Hey.... it's a Knitting Post!!

Long, long ago, (seven years) The Divine Though Blogless Elizabeth and I were prowling around our LYS, and chanced upon a pattern that we thought was marvelous.  We bought the pattern, and planned to knit the sweater together.

Then we knit the Weekender Cardigan together.  And we knit Irtfa'a together.  And we've done various other things together.  The pattern lurked in the closet, pouting.

Then we went to Stitches (2 years ago), and decided to knit a sweater together again.  We bought yarn!  Alas, not quite enough, really, to do more than I nice Tee, but still.  We were gonna be all matchy matchy with the yarn, and knit a sweater.  Over those two years, we've traded pattern ideas, and have yet to find THE answer.

We've also contemplated designing one...  and there was life, and it hasn't happened yet.

Two months ago we decreed that we WOULD gosh darn it knit another sweater together.  NEXT!

And there were the holidays.  And there were emails.  And we narrowed it down to one of three patterns or something with that twin yarn.

And lo, this week, we made a decision!  We discovered that long lost pattern (The Half-Circle Cardigan by Kalani Craig, designed for Shibui Knits).  We discovered that (gasp), we both actually had yarn IN OUR STASHES with which to make the sweater.

We are now swatching.

I chose the Koigu Premium Painters  Pallette in Reds that I'd originally saved for the pattern. 

However, I've ... ahem ... grown since I put the yarn aside.  Also, I somehow missed the tiny detail that Koigu checks in at 175 yards per skein, while Shibui Sock checks in at 191 yards per skein.  Thus, I'm pretty sure that I don't have enough of the primary color to finish this sweater as I want it (with longish sleeves, and so that it comes a bit lower on the hip than the original "top of hip" plan. 

Luckily, I have a Koigu Drawer.  I'd once planned to knit the Charlotte's Web Shawl, which wants one skein each of a swack of different colors of Koigu.  I collected Koigu skeins -- mostly by the one (thus preventing me from using them up for socks -- whose plan was THAT?) So, I'm using two extra skeins whose colors match the accent colors in the red yarn ... we'll see how that plays out.

I'm also interviewing Darn Pretty Needles interchangeables.
Swatch the first, using 5's.  23 rows = 3 " Clearly not 28 rows = 4". 

Tonight, I'll be going down to 4's.

The plan?  Have my needle size determined by next Tuesday's Knit Night.
Anyone else want to play along?  There's PLENTY of time to round up some yarn and the pattern!   I'll even gleefully put up Guest Posts about YOUR progress on this sweater.

(and no, I'm not contemplating what sorts of changes I'd need to make it in a different gauge ... just because I have some yarn that wants to be one like this.  No.  really. No I'm not.)

*yet*

Comments

[The Divine (though blogless) Elizabeth]

I'm having the same problem only in the opposite direction. I think I'm interviewing size 8 needles now and I still haven't got gauge. I almost have a scarf made out of my swatch....

Also I remembered that I have a Koigu drawer as well. Contemplating doing stripes with you just to be in solidarity. :)