 I'm usually pretty pleased with most of the things I make. I know that comes across a little boastful. I don't mean it that way. I'm equally impressed by the things other people make. Whether it's a sewing project, a knitting project, or some other medium, I think it's really awesome that somebody took the time to make something when it would save time, effort, and frustration to find one at a store. Even with the enormous satisfaction I get from completing projects, there are some that really make me step back and smile. This sweater is one of those projects. I love everything about it.  The pattern is Lemongrass by Joji Locatelli. I'm crushing hard on Joji's patterns lately. In fact, I knit three of them in a row (Neon, Looking Back) and am having a hard time talking myself out of a fourth and a fifth. Aside from the obvious reason- theses are some good looking sweater designs, the thing that has me hooked is Joji's pattern writing. In the day and age of Ravelry and self-publication, A LOT of people are out there trying their hand at design. This is a great thing. More ideas means more variety and a bigger selection for those of us in the market for patterns. The downside is that a lot of people do what I like to call "Mad Lib" pattern writing. They insert BLANK stitch pattern into a basic sweater formula, slap a new name on it, and, essentially, sell you the same pattern over and over again. It annoys me. I have a stitch dictionary at home, thank you very much.  If a designer wants my money, they've got to give me something in return; show me something I haven't seen before. I know it's not easy. I've knit more than 50 sweaters (I can hardly believe that) and covered a lot of ground doing it. That's why I'm willing to pay- somebody had to work a little bit to put the thing together.  Joji is the real deal. She has incredible range in her design catalog. More impressively, she uses completely different methods of construction and technique in each of the patterns I've tried. Also, I love that her designs take me to the edge of my comfort zone in terms of shape and silhouette- something I'm trying do a lot of lately.  Alright, alright,I think you get my point. Enough gushing. Now.... Allow me to point out the elephant in the room. My right sleeve is TOTALLY shorter than my left sleeve. I have worn this sweater several times since taking photos of it, and I didn't notice until I started adding pictures to this post. HA! Good thing those sleeves are top down. Good thing I have yarn left.  "The only difference between an experienced knitter and new knitter is that the experienced knitter makes bigger mistakes faster." ~Stephanie Pearl McPhee Tell me, do you have a favorite sweater pattern or designer? Or, have you walked around with two different length sleeves? Please tell me I'm not alone.
16 Comments
How funny! I didn't notice the sleeve thing until you pointed it out, but once you did, I couldn't stop seeing it. Thank goodness for do-overs! That sweater looks amazing on you. And I agree, I get a tad annoyed when people take something extremely basic, change one thing, and then publish it. However, it's AMAZING how many of those patterns sell. I've tried to do something interesting in each of my patterns... which is why I haven't designed much lately, because that takes a heck of a lot of work, and I haven't had the time. I think it's admirable when someone can put that much work into every one of their designs, but at the same time, I understand why people publish the easy stuff that they know will sell. Different audiences, I suppose!
LOL. Isn't it awful!! I don't know how I missed it for this long! It's just as important to share mistakes as it is to share victories, I think.
You're on fire lately! I'm loving all these posts - it's helping motivate me to finish my current projects! I honestly didn't really like this pattern the first time I saw it, but your version has me re-examining it. The shape & fit really look great on you! 11/17/2014 01:19:49 pm
I love this! I'm with you - I love Joji's patterns, with quite a few in my mythical queue. This pattern is one of my favourites, I love the buttoned sides. Really lovely, Michelle! 11/17/2014 11:29:51 pm
Another lovely sweater! I love the side details and the buttons. You're always inspiring me with your creations.
I'm sort of swooning over rillie's designs lately, although I've still not quite finished grandpa cardi....it's looking good, though!!! And i love the funky construction on the hitofude---which is a great (GREAT) sweater!!! I've downloaded a couple of joji's patterns---and think I would like them (can't do raglan shaping....keep thinking I can, but I look like a triangle in them!!!), so several of hers are not for me. 11/19/2014 12:20:08 am
That sweater is gorgeous! I didn't notice the sleeve difference in the pictures until you pointed it out. Top down makes it a fairly easy fix, but I really doubt many would notice the difference if you just left it as is. Love that Yarn Harlot quote!
Wow, awesome! It fits you great and I totally agree with your observations.
Kathy
2/11/2016 05:00:54 pm
Question: I'm trying to knit the LemonGrass sweater, and find the pattern VERY confusing when having to constantly refer back to the Basketweave directions and the LCI and RCI directions. I've ripped it out 4 times already! Do you know if this pattern exists in LONG FORM? In other words, where the Basketweave and increases are written out in the body of the pattern, rather than as a side note that must be referred to constantly? If you can offer any assistance, I would be grateful!
Flavia
2/12/2016 11:46:01 am
Mmh, I don't think so. I would suggest you to go to ravelry and ask in the group if someone had your same issues and how they solved it but I didn't like Joji's group very much. It resembles much an airport terminal :-) everyone is going fast and minding their own business, you are really a nobody, there... I subscribed twice and twice I abandoned the group, too messy, too impersonal. Leave a Reply. |
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