Juliet

Pattern: Juliet
Designers: Sarah Johnson and Rachel Bishop
Source: www.zephyrstyle.com
Yarn: Misti Alpaca Chunky, Aquamarine, color 3317, 108 yds/100 g - 5 skeins required
Source: Knitche, Downers Grove, IL
Needles: size 10 Bryspun circular for yoke, size 10.5 Addi 24" circular for body
Size: Small
Finished measurements: 38" bust, 48" sweep, 18 1/4" from back neck to hem, 6" armhole, 18" from shoulder to shoulder, 8" from shoulder to end of garter-stitch yoke
Gauge called for: 14 st and 20 rows in st st to 4" on 10.5 needles
Gauge of sweater: 14 st and 14 rows on size 10.5 needles and size 10 needles

The picture below shows the best representation of this yarn: a soft grey-blue. And you want to be a cold person to wear the sweater in this yarn; it's like draping yourself in a swath of warm, humid, tropical air, almost a bit too close for comfort, even for a perennially cold person like me.
Fun to knit, no seams to finish, and an easy lace pattern to memorize. But as most knitters noted on Ravelry, this puppy runs big. I measured the finished sweater, which was knit close to the gauge called for, and it ran much larger than some of the specs for the Small. The bust measurement, with fronts closed against one another is 38", the yoke is 8" long, and the sweep, or circumference of the lower hem, is 48". The sweep is not too far off from the specs, which suggest a 49.5 " sweep for the small. But the bust measurement? The Small should be a 34", not a 38".

But I do love the edging of the front panels.
And the earring-that's-lost-its'-mate as the closure.
If I Had it to Do Over Again: Next time, I'd make the XS at a looser gauge, or the S at a tighter gauge. And I would follow the pattern as written, instead of adding on extra rows (I worked 18 instead of the 16 called for) before binding off the sleeves. Also, I'd try this in a medium-bulky yarn that is not as insulating as the Misti Alpaca Chunky. It's a glorious yarn and a dream to work with, but perhaps too warm for anything but the coldest, middle of winter, days.

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