Category: project – Avril

Avril is finally done, after nearly a year.  To say that my knitting motivation, or at least the motivation to finish things, has been somewhat lacking seems like an understatement.

Pattern: Aline, Avril and Adrienne from Berroco.  This is an older pattern from Book 219 Basic Classics collections.

Yarn: Cascade Venezia Bulky, wool and silk.  I like the yarn and it is lovely to knit.

Pattern Modifications: None except adapting for gauge.  I could not get the same gauge as any of the three original yarns used in this design so some math was required.  I did not add buttonholes to the collar or use the two slightly smaller buttons I had set aside for use on the collar.

Ruby Bubbles was put aside last week.  It was time for a short break, even from luscious fine alpaca.  Besides, we had a few hot days, and no matter how yummy, I do not feel like knitting alpaca when it is in the mid 80's. 

The hot days did not last.  And I did not start any summer projects either.  I picked up a pair of socks I had let languish in the bottom of my bag; they will be good travel projects as the next week is filled with waiting rooms and appointments.  Last night, I started a new sweater with that lovely cotton I showed you in my last post. So it seems I will be working on several simultaneous projects, which only seems to delay the completion of any of them, not that completing things has been my strong suit of late anyway.

Primarily however, I worked on Avril, a sweater I had intended to wear last fall.  I knitted all the pieces and never put it together.  I don't really know why.   

Although it is wool and silk I hoping I can still wear it in the early morning air since we still have freezing temps overnight. To this end I spent most of my knitting time the past week knitting the front bands and the collar.   It is not quite done.  The knitting is done, but I have yet to seam and set-in the sleeves.  And there seems to be a ton of yarns to weave in as well. But these things should not take long.  The seaming requires focused time, not relaxing and knitting time, but even so it should be done this week.

At which point, I will finally have another finished sweater to share.  I do hope I can still wear it.

One cold day back in September I was at knitting group and I just did not feel like working on Sheelagh.  I was cold and I wanted to knit wool.

Luckily Yarn Central had just gotten in a new supply of yarn and there was a lovely selection of Venezia by Cascade.  The colors were calling out to me and I realized what I really wanted was a fast easy warm cardigan.  So I started one.

I am using this old pattern from Berroco.  It is from one of the older "basics" brochures and the style is shown and written for 3 different weights of yarn.  The one shown, Aline is written at 4 stitches per inch whereas my Venezia is knitting at 3 1/2 stitches per inch.  But this photo is the one most like my finished sweater.  The Second version, called Adrienne, is knit at 3 1/2 stitches per inch, so I don't have to do any math, but that was a bubbly novelty yarn so the illustration doesn't help at all.

I started the sweater, finished the 6 inches of ribbing at the bottom of the back and set it aside until I finished Sheelagh. 

I finished knitting the back yesterday and I will cast on for the left front today.  And yes, I will figure out my decreases before beginning the right so that I don't fall into that "reverse shaping" trap again.

Here is a partial photo of the back of the sweater, which I am calling Avril (for the third version of the pattern).  I would have liked to show you a photo of the entire back, especially how the bottom ribbing seems to curl up when flat because of the short rows I did to take extra length out of the center back, but unfortunately it was late before I managed time to take a photo and I could only get the entire back in at a very odd angle  which really distorted the proportions.  You can see a couple of wraps from the short rows just above the ribbing, but I am pretty sure those will block out.