hot chocolate.  Needless to say I am totally in the mood for some fall knitting.  So I'm going to get back to finishing my other sleeve... Happy Knitting!