Note - make the first and last stitches of your steek purl stitches. That way, there is a lovely knit ridge on the reverse and a purl ditch on the front when it comes to sewing your steek. The purl stitches also help folding the steek to the reverse side.

Cast on Jan. 22: 220 stitches on smaller needles.
- 2 x 2 ribbing for 3 inches (k3 on each end), following the first of many of Yarnosaurus’ excellent suggestions.

• 57 fronts, 106 back, 5 steek. Purling the first and last steek stitches to make a ditch to sew.
• decreased 7 times in various configurations, as it was a bit large when I tried it on. This makes a dramatic waist decrease. Ended up with 192 stitches + steek.
• 14 rows then start increases.
• 4 increases, 6 rows apart - ended up with 54 each front, 100 back, and 5 steek.
• 90 rows (about 15 inches) then cast off for underarms.

I’ve come to the conclusion that I should have decreased some stitches after the rib for the braid, so I’m aiming to make the steek larger on the body below the yoke, and knit the yoke according to the size 36 (S).

• followed the yoke pattern (except worked Chart C per photo, not 3-colour pattern) up to Chart D, then made some changes, and got rid of 1 braid. I liked the MC and CC1 together (Cousteau and Dahlia) and wanted to see more of that. Plus - 3 braids on the neck were overwhelming, in my opinion.

• the hardest part was not the 3-colour rows in Chart A - it was the long braid at the beginning of the yoke. It helps to pull your yarn apart and push the twists away every 15-20 stitches, although that makes it slow.

Sleeves - 54 from provisional cast-on, plus picked up 10 from body underarm bind-off, plus 4 more - 68 total, which is the size M, as the sleeves apparently run tight.

• decrease every 12 rows 4 times, then every 10 rows 7 times, then again on row 126 - 44 stitches.
• braid, then 1 row knit, then __ rows 2x2 rib. Did not switch to smaller needles for rib (primarily because I forgot).

Zipper: ordered a 27 inch separating 2-way zipper from Zipperstop.com. I sent a swatch, and they will match it for me.

Steek: - having 2 purl stitches as the outside steek stitches really helps with sewing. Pictures show the pink thread (from the reverse - the purl stitches give those great knit ridges) and the cut side from the front. Then the icord from the front and reverse, with the messy steek stitches still showing.

Front I-Cord - using smaller needles and right side facing I picked up and knit 2/3 for bottom ribbing and body, except 3 for braid (1 each row). I picked up every stitch for the yoke, but that was too many, so I ended up with 3/4. I folded the neck facing, and picked up both sides together. I purled 1 row on WS, then did 3-stitch icord bind-off. Looks great, and I have a nice little ditch beside the icord where I can attach the zipper or pick up a facing.

Facing: - I tried to do the knit picker knitted zipper technique and pick up stitches through the zipper and the sweater on the WS, so I could attach the zipper and have live stitches to knit a facing. Did not work so well. I’ll try the technique again when I’m just attaching a zipper and not doing a facing as well.

Picked up and knit 8 rows in stockinette on smaller needles then bound off and tacked facing to the sweater. Not as bulky as I feared, and my steek yarn is covered up. Sewed the zipper on top of the facing.

Note on yarn requirements - I had only a tiny ball of Celadon left. I did a strip on the neck facing in Cousteau instead of Celadon, to conserve yarn. I could have done the facing in Cousteau and Dahlia entirely, if I was short, but I had enough. I actually like the first stripe to be Cousteau, as that matches the front and is one of the top braid colours.

Swatching (unblocked):

22 st. on 4.0 mm = 4.5 inches - fabric is too loose for stranded knitting, as I’m afraid the floats will show through.
22 st. on 3.75 mm = 4.24 inches - closer.
22 st. on 3.5 mm = a bit more than 4 inches.

I like the fabric on 3.5 mm, so I’ll knit between the 36 and the 40, to get 38.

Zipper tutorials:

making 2 facings at once

http://www.knittingdaily.com/blogs/daily/archive/2010/12/...
http://techknitting.blogspot.com/2012/10/zipper-in-knitwe...
http://www.knitpicks.com/images/pdf/zippers.pdf
Grumperina