Years ago, I was shopping at an Abercrombie & Fitch store, and I found a very simple pullover that I liked. It was then I realized knocking off a sweater could be easy.

How Hard Could It Be Knocking Off a Sweater?

The sweater was simple stockinette stitch, set-in sleeve pullover with a pretty standard v-neck. I decided to use one of the more plentiful worsted weight yarns at the time. Cascade 220. Figured out my gauge and then just cast on and used the measurement of the A&F sweater as my guide.

It was the first sweater I ever “designed” and I was quite pleased with the result.

There was only one thing I would have done differently if I had been a more experienced knitters. I would have added more ribbing at the bottom of the body and sleeves. Commercially, machine-knit ribbing is a much sturdier edge than hand-knit ribbing.

I also changed the edging on the v-neck. I honestly didn’t like A&F’s neck edge. I was planning on doing a folded hem type of neck, but I ran short of yarn. So after the purl-row folding line, I just bound off. Fortunately, I liked my edge better.

And just to be clear, my body is stockier now than when I knit this sweater.

I can still wear the sweater, but my girth shortens it a bit too much for my taste. I may try blocking it a bit longer and continue to wear this first-design.

Current Knitting

I’m still solely working on hats and banged out two hats this weekend.

There are at least six more hats I need to make before I can get back to working on Silvatica. And fortunately, I’m enjoying the satisfaction of finishing a number of hats relatively quickly.