Large Project-itis... but I finished SOMETHING!

Ladies and gentlemen, I have large project-itis.  This means that I have way to many big projects going on right now and I don't want to work on any one of them.  So, in typical Jo fashion, I just cast on another project :)

Sherwood Forest colorway in Polworth Wool

This time however, it's a small one.  I just bought a new book, Knitting Without Tears by Elizabeth Zimmerman, and had wanted to make the seamless yoke sweater (yet another large project) contained in its wisdom filled pages.  I wanted to make this sweater out of handspun too (because buying the yarn is just too easy, right?).  I had an idea of the color I thought might work out so I spun up a skein of FatCatKnits Polworth in Sherwood Forest and ended up really liking how it came out.  

My handspun in its single phase.  Looks pretty already!

Now, for something like a sweater, you really need to make a swatch.  Now, I didn't do a swatch for my first sweater and lets just say I was incredibly fortunate it fit me at all.  It is a bit big in places, but I'm ok with that especially given I could have faced disaster.  So, I decided I would be a good kid and knit up a swatch for once so I wouldn't tempt fate twice.  In her book, Elizabeth Zimmerman suggested that instead of just making a swatch, why not make a hat.  If you make a plain stockinette hat, you can both check your gauge AND have a nifty little gift done and ready to go.  I liked this plan and it fit in nicely with my large project-itis symptoms, so I churned out my swatch/hat in just three days.

My handy little sweater swatch all knit into something actually useful!

So, for today's post I give you the first item that I have both spun and knitted and am actually proud to admit to making.  There were a couple things a month or so ago that did not quite earn that distinction...  So, bolstered on by this small success, I am trying to figure out what do do for the colorwork section.  I'm thinking I want to do some leaves or a vine, but haven't found a whole lot that I love as of yet.  I have two options right now and they both are nice, but neither scream KNIT ME!  

So, I'm still trying to figure a few things out.   I don't think I'll be knitting the sweater for quite awhile though, since it's been in the 90's lately and I don't care to wearing a knitting blanket in that kind of heat.  I'm thinking I'll get started maybe in October or early November and then hopefully I'll be able to wear it around Christmas and in the cold of January.  

You know, I need to find more models for my finished projects,  While I like this hat and Brian did a fine job taking a picture of me wearing it, I hate not having photographic control... I just need to clone myself I guess.

So you can see what the back looks like.  I love decreasing using K2tog because it makes this neat swirl at the top of the hat but doesn't draw to much attention to the fact that the hat is getting smaller rather quickly.