Monday 25 May 2015

Another Knitting Project!!!

I know, I know, I haven't even finished my first knitted garment yet! But it is almost finished, I promise! Only the collar left to do, but I got bored and needed another project to entertain myself.

The 3 Hour sweater, a 1930's raglan short sleeve sweater, has had me tempted to try it for a while, so I thought I would give it a go with some odd balls of yarn that I had, bought in a mixed bag from an op-shop for a few dollars. I used an 8ply Mint Green acrylic with a 5 ply purple acrylic. Technically I don't think you're supposed to use 2 different ply yarns, however I did and found it to work out ok, the purple stripes are just a little thinner than the green ones. A quick google search will show you that there are quite a few forum and blog posts around about this one, and I, like most people who try this pattern, did find the needle guage to be way too big for the suggested yarn weight. I did find someone, somewhere (I can't remember where) saying that the needle sizes listed were wrong, as they were old needle sizes and not the mm measurement of the needles, but I'm still not sure what ones should have been used, instead of the 5mm and 10mm ones the pattern says. I chose to use 4mm needles for the ribbing, and 5mm for the stocking stitch. I think normally there should be a bigger size difference between the needles you use, but this is what I decided to do. Also, due to using smaller needles than recommended, and me needing a bigger size than the original 36" bust, I cast on 80 stitches, instead of the original 52. I just guessed this amount, with no idea whether it would end up fitting or not.

Lunch Time!
I love that with knitting projects (rather than sewing projects) they are small enough to take to work with me and work on during my lunch breaks

Progress so far
At the moment I have completed the back and I am half way through the front and so far the sizing seems to be working. A lot of people I found who had tried this pattern were not happy with how it turned out, but as far as I can see, the pieces look about right for a raglan sweater. When I'm finished I will post the pattern with my changes for anyone who wants to try it.

Dixie

6 comments:

  1. Those colours are just gorgeous!

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    1. Thank you! I think it is going to be fun to wear because of the bright colours :)

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  2. The stripes look brilliant! I'm guessing the pattern uses a relatively huge needle in order to help knit an entire jumper within the time-frame, although it would certainly make for a rather loose and lacy result. It will be great to see the finished garment.

    P.S. I love taking my knitting to work - it gives me a chance to make some progress on my projects as well as being a great conversation starter.

    Katie @ Katie Writes Stuff

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    1. Well the original pattern (as it has been posted online, so it may not be correct) says to use 10mm needles and 4 ply yarn, which would end up ridiculously loose and lacy. I'm using 5mm needles and both 5 ply and 8 ply yarn. You would still need to be a very fast knitter to finish it in 3 hours, but it is still a quick knit. I'm just working out the sleeves at the moment.

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  3. Oh, those colors together are so sweet! I recently bought a cardigan that has violet, white and mint stripes and I love it, so I can't wait to see the finished results or your jumper. I think it will look awesome. ❤

    xox,
    bonita of Lavender & Twill

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    1. Thanks Bonita!
      It is almost done (just the button to go) and while it is a bit snug, I love it anyway. I will post the finished photos soon :)

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