My husband picked out the pattern for his sweater, and the yarn, too. And here it is:
Knit Picks Comfy Sport in Planetarium and Whisker (AKA, navy blue and gray).
Let’s just take a moment to remember the example pictures on the pattern:
![img_4328_medium2_medium[1]](https://ontheneedlesdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2015/01/img_4328_medium2_medium1.jpg)
I wonder where he got the idea for a blue and gray sweater? A sweater with stripes is far enough out of his comfort zone, so I’m not going to raise a stink about the color choice. (And, he is a Ravenclaw, so I suppose blue and silver is pretty on point.)
The yarn is a cotton/acrylic blend, which I usually wouldn’t use for a sweater. But, my husband runs super warm, so anything with even a touch of wool doesn’t get worn, except on vacation to the Great White North. So we’ll see how it works as a sweater. Have any of you knit a sweater out of cotton?
I worked up a little swatch on size 5 needles:
I got gauge with size 5 needles, not size 7, like the pattern suggests. Which is weird. I’m usually a pretty average knitter, but I guess I won’t argue with the swatch gods. Maybe it has to do with the fiber content? Cottons don’t really stretch, but wool (like the pattern asks for) is quite stretchy. We’ll just have to see.
Cross your fingers for me!
On the Needles 
I never knit a sweater with cotton, but what I have knit with it tells me you are right to use the smaller needles. It won’t stretch like wool, but it will sag, so a tighter fabric is better than a looser one, for the garment you are doing. Which by the way, looks like a nice, comfortable sweater!
That’s the thought… We’ll just have to see what happens.
Great for doing a swatch, but did you wash and dry it in the manner which the sweater will be cared for? That’s the true test of your swatch. Love the color combo.
You’re right! I usually just half-ass it, and block it with warm water, but maybe this time I should do it right and run it through the washing machine… dang.
I knit a cardigan once out of cotton. It was heavier than your knit picks comfy and made a very heavy dense fabric. I never ended up wearing the darn thing…
Dang! All that lovely work down the drain. 😦
I really like that pattern. I cant wait to see how it knits up for you.
Ooooh great idea about washing the swatch, chrisknits! Filing that away for future reference!
And I love the colors, too. Can’t wait to read your posts as the sweater knit a up!
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