The FO finish line is in sight

My Central Park Hoodie is so nearly done I can almost taste it.

Finished so far....

The Fronts.




I measured as a 38" so had to decide whether to do the 36" or the 40". Only after I CO for the 36 did I read that this pattern runs small. So I have spent most of the time knitting this angsting whether 2" negative ease is going to result in a somewhat fitted hoodie or a simply too small one. Unblocked the fronts looked way way way too small.
Oh the magic of wool + water......I managed to block the fronts out to 10 1/2 inches which is the size of the 40" on the pattern schematic so I'm pretty pleased and I think it should fit fine. What I probably should have done was the 36 back and the 40 fronts as I am narrow across the back but have *ahem* breastfeeding equipments to factor in for the front. I'm not nearly confident enough at knitting adult things for adult shaped bodies to factor in waist shaping or front darts or anything fancy like that so hopefully blocking it to size will do the trick.


The sleeves.



Knitting 2 at once was a good plan I think - it seemed to take forever but then this whole knitting an adult size something has taken way longer than I anticipated anyway. I made one mistake on the cabling which I am bummed about but not bummed enough that I will rip back. You can actually see it in the WiP picture I posted here (no one mentioned it so either you are all very polite or its really not that noticeable lol). Its right near the cuffs, like the 2nd cable repeat, so ripping back is not an option and neither is laddering it down to fix it (whatever that is called). So one wrong way twist will just have to stay.

I read the sleeves are quite tight so did quicker increasing (every 6th row instead of 8th) and then carried on increasing until 64 instead of 58 st. At the end of the sleeve cap you have to decr by 2 stitches so I just BO 3 at those points to get rid of my extra stitches. The good thing about doing these sleeves together on a circular needle was that I could slide the sleeve down onto the cable then wrap it round my arm to see if it would fit.
I safety pinned the sleeves together (a neat trick I read about somewhere) to make sure I knitted across them both and not accidentally back&forth over just one.


Back.



I added 2" to the length to make it a more flattering length on me. I measured a favourite hoodie to get the length I would like. I think its probably going to end up a tad longer than that once worn as the wool is pretty heavy. Lengthening it seems to be what most people do.

The Bendigo 12 ply is lovely to knit with. Smooth with just a hint of tweed it's knitting up beautifully.Its dense and warm, I can't wait to try it on properly. Its never split. There are no yucky bits, knots or anything like that. Its really one of the nicest thick wools I've knitted.
This was my first time ordering from Bendigo Woollen Mills and I was pleasantly surprised how quick the wool arrived (from Australia) - I also loved how they included a sample book (for those future purchases of course) as I am one of those people who likes to see the colours IRL and pet the yarn before I buy.
I think this will definitely not be my last BWM knitting experience.


If this was a proper cardigan I'd be pretty much done and dusted. But it's a hoodie and so I need to knit the hood now. And pick up a gazillion stitches for the front bands.

Decisions to make while my hoodie parts dry - do I continue the cable up the hood? 3 needle bind off or sew the hood seam? Do I incorporate button holes on the band/add them on later/leave as an open style ala the pattern photograph.......

Its a balmy and warm day today, perfect for blocking. Hard to believe this time last week the kids were out playing in snow. Today feels almost spring like!