Since the beginning of the year, I have been on more of a sweater knitting binge than ever. I don't know if it's because I had only been working on secret work knitting for so long or what, but I definitely got the urge to bust out some personal knitting.

Ondawa by Michele Wang

First on the list was a project was a sweater pattern I had been eyeballing for months. The Ondawa by Michele Wang is this super awesome, boxy, crop sweater with tons of texture. What drew me to the design was the incorporation of the cables starting from the moving ribs at the base of the sweater. Have to say, this is my third knit I have made designed by Michele as her patterns seem to call to me from Ravelry.

I used 4 skeins of the lovely, undyed worsted weight wool by Blackberry Ridge. If you ever have the chance, I would highly suggest this yarn! It is a small mill out of Wisconsin that uses Corriedale and Merino as its base and is woolen spun. Not only does it fluff up and soften after blocking, it retains great stitch definition.

I have been during a lot of what I like to call "Research Knitting" working from other designer's patterns, getting inspiration and trying out new techniques. So, when knitting I have been following the pattern exactly how they are written. The one thing I would have done differently for the Ondawa would be make all the body and sleeves in the round. There is absolutely no shaping (which is one of the reasons I love this silhouette!) except in the sleeves which is why it would have been more enjoyable to work it in the round. Twisted stitches create beautiful texture but are 100% easier when you don't have to twist purl stitches. Additionally, I am a bit lazy when it comes to seaming so I definitely enjoy projects more when there is less seaming involved or I have the option to seam using Kitchener stitch.

All in all I love this sweater and it has been getting worn heavily in my sweater rotation!

Dalis by Diana Walla

Back in December, I was able to score this awesome color of Lark in Goldfinch by Quince and Co. in a sweater quantity for ridiculously cheap. So of course I supplemented some extra colors in order to make this lovely Dalis pullover by Diana Walla. Once I had finished Ondawa, I was really into the idea of making a simple pullover, so it was perfect that I already had Dalis in my queue of projects. I ended up busting this out over 3 days, while biking about 70 miles on my stationary bike(YAY KNITTING AND EXERCISE!). It has a looser gauge so it's nice, and lofty. Not dense in the slightest.

As I stated previously, seamless garments are my personal fave, so this went by very fast. The only thing I found that was interesting was that Lark stretched out a bit length-wise after blocking so it is a little longer than my personal preference even after making it 2" shorter in length than the pattern suggested. This is really just a personal problem as I am short torso-ed and typically have to shorten patterns anyways.

Rocky Fork Pullover by Kerri Blumer

So I blame Shelley from The Yarn Underground for this sweater. I was alone for the afternoon in the shop a couple Friday's ago and stumble across this pullover on Ravelry's "Hot Right Now" and was immediately in love. One of my goals this year is to create more and more garments that are not only fun and lovely but are also basics in some way that will last and be worn for many years to come.

The Rocky Fork Pullover by Kerri Blumer had all components of a simple yet timelessly modern details that I had been looking for in a pullover. This sweater is also knit on a very lightweight gauge making it great for layering. I used Plymouth Galway in Sport and only 7, 50 gram skeins making this a super affordable sweater.

This was a seamed pattern but again, if I wasn't being so staunch in my "research knitting," I would have adjusted it to be worked in the round. Overall, this a great basic sweater pattern to have in the closet and had nice waist shaping for a close fit.

Truss by Melissa Wehrle

Alright, I love Brooklyn Tweed produced patterns. The graphic design, the details and the layouts they have just make complete since to me. So yes, I made another of their patterns I had in my favorites and yes I blame this one too on Shelley since I was alone in the shop when starting this one. This pattern ended up being my "People vs OJ Simpson" binge watch and the Oscars sweater last weekend.

I made the smallest size from the pattern as it had plenty of ease for me. I used Harrisville Highland yarn in Loden Blue which is super rustic but fluffs a bit after washing and evens out nicely. I loved this yarn all the tweedy colors in it! I did end up going off the track a bit with this pattern for a couple parts.

I kept the stitches live and used Kitchener stitch to seam them together so they appeared seamless. The cardigan is very lightweight and so I felt that it didn't require the additional support of the Joinery Bind Off the pattern suggested. Also, I worked up the sleeves in the round subtracting just one stitch from what the pattern suggested for casting on. (notice my lazy, non-seaming trend).

Realizing that I have made mostly pullovers in the last year, I have decided that I need to knit more cardigans for my life and this is the first of many for the year. I really love the fit of Truss and have been wearing it a lot this past week reaffirming my decision to make for cardigans for layering.