It wasn’t until the last year or so that I really got into knitting. Prior to last winter, my biggest knitting adventures were scarves and cowls (I have enough Snowy Day Cowls to keep me warm for years!). Then I attempted the Forester from Brooklyn Tweed and my love affair with knitting sweaters began.
I love how much you can learn about knitting techniques, just by the way each pattern maker writes the instructions. Every time I try a new way of increasing or decreasing, it opens up my eyes to the endless possibilities in designing knitwear. While I still have a long way to go and a lot of learning to do, I have a dream that I’ll someday reach a point where I can design my own patterns.
The Lucinda sweater is a really clever design. Most knitters would prefer to knit instead of purl, so Carrie Hoge wrote the pattern so that you’re actually knitting the sweater inside out. It always felt like such a surprise when I’d turn it right-side-out to see what it looked like so far! The v-neck shaping in the back is really flattering and a great extra detail. The Lucinda really is the perfect basic, slouchy sweater.
I used Rowan Felted Tweed in Ginger from Churchmouse Yarns & Teas that I picked up awhile back for a different project. I tried swatching with it before and didn’t love it, but I think it was just the wrong pattern - this yarn was made to be a sweater. The tweed look is just beautiful and creates a depth in the yarn that I love. Plus, it’s machine washable! The only things that’s tricky about this yarn is ripping back. There were a couple points in the sweater that I decided to try again and the felted nature of the Rowan Tweed made it difficult without breaking the yarn.
I knit the pattern almost as written. There were just a few changes that I made:
- I knit the body for 17” instead of 16” for a little extra length
- After reading a couple other reviews of the pattern, I decided not to size down needles for the ribbing in the arms, although I wish had. Maybe it’s the yarn I chose, but the sleeve ribbing stretched out as I wore it and feels a little sloppy. Someday I’ll re-do it..
- The pattern calls for picking up 2 stitches for every 3 rows along the front neckline when finishing. I tried that and it pulled funny, so I picked up every other stitch instead.
I noticed that even after blocking, my ribbing on the hem keeps rolling under. Does anyone have any tips on why that happened? I’d love to re-knit the hem, but I don’t want to make the same mistake twice. If anyone has any ideas, I’d love to hear them!
The Lucinda pattern is from Madder: Anthology 2 and is just one of many beautiful patterns that have made their way onto my “to make” list. It also includes the Lila pullover in both a worsted and bulky version. If you’re looking for a collection of classic patterns, this is definitely my go-to.
