Striped Pink Pullover
Have you heard of Sweet Fiber? It’s an indie hand-dyed yarn brand based in BC, and they make one of the most luxurious and rich coloured yarns.
I’ve made a triangle shawl before and the fabric of the shawl is just so dreamy. So this time, I decided to make a sweater.
Yarn: Sweet Fiber Cashmerino 20 in Tea Rose (3 skeins) and Vintage Lace (1 skein)
Pattern: Autumn League Pullover by Alexandra Tavel
Needles: 3.0 mm and 3.5 mm (Addi circular)
“Autumn League Pullover” pattern is written for DK weight yarn and the “Cashmerino 20” is a fingering weight yarn. So naturally, my gauge was quite different from what is suggested in the pattern.
The suggested gauge is 19 stitches and 24 rows per 10 cm square. Mine was about 22-23 stitches and 35-36 rows per 10 cm.
But since the sweater seemed to have a lot of positive ease, I didn’t size up and just followed M/L sizing, knowing that it would knit up smaller.
This pattern is knit in the round from the top down, until where you separate the sleeves and then knit in flat pieces, then sewn together at the end.
Because I wanted to add stripes, I knit the whole thing in the round from the top down. I think I added some length to the bodice as well.
What I really liked about “Autumn League Pullover” pattern is this v-insert neck triangle which reminds me of sweat shirts!
I also omitted the double ribbed neck band and did a single neck band; the double (folded) neck band felt too bulky for me.
I’m usually not a pink person, but this Tea Rose colourway was a rare pink that I actually really like! (Really, any colour from Sweet fiber is beautiful.) The very warm mauvy colour looks pretty good on my skin too.
Because it’s pink, I wanted to incorporate some elements that are somewhat sporty or casual so that it’s not overly elegant. I think the sweat shirt-like v-insert and the stripes really helped to achieve that!
As you can see here, each skein slightly varies in colours (it’s just what happens with hand-dyed yarns). You could alternate skeins while you knit, so that the colours of each skein blend in smoother, but I didn’t do it.
Alternating skeins is like doing pattern matching in sewing for me. It’s great if you’re up for it, but I don’t enjoy doing it and I don’t think it’s necessary. It shows up more in the still photos but when I’m wearing it in real life, it’s not as noticeable.
The pattern features the split hem. I kind of wanted to make the back hem longer but unfortunately I didn’t gave enough yarn to do it.
I hadn’t knit a pullover for a while and I really enjoyed the process and am happy with the result!
This yarn is so dreamy and not scratchy at all! Because it’s lightweight and contains some cashmere and nylon (It’s 70% superwash merino, 20% cashmere, 10% nylon), it’s warm but not overly hot which is great for me.
I’m hoping to knit a couple more sweaters and/or a cardigan this season, so I’m happy that at least I got to knit one!
Nov 27, 2021
