Here’s what other knitters have written about this pattern:

-- Cast-on method for the bottom edge needs to be well-planned, so that the cable pattern looks okay and doesn’t flare out, roll, or look too pointy on the purl stitches. Confusedpet and others have recommended the knit-on method.

-- Some folks are confused by the instructions for joining the sleeves to the body. Freckle includes notes on how she handled this. Read her notes.

-- Sleeve length may run long for some knitters, either because of garment weight/stretching or by design in the original pattern. A provisional cast-on to join sleeve to body, and then work sleeves from shoulders down to wrist, might be good idea.

-- Sweater length from bottom hem to armpit is too short for some knitters. Measure your intended wearer and add rows if necessary.

-- AuntiePudentaine observes that the back and front are identical, so there’s less neckline shaping on the back edge than is typical for guys’ sweaters.

-- The final look of the sweater, and the amount of yarn used, varies greatly depending on whether the cables are blocked flat or left to be as sculptural and “poofy” as possible. Some knitters report needing to order additional skeins to finish the project.

BEGIN

I chose Valley Yarns Goshen for this project, because I wanted a sleek, light cotton/silk blend to offset the weightiness of the thick cables. The “Winter Lake” color is an elegant silver-blue (a bit darker than the images posted here). Final sweater should look metropolitan and chic more than rustic and rumpled.

Cast on 260 stitches on #9 needle, using K through front loop/KTBL method (see pictures):

Row 1: (RS, working left to right) Knit-on stitches by knitting through front loop, placing that stitch on left needle. Repeat.

Row 2: (RS, working right to left) Knit through BACK loop of each stitch, except purl through back loops for the stitches that will be purled in the cable pattern. The result is a slightly woven look that doesn’t curl too much. Using a larger size needle for this edge helps keep things loose and flexible.

Change to #6 needle for body of sweater. I didn’t knit the first four rows in a different size needle, as called for in the pattern. The cast-on method above creates a tidy edge that doesn’t flare, so this version of the sweater doesn’t need a tighter knit edge.

Check your length for the body from the bottom hem to the armholes. I knit the 42” size. The distance from the hem to the armholes was written to be 13 inches. This was 3 or 4 inches too short for the intended wearer. Perhaps the pattern is meant to be very loose and baggy, and the 42” size is meant for a quite small man. My average-size husband fits the 42” chest perfectly, but needed a longer body. I knit two extra cable sequences (28 rows) to get the correct length.

Used the same cast-on method, described above, for the sleeves.

Some knitters don’t do the cable crossovers if they are near the raglan edges. I did. It keeps the allover cable pattern looking neater, instead of having long vertical paths 12 stitches wide which aren’t cabled. HOWEVER, that may tighten up the shoulder area more than expected. I dealt with this by adding a few rows between decrease rows at the beginning of the raglan decreases. This made the armholes deeper and shoulders a bit looser. Worked great.