sock porn for knitting voyeurs.

Wednesday, October 03, 2007

Robin Hood Jacket finished

"took you long enough!"

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Robin Hood Jacket from Adorable Knits for Tots
Rowan Cork, "delight" -- 8 skeins (more than called for)
US 9 (5.5mm), 24" Addi
Started: 30 August 2007
Finished: 26 September 2007

I swear, putting this thing together...! It was more than worth it, but my goodness finishing to me is like pulling teeth :) I need to invest in a good finishing book, Ms. Wiseman's was recommended by the knittyboard crew but I'm waffling between it and an all-in-one volume since I don't really have a good pull off the shelf and answer my late night questions one.

Anyways :)

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I'm really pleased with it, though baby boy decided he didn't want to wear it "EVER!!"... the power of bubbles to bribe my child. :) The pattern was well written and I didn't find any errata in it as far as the pattern goes (errors were referenced by a reviewer on amazon)-- although I did need 8 skeins of yarn for the largest size, not 7. There's enough left over for a hat for him from the eighth, but the sweater was definitely not possible with only 7 sk. The arms also didn't increase to the size given stitchwise, but that be an issue with my column gauge.

I had to use a US 9 to get gauge (pattern calls for a US 10.5, 16 sts/4 inches over seed stitch). The math folks may tell me my assumption's wrong here, but since I used a smaller needle diameter-wise knitting this sweater than originally called for, I'm using less yarn as well... so anyone getting gauge with a 10.5 is going to be using more yarn and needing more of it (so, you'll need the extra skein of yarn like I did when knitting the largest size)...? If I said that out loud, it'd be in my brit uptalk with a questionmark at the end.

Moving on... :)

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I'm super impressed with the yarn-- how the cables still pop after a good wet blocking (I needed to really shape this thing to get it to fit my kid-- it was much too small preblocking). I was worried the orange would be too little baby as opposed to "BIG BOY!" since we're getting very self-defining here lately, but it's fine and I really like orange knits on the kid :) Even though there is a lot of yarn in the sweater, it's not super heavy or dense even with the cabling, and I can imagine how soft it would be knit into a sweater for me in a larger needle and with a little bit of drape (this is solid!)

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I knit the hood an extra 1/2" longer than called for... my son's head grows out of his clothes faster than the rest of his body :) I'm thinking about ripping and making the hood a bit smaller-- but it wouldn't solve how deep/wide it is (knit as written according to pattern). I don't really mind it, so it'll probably stay as is.

I omitted the tassel at the tip, thinking he already looks pixieish enough :)

Also... I have a confession. I may be a continental knitter now :) After seeing Roam and reading Laura's list for possible yarn subs, she included a sentence at the end that had me swatching for it with my Debbie Bliss Alpaca Silk DK... "It is so easy to switch between knit and purl (it doesn’t require a whole half-a-stitch-movement) that my ribbing and seed stitch are almost as fast as my stockinette. Really." So I tried and though I'm not convinced that the DB will be good for Roam, Continental knitting is good for me :) The seed stitch of the hood was good practice for me and I've caught myself knitting Continental a lot now, for everything except stranded knitting. We'll see if it sticks!

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The last button (or, the distance between it and the penultimate one) creates a small gaping bit when buttoned... not sure which one I'll move to try and fix it, though I really should. But I'm still calling this finished, so yay :)


(i did end up listing a few handspun yarns in my etsy shop as well as a few commercial sock and other yarns on destash. i'm running out of room everywhere, more likely to come :))

48 comments:

Terhi said...

Oh what a super cute little boy you have! And the jacket is gorgeous too, in such a great happy colour. :-)

Kaitie Tee said...

What a wonderful jacket - I love the orange!

margene said...

The jacket is super cute but nothing is cuter than that little boy!

Anonymous said...

could your son be any cuter? especially the first picture, i get that same sort of look from my nephew a lot. heh.

i knit continental and i never realized how much movement is saved on my hands and wrists til i was trying to teach someone how i purl and i was trying to knit english...man it just feels so silly to me. heh.

hmmm there's nothing baby about orange! it's my favorite color and always has been.

Alyson said...

I love the jacket - and it kinda looks like once he got it on, he liked it too. :-)

Besides being cute, he's just so striking. That close-up of him in the hood - he's almost haunting. It's a beautiful shot of him.

the Lady said...

Cute child! Wonderful jacket, too. I have to agree on the Continental - that's how I learned, and I just looks easier to me, having learned it and then comparing what I see American knitters doing.

Janis said...

Your boy is so adorable and the sweater looks great. :)

Jennifer said...

My goodness, that's a cute knit on an adorable boy.

Sonya said...

That is beyond adorable! Both boy and sweater. I find myself reaching for the Wiseman finishing book all the time. I'm also knitting continental more than I used to, but I still can't get comfortable purling continental.

monica said...

Great sweater and color! Your son is sooo adorable!

Unknown said...

i love knitting continental, but not purling, except for when i'm doing ribbing or seed stitch type work. i also noticed that my hands get tired doing either continental OR english (isn't that what the "other" kind is called?). so what has evolved for me is that when i am doing stockinette, i do continental on the knit side, english on the purl side. if i'm knitting in the round, i tend to alternate hands.

Micki said...

Too adorable! Seriously, I'm in pain from an overload of cuteness.

Gale Bulkley said...

Great looking kid! Nice jacket too.

Anonymous said...

OK - so now I'm gonna have to make TWO of these - damn it! That kid has runway model written all over him - he's simply gorgeous!

Lori said...

Very cute jacket. My boy is so hot and sweaty all the time there is no way he would consider wearing a sweater!
I was thinking, if you are knitting with a smaller needle, technically you would have more stitches and rows per inch, thus eating up more yarn - producing a denser material. hmmmmmm.

fluffbuff said...

It's gorgeous, and someone looks obviously very happy with it. :)

Lisa said...

I love the color! It turned out really nice!

Courtney said...

Love the jacket

Bertha said...

Oh man! That turned out so awesome and looks SO cute on him! I want a big one in the EXACT same color for ME!

Also, totally agree on the Wiseman recommendation...it's literally the ONLY instructional book I ever reach for on my shelf...Anything that's not in there, well, that's what the innerwebs is for. Also if you do any finishing away from home, it's much easier to carry than something like the big Vogue book would be or whatever.

Zonda said...

Very nice jacket...bummer he won't wear it though! What a cutie!

Kate Robertson said...

What a cute jacket and your son is just adorable I wish I had little ones to knit this for.

Anonymous said...

Cute! Love the orange! I made one of these for my son but couldn't find the orange, so his is mustard yellow. Mine hasn't worn it more than twice. Oh well, it's still a great pattern :)

turtlegirl76 said...

What an adorable sweater! The cute kid doesn't hurt matters any though. ;)

anne said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Kirsten said...

You see, here's the thing, you have knitted a really spectacular sweater, but the kid is just so cute, I am thoroughly distracted. The photos are well worth the price of the bubbles.

I have done my share of bribing for a good photo shoot with the kids. For your future reference, Toblerones work well with 16 year old boys.

anne said...

The first picture in this series is the best toddler image I have seen in a LONG time - your son is cute and cuddly in that beautiful sweater, but his facial expression and his pose are just priceless!

Bogie said...

Adorable is right! (and the sweater's cute too)

Jennie said...

It looks perfect on him. :)

Anonymous said...

I love orange and love this sweater. Your kiddo is adorable. Hopefully, he will relent and learn to love the sweater, too. Your switch to continental knitting is inspirational. I should give it a try.

Stacey said...

super cute jacket! love the orange! i need a good project to get me going continental - I do it when I do 2 handed fair isle, but have never "committed" to it...

Adriana said...

Your son is adorable! He has such an expressive face (and the jacket is really cute too)

Amy said...

What a cutie pie! Great jacket.

I wonder when I'll try continental knitting...

Kyle William said...

beyond adorable (and that jacket is gorgeous as well!) - thanks for the smile I got thinking of this cutie playing while you were trying to get just the right photo... aah to complete a project... it's such a great feeling!

Kyle William said...

beyond adorable (and that jacket is gorgeous as well!) - thanks for the smile I got thinking of this cutie playing while you were trying to get just the right photo... aah to complete a project... it's such a great feeling!

karrie said...

Cute sweater! And welcome to the world of continental knitting. It's so fast! now you will be ready to do fair isle with a different color in each hand.

WandaWoman said...

What a super cutie patootie! The jacket looks great and it looks great on your son. Definitely finished.

Mandy said...

Awesome and inspiring.

Sandy said...

the jacket is almost as cute as the kid!

jenfromRI said...

That looks so great! I love cables, and orange!

lexa said...

I LOVE it! Love the color totally, you know I'm an orange freak, too. And cables too boot -- it's heaven! He's such a little cutie, hope he doesn't keep giving you a hard time about wearing it.

DaFawnz said...

The sweater looks great. All the hapa kids look good in orange and red. The Wiseman book is THE best. It my #1 go to book. Also, welcome to continental team! Woo hoo! Once you start though, it is hard to ever go back to English.

HPNY KNITS said...

he is getting so big!! what a great model! oh, and the sweater is beautiful, and just the perfect timing! I love it.

Virtuous said...

FREAKIN' adorable!!

Logan said...

Great job on the sweater - I think The Kid looks great in orange, too. My baby brother (hee - he's in his 30s now) is an orange boy too, but white-blonde and blue-eyed. Same skin tone though. Maybe it's the olive thing.

Anyway, your son makes a super model, and if it only takes bubbles to bribe him, then life is good!

Now, must try the Continental thing...

Christy said...

The expression in that first photo is priceless. I love the jacket, and boy am I coveting that yarn.

Allegra said...

Both your boy and the sweater are just too cute!!

Anonymous said...

The sweater is fantastic, as is the color...but the truth is that kid is so adorable he could sell any pattern.

blissfulknitter AT gmail DOT com

Anonymous said...

both the sweater and your boy are GORGEOUS! And they look lovely together.

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