Yes, it’s the same hoodie we’re talking about here. The variegated Tosh DK one which I cast on in late May 2010. It is finished, in some form, but before I show you that cardigan, take a look at this skein of superwash sock yarn I hand-dyed last Thursday and was coveted and bought by LouR the following day; using her cute baby Lily to make me guilty about depriving her of this skein!

She wound it into a cake as soon as she got home – she must love the colour that much! This is called Mulled Wine. I should have taken a photo of the dyeing process because this skein started life with a brown shade and later took a dive into a deep red dye pot so ended up sporting a different shade altogether.

Enough about that – you came here for the hoodie. That isn’t a hoodie.

I have no photos of it with me wearing it; well not proper photos anyway so I give you my Austin Hoodie modelled by dear Hala. She is way more voluptuous than me so this is a great model shot! Now I wish I had added buttonholes all the way down the front, but Jackie suggested I sew on a zipper, which is an even better idea! Will have to take it to the shop though as I do not sew.

This project has a few modifications starting from the choice of yarn. The original design uses Tosh Merino Light, which is a single ply fingering weight. At the time, I did not have any of said TML in my stash but I did have 3 different lots of sweater quantity MadTosh yarn for the club. I thought my Tosh Merino Stovepipe and Tosh Eyre Tart were too thick for the hoodie so I swatched 3 times with the DK on 4mm and got gauge.

Next was the woven band. Since Tosh DK is heavier than the yarn called for, I didn’t double the yarn for the woven band. it might get too heavy, I thought. It went alright, I think. And then the sleeve decreases were altered a bit because I have huge bingo wings for arms and if I decreased as per the pattern the sleeves will not fit me.

Finally, the hood itself was dropped in favour of a marine (or Popeye) collar. It was Debbie who gave me the idea which meant I was able to finish the sweater sooner. And with that, I give you a final look at the hoodie that isn’t really a hoodie.

Project: Hoodie in June (Raveled!)
Pattern: Austin Hoodie by Connie Chang Chinchio
Yarn: Madelinetosh Tosh DK, Wisteria – used 6.25 skeins or 1406 yards
Cast on: 25 May 2010
Cast off: 5 Dec 2010
Needle: 4 mm for main cardigan, 3mm for the cuffs
Notes: I am not quite happy with the twisted rib cuffs so I will frog and use normal ribbed cuff instead. Otherwise I am happy with the fit of the cardigan and the yarn has just been a delight to work with. Hence, the mini-Koolhaas I am knitting with the leftovers.