basic pullover
February 10, 2023
Are you ready for the cutest hand knitted, slouchy-but-elegant, oh-so-cozy sweatshirt? I love this so much that I think I'm just going to knit slouchy sweatshirts from now on. Nothing else because I never want to take this off. I wear it to the grocery store and the garden center and out to dinner. I wear it so often that I ordered more of the same yarn in ivory to make another. I'm also going to make a summer cotton sweatshirt with some vintage Rowan Denim in white. Want all the details?
The pattern is called the Basic Pullover by Cleome Smith and can be knitted in 4 yarns weights, fingering, dk, worsted and bulky; all in one pattern, now isn't that fabulous? It's knit top down and is perfectly minimal in every way; even the eyelet raglan increases seem to showcase its simplicity. It can also showcase some gorgeous yarn, in this case, Haven by Shibui, a blend of extra fine merino and cashmere. This is my Ravelry project page. It's funny that I used to think knitting something plain, something that could easily be purchased ready made, was not my thing. But lately, knitting a minimalist sweater is very much my thing. I literally have a hard time NOT choosing to wear it everyday so of course I have plans for several more. I ordered more Haven in an ivory color and right now am finishing up a summery sweatshirt with some vintage Rowan Denim in white, although I'd murder for some of the blue, either Nashville or Memphis. I need 9 skeins if anyone has any to sell to a nice lady, but if I can't find any I might buy some Rowan Denim Revive. not nearly the same, but nice.
There are no short rows written into the pattern to raise the back neck, but that is easy to add and I added a few sets. Next time I will add 4 or 5 sets total. I prefer a higher back neck.
Now about that color change you see below the bosom. I know pictures don't lie, but I was shocked when I saw this. When I'm wearing it and just looking at it you can't see the dyelot change, but then pictures always tell the truth and there must have been a dye lot issue. Funny thing is, I remember checking all the dye lots at the store as the yarn was on sale and that is always a red flag for me. But oh well, the eye cannot detect it so I'm not bothered by it, but it's always interesting to me how the camera will find and exaggerate all the defects.
I'm sorry to be hiding my face again. My sweet photographer took a dozen pictures and I hated the expression on my face on every single one. He hates that I'm so picky but I said, no big deal, I'll just slice my head off. Problem solved.
We have begun some spring garden chores. I know it's winter, but summer comes around pretty quickly here in California, and if we don't begin our spring chores now, we're sunk. My first job was to transfer our strawberries to a new bed. Done! I have chosen all my flower seeds for the border and I'll start them in the greenhouse soon but for now I've got a ton of weeding to do, ugh. We've designated which roses need replacing and we're heading out tomorrow to a nice nursery on the coast in Half Moon Bay where they have a beautiful rose selection. We also have to replace a rose arbor that has completely corroded. For years we've tried to patch it up but finally my husband put his foot down and ordered a new one and it arrived today. We also had to tromp around the dirt and gravel yards to pick out some soil and planter mixes that our veggie beds are begging for. They dump it off in the front yard and what feels like a trillion wheelbarrows later, it's finally transferred to the back yard where the vegetable garden is. We have help with that of course, but still, not looking forward to that one. We're always lamenting that we're too old for all this but then spring begins to emerge and we get caught up in the excitement of the growing season. We both love our pretty flowers and wonderful fresh vegetables too much.
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| Cookies! Every holiday has to be represented with a cookie, right? |
I've got two spring crafts I'm working on and if they come out cute I'll make sure to post them here. In the meantime I'm just knitting away and finishing up the house deep clean that seems to never end. This is my fault because I do drag it out! I'm very slow and skip days at a time. This time around I surprised myself and was able to let go of a few more things here and there--things I couldn't give up last year but could this year. I'm becoming less and less attached to things and want only things in my home that I truly use. I always have to say that I'm not a minimalist by anyone's standards. I have, use, and love an awful lot of stuff, it's just less than what I use to have. Just recently I was able to donate a few things that I paid a lot of money for but didn't use because I didn't like them. I felt guilty every time I looked at them; guilty over the wasted money and guilty over my bad choices. I finally decided I didn't want to feel bad in my own home, my sanctuary for goodness sake, so those things are now gone. Hopefully they'll make someone else feel really happy, but they are done making me feel guilty.
Until next time, stay warm and cozy. xo Kristen
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13 Comments
I am at that paring-down phase of life too, Kristen. Thanks for the push to downsize. I too seem to want to live in raglan sweatshirts these days. Apparently I can knit myself one! Yours looks like it can be taken out to dinner with a nice string of pearls! And in summer, white pants and a variety of tops. Also quite knittable. Simple, simple. Thanks for the inspiration, Kristen. -- I just hope I have the discipline to keep to that formula.😄 Chloe
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment. Because this pattern can be knit in so many yarn weights, I have a feeling I'm just going to be knitting and wearing sweatshirts all the live long day. You are right--this can be dressed up with nice slacks and boots but looks super cute with jeans. Love versatile pieces!
DeleteP.S. Looking at that photo re the dyelot change. Could it just be a shadow? The sun and even almost flat light can play tricks on a photo, right? Maybe it’s just that. Chloe
ReplyDeleteHmmm, I hadn't thought of that. I'll wear it today and have my husband shoot some more pics, but I don't think so. To the naked eye it's not possible to detect, or at least not with my ancient naked eye.
DeleteFingers crossed:).
ReplyDeleteSo no, it's a dyelot issue. I gave it a good look and while you cannot see it with inside light, you can see it with outside light, but thankfully, only if you are looking for it. No one else has noticed it. Live and learn, right?
DeleteI think Chloe has a point. To me it looks like the sleeves are also two tone. What do you think? Great sweater!
ReplyDeleteYep! Official answer is it was a planned two tone!
DeleteI read on the internet that Shibui Yarn is going out of business as of December 2022!
ReplyDeleteI know! I heard that too. So sad. It was such a nice luxury brand that we could dream about.
DeleteI love the idea of knitting this sweater in Original Rowan Denim. I look forward to see your project notes.
ReplyDeleteI would be interested to know what items made you feel guilty. I have too many decorative objects inherited from my husband's antique dealer grandmother. My children do not want most of them, so we're trying to figure out how to find homes for them.
ReplyDeleteYou might want to try ebay for something like that. Even though the popularity of antique decorative objects has waned, there are still collectors out there and they stalk ebay. Even if you get a very small price, at least you know it's going to someone who actually wants it enough to pay for it and I think that would make his grandmother happy.
DeleteAs for the guilt thing I recently got rid of? On a trip to Las Vegas about ten years ago I bought a WAY TOO EXPENSIVE blouse. I brought it home and never wore it. The next year we went to LV again and I visited the same expensive boutique and figured that the reason I didn't wear the blouse is because it actually needed the matching sweater, which was even more ridiculously expensive. Another mistake. In ten years I wore them never. Honestly made me sick seeing them every morning. Why I held on to them and those bad memories for so long I'll never know. But they have been banished, along with the feeling of guilt, but also a powerful lesson learned.
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