Hey Everyone,

Today I am excited to share my very first sweater knitted on circular needles. This is the Louisiana sweater, designed by Danish knitting designer, Mette, of PetiteKnit. Actually, prior to knitting this sweater, I did knit a cardigan on straight needles, and I will share that cardigan with you all in a few days, but I really didn’t enjoy the process of knitting that cardigan, or the end result, whereas I am so proud of this sweater. I thought I would share the positive project first 🙂

This sweater was knit using the wool which is recommended by the pattern: Borstet Alpakka by Sandnes Yarns, which is a Norwegian company. I purchased my wool online from SKD yarns. This wool is not cheap, but as a novice I was too scared/ unknowledgeable to consider substituting the wool for a cheaper alternative. It doesn’t matter anyway, because I love the end result. It is so light and soft but warm and was a dream to work with. I also got some Addi metal circular needles from the same place and I really enjoyed knitting with them.

The sweater is knit from the top down whilst holding two strands of yarn together, throughout. You start with the collar, then knit the shoulders and tops of the sleeves, before putting the sleeves on waste yarn whilst you finish the rest of the body. You finally go back and pick up the sleeve stitches and knit the sleeves. The collar is actually folded over to give a double thickness and knit together (although you can sew it together at the end if you prefer). I am so super proud of myself for teaching myself how to do all this! The internet is a wonderful resource. And there are lots of videos on the PetiteKnit website, although they are in Danish. If there is one video I can recommend, it is this one, which was so clear on how to pick up the underarm stitches and knit the sleeves. That was the part I found most intimidating. I actually finished knitting the body of the sweater in about 4 weeks, but then put off knitting the sleeves for a further 6 weeks because I was too scared. Once I got started on them though, I got through them in a few days.

Overall, I am complete convert to seamless knitting in the round. I recommend this pattern to any beginners, although I would say you are going to have to be prepared to educate yourself somewhat. The pattern is in English, but I think is a translation, so there was one part at the beginning which I found a little confusing (to do with moving markers), but with help from Instagram I was able to figure it out. I even blocked this sweater properly, although after taking these photos I did go back and use some steam from my iron and my tailors ham to reshape the collar a little and get it to sit closer to my neck.

Pattern Notes

• I knit a straight size XL. I think the sizing is good for me. It is designed to be quite short. I bought the recommended amount of wool and would not have had any wool to lengthen the body of the sweater even if I had wanted too.
• I did shorten the sleeves by 1 inch. I possibly could have made them more like 1.5 inches shorter, but it’s fine.

With all that is happening in the world right now, and with the darker night drawing in, it’s nice to have a slower hobby that I can do in front of the fire and TV on a cold night. I have already purchased my wool for another project: I am going to try a cardigan on circular needles next.

I will be back soon to share my first knitted garment project with you.

Until then!