Cozily Engaged

Like you (I hope), I had the luxury of an extra long holiday weekend, and I spent most of it doing things that I love.  Every morning, I was able to get in a 5k run which always helps to set up my day. For my family's Thanksgiving meal, I baked one of my all-time favorite pumpkin cheesecakes from an ancient 1990 Gourmet recipe. I made my first ever Minnesota Wild Rice & Mushroom soup for a cozy fire-side dinner with very dear friends.  And last but not least, I gathered all my knitting projects together and spent a few hours each day listening to my favorite podcasts while finishing some WIPs.  Yes, in a nutshell, I was cozily engaged.

I'll be showing off my FO parade all week but today I'm excited to finally share my finished Duchess Bedford!

Madelinetosh DK in Duchess

I knit this pattern as a KAL with Wei Siew, but she finished weeks before I did.  There was a lot I learned while knitting this pullover which was exactly why I wanted to try the pattern.  Firstly, this sweater is knit bottom up with raglan sleeves that are added after the body is finished.  Secondly, I loved the twisted stitch pattern on the body portion which zoomed along.  Thirdly, not having knit reverse stockinette stitch before, I welcomed giving it a try.

I also wanted to follow a pattern faithfully from start to finish and it was such a nice experience to do so.  Where I was most nervous was in joining the sleeves with raglan shaping, but I read through the instructions several times, gave myself plenty of time and space to knit this section, and I am pleased to say that I DID IT! It's not perfect -- there's a little separation on the left-side shoulder -- but for my first attempt, I'm stoked!  Knitting with Madelinetosh is pure pleasure, and I'm glad I chose to use their DK weight yarn and US7 needles as the pullover is exactly what I was looking for:  snug and warm.
Miranda modeled my new pullover for this blog post but do not be mistaken:  this Duchess Bedford is mine.  Stay tuned for another blog post when I show you the yarn we bought for her Bedford.