Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Featherweight It Is

With two skeins of Americo Cotton Flamme, purchased earlier this spring, at the Creative Festival, burning a hole in my knitting bag, I couldn't decide whether to knit Amiga from the latest issue of Knitty or  Featherweight, a Hannah Fettig pattern I  downloaded months ago.

Amiga  has buttons.  Many of the Featherweights, shown on ravelry, seem to be  falling off the shoulders.  Is that due to the light-weight fabric?  Knitting a size too small?  Or the scant design that doesn't meet in the centre?  Whichever, I thought perhaps those button might come in handy.

Amiga is knit with Cotton Flamme.  I have the yarn.  The pattern is free.  Choice made.  Amiga it was.  Deciding the sweater itself would be my gauge swatch, I cast on with  the recommended 5 mm needle.  Holy Doodle,   that's a big needle for the Flamme.  Knit on Brenda.  Two inches into the sweater and I had cob webs on  the needle.  It seemed to me that it would never hold it's shape.  I could see myself tugging and pushing at it every time I wore it, not  to mention getting caught on every sharp edge I'd pass.  Rip.

Featherweight, calls for Malabrigo Lace Weight and 4 mm needles.  Sharon just knit one with Flamme and 3.75 needles.
 
Good enough for Sharon, good enough for me.  Thanks Sharon for knitting my test swatch!  I'm getting gauge, the fabric looks good and I'm pleased so far.

3 comments:

Sandra said...

seeing something in person vs., seeing a picture sometimes makes all the difference.
Good choice.

Yarn and Ivories said...

Oh I like!!
I need something other than a shawl for lace weight (beaucoups) stash.

Zieknits said...

Gosh! They really do look almost identical in pattern, don't they? Out of curiosity, was the Amiga 'cobweb' knitting measuring to-gauge on 5 mm?

I'm surprised people (Rav search) were getting gauge with that yarn, on the 5mm (or more!) needles. Others went down to 4.25 mm.

Verrrry interesting!

I confess, I'm not much of an "oooh, me too!" knitter. Quite the opposite, in fact (contrarian, me). I want something nobody else has! :))

Enjoy your Featherweight!