MY SECOND REAL SWEATER - A Purple Puff for Spring in Scotland, Petite Knit Louisiana Sweater
Sweater is worn with my True Bias Lander Pants. I made the ceramic vase.
After knitting myself a sweater at breakneck speed in hotel quarantine, I felt a little burnt out on knitting. But then a few days passed by….and I got the itch. I knew I’d need another project. By the time I started planning this sweater, we had moved out of the hotel and into our flat, but we had no furniture! The flat came with a kitchen table, and a dining table, both with chairs, and we bought a mattress. But that was it until our sea shipment arrived from the states. Without a sewing room, I needed something to keep my hands and mind busy.
I enjoyed knitting Petite Knit’s Wednesday Sweater. I found the instructions to be clearly written, and I like that there are short, clear videos on their website for all techniques used within each pattern. So I decided to knit another Petite Knit sweater, but I wanted something easier. I looked through every one of their patterns, noting which sweaters used bigger needles and had “easy” ratings. When I saw the Louisiana Sweater, I knew it was the one!
Reviewers of this pattern said it came together quickly, felt light to wear, and noted that the yarn was soft and cushy. The pattern was rated “Easy”. Sold! The yarn used in the pattern was hard for me to purchase in the UK, and I couldn’t find it in a color I loved. I noticed a couple reviewers on Ravelry had substituted in this yarn (Rico Fashion Light Luxury), so I did some research (making sure the yarn weight & length were comparable), and purchased this gorgeous lilac alpaca fuzz, and then sat on my hands waiting 2 weeks for it to arrive in the mail.
I think I knit this in 10 days, mostly in the evenings after dinner, in front of the TV. There are no fancy tricks, making it ideal for a confident beginner like myself, or anyone looking for a quicker project. The only part that tripped me up, was the raglan increases - I kept misreading my own counting and stitch markers, or counting wrong, so I had to rip back (frog) a few times. But once I got past the increases, it was super smooth sailing, just stockinette stitch on big needles.
This yarn is difficult to photograph: I’d say, the color has a slightly more blue cast than what appears in photographs, and it is fuzzz-zy! Here you can see the raglan increases. They would look more defined in a less furry yarn, but I don’t mind that. I am happy I finally got my counting right and they worked out as per pattern!
The Petite Knit size chart put me at size Medium, but I knit size Small, based on the amount of positive ease the pattern, I knew this would fit me the way I wanted. As per my Wednesday Sweater, I lengthened the sleeves 1.5”. Please note, I do not need to lengthen sleeves when sewing most patterns, however, I am 5’8”, which means I usually add length to bodices. I did not lengthen the body of the sweater for two reasons: 1. I wear my pants very high on on my waist and I like the cropped look, and 2. I ran out of yarn! I think I had about half a ball of yarn total when I finished casting off.
Speaking of, I’ve noticed a lot of Petite Knit’s patterns call for an Italian bind off, which you sew with a fat, dull needle. I really like how it feels (has some stretch), and it looks professional. I use the technique as demonstrated in the video on Petite Knit’s Instagram story highlight. I’ve noticed my bind off looks better on the inside of the garment - it looks fine on the outside, but it looks great inside! I’m not sure if there is a way I can correct that. This yarn really obscures the stitches as you work on certain techniques (like this bind off), so I am happy with how it came out, and can work towards improving it on my next knitting project.
I was nervous to wet block this sweater, but since that’s what I had done for my gauge swatch, I knew it would fluff up the yarn and even out my stitches. So I went for it, and I have no regrets! I’m glad I took measurements of the sweater before submerging it in water, because I used them when shaping the wet sweater. It dried pretty quickly, just over night (I placed it near a radiator, but not right in front of it). The stitches look great, and it has held its shape well ever since.
All in all, I love this sweater! It feels airy when you’re wearing it, and is quite warm. It was a pretty easy project, with new-to-me skills (neckline construction, raglan increases, cuff decreases) to keep it interesting. This is a good First Sweater project for someone who knows the basics of reading a pattern and wants to make a garment! My only dislike was using big needles - I don’t have good grip strength, so it was uncomfortable to me to hold the chunky needles. For that reason, I might try to stick to finer gauge knits going forward….but who can resist the occasional speedy project!? Have you tried knitting lately? I may have already downloaded another pattern…. XO, Martha