Kelmscott: a sweater out of season

This is a sweater that takes a lot of finishing.  But it's done.  In time to put it away until fall.  This is the lovely Kelmscott from Twist Collective, Winter 2009 (!).  I asked for the yarn for Christmas in 2010, and didn't start it until November 2011.  Luckily, I think this portrait collar will still look beautiful to me as the tides of fashion ebb and flow.
 
I used Sunday Knits Nirvana yarn (a merino/cashmere blend), instead of the Angelic (merino/angora) it called for -- I am bothered by angora.

Carol Sunday has very nice instructions for the crocheted edges and buttons.  Unfortunately, I didn't seem to have the crochet skills to make the buttons small enough, following her instructions.   I used these instructions from Vogue Knitting instead.  I think the original buttons are prettier, but mine are fine and blend into the bobbles of the sweater just fine.

This is a beautiful pattern, and the sweater turned out fine -- I think the weather is a little too warm now for me to fully love it.  I knit as instructed, except I altered the dimensions a bit to fine-tune the fit.  Unfortunately,  I think I ended up with an "OK" fit, not a precise one.  The yarn relaxed more than I'd anticipated, and I think I overcompensated a bit for some adjustments I was trying to make.  The sweater is just a very little bit big, and the sleeves long.  Also, the sleeves seem designed to be long and drape prettily over the hand -- but I should know better.  I like my sleeves off my hands, and really, above my wrists.  I'm afraid I'll be coming home with my sleeves  like this: 


For more details see my Ravelry page.