All astoria posts

This 7 page pattern, filled with diagrams, charts, and tons of modification suggestions, comes with 10 sizes from 31"/79cm – 58"/147cm.

Additionally, you can download an Excel document, for free, with the motif, set up so that you can play around with different color combinations.

The pattern is available for download for $9.99. You can check out all the supplies, sizes and other specifications for this pattern here.

Thanks to everyone who expressed interest in the pattern. I hope that people will enjoy knitting this piece.

I finished Astoria.

If I hadn't flubbed the sleeves, the first go around, I probably could have finished this baby in a week.

Most setbacks slow my momentum substantially, and this was no exception, but since this piece is one of those ubiquitous top-down raglans, there was no reason not to finish it up. Almost all the work was already done, and having tried it on, I was sure it was a design I'd enjoy wearing.

The finished piece looks just like I hoped. The body darts allowed me to get a good custom fit and I think the wave motif pops nicely against the deep gray and purple.

And for all of you voyeurs, here's a look at the garments naughty bits.

I ended up with plenty of leftover yarn, after the piece was done. I could have made the sleeves much longer but I didn't think it would look right with the length of the garment. Like Goldilocks would say, this seemed "juuuuuust right."

For those who might ask, and several of you have already, I'm not sure if I'll offer a pattern. Right now, I'm just happy to have a deadline associated with this. We'll see. It's simple enough that it might be worth it to write something up.

On an, arguably, unrelated note, you see those jeans up there? I like them. They fit me well. You see how, in that top left shot, they sit on my hips, near the hem of Astoria? Those are considered a high waisted cut. Can you believe that? When did our waistlines get so low that 3 inches below my belly button is high waisted? Or is my torso so freakishly long that there isn't a mom-pant alive that can pass my hip bone? Let me tell you though, it's nice to wear a pair of pants that doesn't threaten to show the world my knees from a bird's eye view. You know?

After knitting the colorwork on both sleeves, I realized that I made one of those head slapper goofs, that can only be fixed with a rip.

After determining the number of stitches I'd need to decrease before the cuff, I determined how frequently I'd need to work decrease rounds. Pattern calculating-101. So where did it go awry? Each decrease round reduces the stitch count by 2 stitches, yet I was calculating as though only 1 stitch were reduced per round. Silly mistake, and constricting too. Oy vey.

Nothing like a little ripping to keep me humble.

I have no good excuse for casting on a new project when I have plenty of existing projects on the needle. Bad knitter. Bad bad knitter.

In a recent trip downtown, I stopped in at Knit/Purl. I actually don't really have that much inclination to buy yarn, these days. I like my stash and knitting my own handspun is really satisfying, but I had this image in my head of a stranded sweater in an easy care fiber, that I could wear on my outings with the dog.

Less than 30 minutes later, I walked out with 5 skeins of Cascade 220 superwash. They only had 2 skeins each of purple and gray and only one of the natural, so my design is driven by my limited yardage.

The garment is shaped with darts instead of side seams and still needs a neckband and sleeves.

I'd like to do full length sleeves, but I'm not sure I have enough yardage to do so. I'll certainly have enough gray and white to add the stranded motif to both sleeves.

So far, this project has been very satisfying. I knitted and washed a swatch but otherwise, I have just designed as I've gone along. I wasn't even sure if it'd be a cardigan or pullover until I finished the neckline shaping.

The colorwork pattern is very loosely based on one I found in my Vogue Stitchionary. The inspiration motif is called Arles, in case you are playing along at home, and is on page 78 of volume three. That one is stacked, turned sideways and tiles in the other direction, but I thought it could be made into a fun wave motif so I reworked it to fit the design and tile correctly.

Let's hope this rash of starting will result in a subsequent rash of finishing, so I can get me that cookie. What, there's not really a cookie? Dag nabbit.