The leaves are turning, there is Autumn in the air, and my light knit jacket I've worn for 5 years is falling apart. I've been thinking of knitting myself something to replace it for some time, but never found the pattern that's just right. Until now. Meet Chesterfield (link to Ravelry), a pattern by Julie Hoover for Brooklyn Tweed.
I did change a few things. The yarn is from Kampes and I am using three colours instead of four because I wanted the top part to be pure black and only the bottom be heathered. So far it is turning out exactly as I imagined it, I absolutely love the subtle heathering in the broad red band. It is very difficult to photograph accurately, though.
Since I have a short torso, and I wanted a shorter cardigan (I plan to steek* it) than the original pullover, I omitted 18 rounds between the waist decreases and the bust increases. I also did the short rows in the front instead of the back, and have rewritten the sleeves entirely to flare at the wrists.
I've reached the point where you set the body part aside and knit the sleeves. Since the sleeves are my own invention, they are going very slowly and I'm beginning to suspect I'll be knitting at least three sleeves to get them exactly as I want them, if not more.
Here is the project link to Ravelry for those of you who want the full list of mods.
* Steeking is going to be a challenge because I decided to do it after I'd knit the ribbing at the bottom. Now I have to figure out if I leave it asymmetrical or if I fiddle with the steek sandwich. Steek sandwich is something I learned from Kate Davies, the link is to her pages explaining what it is and how to make one. Another option is to leave it as a pullover, but pullovers and I do not get along.