Lop-Lop-A-Lopi
And here we are — the last quarter of the year. Can you believe it? I love this time of year. It’s sort of like New Year’s. Kids back in school and everyone setting schedules and getting back into a routine. I’ve been so happy to see several long-lost bloggers return to the fold.
It’s that time to be planning new projects too. You know, the big event is coming up soon. Please note, I didn’t actually say it. In preparation for new projects, I’m trying to wrap-up a few in progress.
Which brings us to my Lopapeysa. The Icelandic sweater for which I bought the yarn on our trip to Iceland. It’s finished! Yay!
And … drumroll please ……….
IT FITS!!!!
I can’t even tell you how excited I was when I tried it on and it fit. Fitting is always the hardest part of knitting for me — it seems like guesswork, in spite of all the gauge checking that happens. I LOVE-Love-loved knitting this sweater. Only two little underarm seams to stitch up when it was all done – my kind of sweater!
I used yummy Icelandic Lopi yarn and THIS free pattern. For the neck, the pattern gave instructions to knit 3 inches of ribbing and then fold it to the inside and stitch it down. But when I was watching the Lopapeysa video that Berglind gave me when we met in Iceland, it showed a technique that basically separates the knit and purl stitches for a few rows and then uses the kitchener stitch to bind off. It’s brilliant and I love it! So much easier than rolling and sewing and it looks a lot nicer too.
So, Yipee! A finished sweater. What to knit next? (Ha! Maybe I should finish the 10-year sweater.)
Oh Wait! My VBFF Gurney told me about an awesome knitting app for the iPad called Knit Companion. Have you heard of it? I used it at the end of this sweater and it’s great to keep track of chart rows, etc. If you’re a knitter, you might want to check it out!
XOXO,
Anna