I should have finished the sweater ages ago, but then I got a Wii….. and then a week later, a Wii fit….. and suddenly there was a lot of Wii but not so much knitting going on. But I got there in the end. Pattern: Opulent Raglan, from Knitscene Fall 2008.

Yarn: Elsebeth Lavold Silky Wool, 4 skeins

Size: 34″

Needles: 4 mm circulars

Mods: I eliminated the ruffle on the sleeves and instead opted for a 1″ of ribbing around the cuffs and the hem.

Notes: I wasn’t getting gauge, so I made the 34″ bust (one side up from my usual size). Even with this, the sleeves were too tight, and I had to rip them back and eliminate the decreases. They are still snug, but not uncomfortably so. I should note that in the photos, the sleeve cuffs look like they are rolling, but they don’t normally. I was wearing this all day, and since it hits right at my elbows, they got folded up all day.

I really loved this pattern. Top-down raglans are awesome, I love the simple style of this sweater, with the delicious cable details. It’s the kind of sweater I would buy. A moment to vent, if you would be so kind… There are so many patterns in the Fall 2008 Knitscene that I love, but so few of them have patterns written for smaller sizes, and it’s really disheartening to try to recalculate for 6″ or more difference in the bust. I know that more fuller figured gals have often been disappointed by not having patterns with large enough pattern sizing, so I really wish there was some standardization on this. I think it would be perfectly resonable for knitting magazines to provide patterns in established size ranges, geared towards their readers.

There. Rant over!

I originally wanted to do an outdoor shot for this sweater, but it’s been too chilly. The bookstore was an excellent solution, but I did get a little distracted:This book makes me want to up my crochet skills, stat!