I am knitting Earthly in Patons Linen (cotton, linen, viscose) and it’s my first time working with linen.
Swatching: Using #6 needles I cast on 44 on size 6 US 32” circular needles, knit 40 stockinette rows. Swatch measures 7.5” wide by 4.75” tall.
Gauge is 24st =4”, 33 rows =4”.
Did another gauge swatch with size 7 needles…got close to gauge! 20st=4”, 30rows=4” (Goal gauge is 20 stitches and 28 rows = 4 inches, so it’s close.) Using EZ PZ Gauge Ruler (Crazy Cat Designs) to measure.
I was told, and everything I’m reading, and watching on YouTube emphasizes the importance of blocking my swatches. I hand washed in warm water with agitation, and am tumble drying now. After it’s dry, I’ll machine wash and dry the swatches like Y will when he’s living with the finished sweater. The swatches have become very soft, it’s going to be a very nice sweater if I can get the sizing right. From what I read the swatch will grow with the first blocking, and then the swatch will draw up narrower and longer than the original size.
Planning to make an XL (size 46” chest) depending on what happens with the swatches, since according to Google, I can machine wash and it will shrink up to 10%, (which would make the XL a 43.2” fit) but I had a bamboo tape top shrink to child size in my washer (still sad about that, the pre wash size was perfect!) so I’m gun shy. Son will probably machine wash it in hot at some point if he’s left to his own devices.
https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/earthly
Finished back panel! I will look for my foam tiles to wet block to confirm it measures to the schematic; then block by machine wash warm and tumble dry when sweater is finally assembled, I made a size bigger (xl instead of lg so if it shrinks 10% it should still fit.)
Finished front panel, misread directions so there is an extra ladder on the upper right shoulder. That’s fine.
Went to a Yarn Basket knitting/crochet meetup at Lazarus this morning, saw a group of people leaving as I was coming in, wearing furry legwarmers/boots and fur vests, Viking helmet; one guy had a Lucia liber mask; a couple of the women were in dresses with floral crowns; they all got in a painted school bus and left. Not sure if they were headed to Sherwood Forest Faire, or just going around in costume as part of their sxsw experience. I love costumes and wish people would dress up more!
One of the yarn basket crew I sat next to showed me some nice linen/wool blend yarn she was working with (so soft!) and she was wearing a linen top (maybe cumulus?) and said it hadn’t shrunk when washed but did grow in length. Still glad I sized up Yoshio’s sweater, because I don’t think he’d be comfortable in a really fitted, bodycon sweater.
3-29-2025
Finished Yoshio’s Earthly sweater yesterday, washed in hot water and tumbled high heat and no shrinkage, like there wasn’t with my swatches. I had Hiro try it on for size as I’m going to knit him one as well (in gray), and it’s a little shorter in the body than he’d like, will make his 3” longer. I have enough of the blue Sky linen yarn to make another sweater 3” longer for Yoshio as well, in which case I’d keep this shorter one.
