Sunday, September 1, 2019

Hanako Sweater


My latest sweater - a simple boxy garter stitch sweater with long narrow sleeves. I knitted it only in about a week and it was so much fun to knit! I had three skeins of Alize Puffy Fine, 50% viscose 50% acrylic, which I bought last autumn at a sale. The original color was baby blue - very delicate and sweet but I would never wear it and I bought it with the idea of overdyeing it. The price was very reasonable, the yarn is very soft and pleasant to wear and was being discontinued, so I just could not pass on the bargain.

My dyeing job was a bit of a flop - one of the skeins came out much darker than the other two. But one can always turn the defect into effect! I decided to knit the yarn with two strands held together and stripe it - I knit the two of the lighter skeins together and the darker skein I wound into a double stranded cake and alternated four rows of lighter purple with two rows of darker purple.


My inspiration for the sweater was Hanako Garter Pullover by Kim Barnette, though I took only the visual idea and made my own calculations and alterations.


The garter stitch texture grew  a lot after the wet blocking and some wear of the sweater (the sleeves were initially 3/4 length!). I like it as it is now but if it continues to grow I might have to redo the neckband and maybe shorten the sleeves.


Pattern: Hanako Sweater, inspired by Kim Barnette's Hanako
Yarn: Alize Puffy Fine 300 g, hand dyed
Needle: 4.5 mm rib, 5.5 mm body
Time to knit: about a week





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