3/4: First update! I’m really excited about making this, but I’m trying to spend more time focusing on non-crochet things in my life, so I’m not making this project a priority. When I get to it, I get to it (although I do hope to have it done by fall!).

I’ve made 5 of the triangle motifs so far. Very easy for the most part, although I hate crocheting around the sides. Argh!

4/4: 11 triangle motifs done! Just three more until I’m done with that part! I’ve gotten used to crocheting up the sides and no longer hate it. They’re going a lot faster now.

4/9: I’ve joined the triangle panels and have made and joined the waistband. (And I’ve woven in the tails at the top of the triangle patterns.) There’s something so satisfying about joining! My waist panel and the top of the skirt panel were off by a few stitches, so I had to do a little fudging, but not much.

4/17: Plugging along! Finished adding the three thin panels on the bottom of the skirt. OMG, 347 Foundation HDC (times three!) took forever. It’s funny, because each time I’ve finished a section of this, I’ve thought, “Phew! Hard part is over!” Only to have it keep happening lol. (And none of it is really hard, per se, just time-consuming.) I’m so loving this project, though, and am anxious to finish. I had planned on really taking my time with this and working on it in bits and pieces throughout the year, but I’m addicted to it now.

4/25: I think back to when I said I wasn’t going to make this project a priority, and I laugh and laugh. It’s just so addictive! I have completed all the body panels and have joined it to make a vest. Up next: sleeves! I feel like I should take a break for a while before starting them, but I also really want to get started. We’ll see.

5/4: I have four sleeve rings done on each side. This part is going quickly! (Knock on wood.) I hate tight-fitting sleeves so I followed the suggestion to size up to a G hook. I’m really glad I did, because I slipped it on, and there’s not a lot of wiggle room. Hopefully that doesn’t bug me later.

5/23: Done with the sleeves! I wanted the sleeves to be just slightly shorter, and I also didn’t want to do the button cuff. I considered doing Ring 11 in the dark gray (my edging color), but I felt like that would be too much. I wound up doing Ring 11 in one of the normal colors, then added a round of HDC in the dark gray. I really like how it looks so far! Onto the hood next!

6/17: The hood panels are finished and attached! This feels like a big milestone even though I still have a good chunk of work left. Getting closer…

I can’t find any buttons I like, so I’m going to make some out of polymer clay. I’ve been putting it off, but I’ll need them soon. Or soon-ish.

6/20: I’ve finished and attached the extension panel. I wound up going with the “medium” or “as written” size of six rows. I usually wear a women’s medium shirt, though sometimes a large, so I debated making it bigger. I double-checked my measurements a bunch of times, though, and I seem to fit right into that medium size, so…fingers crossed.

Instead of doing the 361 stitches (per row) called for, I counted how many stitches were on the sweater and came up with 365. Not far off, but I wanted the right amount so I wouldn’t have to mess with adjusting it. When I was about 3/4 of the way through joining, it looked like there was NO WAY the panel would fit. It looked like it was INCHES too short. But it was just because of the tightness of the FSC round (and probably, as the pattern author says, that it hadn’t stretched yet). Turns out I was only off by one stitch, and that was easily fixed.

So close to the finish….

6/23: O.M.G. I’m done! Mostly! I still need to block it, but that’s it!

I made buttons for it, which I think work really well. Sewing them on drove me crazy, but they’re pretty even.

I haven’t tried it on since before I put the edging (and buttons) on, but when I tried it on the other day, it felt tight in the bust area. I think it’ll be okay, especially if I can get it to stretch a bit during blocking, but I sort of wish I’d added an extension row or two. Of course, that would have made the bottom of it bigger, too, and I don’t think that needs it.

Anyway, we’ll see how it plays out once it’s finished-finished.

6/24: DONE!!!!!! I emailed the creator of the pattern with some questions about blocking (she’s VERY responsive, FTR), and she said that for the Carron Simply Soft, she found washing (gentle) and drying (low) with a dryer sheet to be as or even more effective. The effects of blocking without the time or effort? Yes please!

So I did a wash on the wool/hand wash cycle with just a tiny bit of soap and some white vinegar in the rinse since I don’t have dryer sheets. I dried on low until it was warm and just a teeny bit damp, then shaped and stretched it a bit at the chest and arms.

Final result: It’s soft! It fits perfectly! I love it!