Vogue Silver Belle KAL

I finished my Belle.

2008-03-31T08:01:00.001-04:00

www.naehfreundin.blogspot.com

Low activity levels?

2008-03-14T10:21:00.002-04:00

I have been stalled on my Silver Belle for a week and a half now, hoping that more people were going to respond to my query re blocking - thanks Lauren for being the only one to respond. And it doesn't look like anyone has responded to TK's query re the peplum (unless they did it privately).

Is the activity level on the KAL too low for us to get help? Have the majority finished their Silver Belle and now no longer visit?

I'm still trying to decide whether to start over again after 80 rows on my sleeve, or whether to persevere with my blocked/stretched first start.

Sharon

La Belle Dame Sans Merci

2008-03-06T16:04:00.004-04:00

The merciless Belle is done! I have been knitting along, but haven't posted until now. Here are the details: The yarn is Luxor by Lana Grossa, purchased at LaLaine in Berlin last summer. It took 11 1/2 skeins on #6 needles. I went by the medium pattern but lengthened the skirt, sleeves, and bodice. I also did an additional stitch decrease on the skirt.

The inspiration for this project came from a visit to the Rust Kammer (Armor Museum) in Dresden, Germany, where it occurred to me that I wanted to knit some armor! The yarn looked appropriately metallic, and the pattern in the Vogue Silver Anniversary issue seemed appropriately armorial.

I loved this project. I started just after Christmas and completed it March 3. It was never boring, and I learned a lot about fixing mistakes without ripping back.

Thanks to everyone who posted comments and advice as they were knitting the Belle, and good luck to those who are still working on it.

Silver Belle Peplum Help!!

2008-03-06T11:03:00.002-04:00

I am on the row where it says to cast off next 100 sts and I have no idea what the next instruction meant. Please can some explain it to me what that whole section mean by P2tog over center 2 sts o each cable, work until 12 sts from last bind-off for center back, bind off next 100 sts, work to end for right front buttonhole band. I can't figure out what to do here. Please help.

Thank you
TK

Query re blocking to size

2008-03-04T13:34:00.002-04:00

After getting gauge on 3.25 mm needles, I have now knit four repeats of Chart E on the sleeve (80 rows). However I have been dismayed to find that the sleeve is far too tight. In part this is because I chose to knit the Small size, after reading the posts here. But when I look at the diagram, even the small is supposed to be 11 inches at the cuff. My sleeve cuff is about 2 inches smaller than that. Dismayed at the idea of starting over again, I tried pinning the sleeve out to 10 inches at the cuff, and 15.5 inches at the top (row 80) and wet blocking it. After leaving it to dry, the sleeve is remaining at this measurement and now fits. But the knitting looks rather stretched out to me, and the purl stitches are gaping around some of the extreme cable bends, so I'm kind of thinking that I shouldn't be blocking it out that wide. I'm not a particularly tight knitter, and I did get gauge, so I don't understand why my sleeve is coming out so much narrower than the pattern.

So my query is: when you knit your sleeve, was it the final measurement immediately (e.g. 11 inches at the cuff) or did you have to block it out wider?

End of february....

2008-03-04T09:54:00.001-04:00

finished lower panel knit on right sleeve

Ready to Start My Green Belle

2008-02-29T12:02:00.006-04:00

I've finally found some wool in the colour I had in my head, and am ready to start. Just in time for... umm... spring, but that's ok as this bulky cardigan won't fit under my winter jackets anyway!

I'm using a combination of Rowan 4 ply Scottish tweed and a plain dk alpaca, knit together to hopefully give an aran weight. My gauge is still a little loose, even with 4 mm needles, so I'm going to start on a sleeve and see how it looks after a few pattern repeats.

In terms of sizing, I will try making the smallest size (32 inch bust). I have an 86 cm (about 34 inches) bust and narrow shoulders, and from reading the other blog posts it sounds like this should be ok with some negative ease. I am also short (156 cm) so I think the length of the body and sleeves (which are short on the model) should be ok for me.

My intended modifications: I will use 3 buttons as it looks much better. I think I will make tighter cuffs, but will do this at the end so will use a provisional cast on for the sleeves. I'm not sure about the collar yet - it will probably get changed too! I am a bit scared of all that seaming so will attempt to eliminate a few - to start with I will knit the sleeves in the round.

By the way, can anybody tell me the yardage they actually used for the small size? My LYSO thought the 700g = 1260 metres as given in the pattern sounded like way too much, and convinced me to buy less (1000 metres). Now I am worried I don't have enough!

lower section....

2008-02-28T04:11:00.001-04:00

...row 48...it takes time....

I knit and knit and knit....

2008-02-26T09:51:00.001-04:00

The last days I knitted every free minute....and I have fun!

False start, but have gotten going now

2008-02-25T15:35:00.003-04:00

Thanks for inviting me to join the KAL - I need all the help I can get! I saw this pattern first as the Romy Cabled Cardigan in Knitting magazine here in the UK, which doesn't have charts, so I was relieved to discover that it was also the Silver Belle and that Vogue had published charts. I am knitting it in Almerino Aran, in colour Brighton Rock 307, which is 50% Baby Alpaca and 50% Merino, but I had to drop down to a 3.25mm needle to get the stitch gauge.

I started with the sleeve and if you are wondering what the mess is at the beginning, that is my false start as I just did not twig that because it was a WS row 1, I had to read the chart left to right! I am so used to going right to left that I couldn't figure out why it was going wrong. So after 6 rows, I knit a row of waste yarn and started again. I want the live stitches as I will be adding the cable trim on the cuff. I was also a bit thrown by the symbol on Chart F for K3 tog, when really it should be P3tog, but I figured that out after comparing the written out Romy instructions. I loved the tip about colouring in the chart so I've done that and also I have highlighted all the even rows so I can pick out the different rows more easily. As suggested by others, I am starting with a small size sleeve and will increase to a medium yoke.

I only learned to knit properly a year ago, and have knit several socks, some gloves and a pair of fair isle mittens, so this will be a big challenge for me. One problem I am having is a loose stitch after I have cabled, I think it is the pull of the crossed over stitches pulling that stitch bigger than it should be. Any tips on that?

Best wishes, Wannaknit (Sharon)

Sleeve question

2008-02-19T12:45:00.003-04:00

I'm making my Silver Belle with its parts in different sizes to accommodate my large bust. I knit one sleeve in size Small and think I'm ready to start the yoke in Medium, but even at 18 inches the sleeve seems short to me (and looks short on the VK model too).

So here's my question: Where should the top of the sleeve hit my body? All the way to my armpit, or with some space? I'm afraid if I stop before it's flush against me then the yoke will be tight around my torso and will pull the sleeves up from my wrist.

Maybe I'm overthinking this. Silver Belle is the first sweater that I'm actually customizing to fit my body.

Thanks so much!

1...2...3...START!

2008-02-15T14:59:00.002-04:00

I'll use the original yarn: Debbie Bliss' Cashmerino Aran

Shafer's Silver Belle

2008-02-13T18:05:00.002-04:00

It's been finished a while, I'm just slow getting it posted. I'm really pleased with the end result. I made a few modifications to the pattern--nothing too extreme. I used a J.Crew men's wool sweater I found in a thrift store, so it was a real bargain--only $4.00! I wear it quite a bit. Check out my blog for other pics

shafers-needleclicks.blogspot.com

Hello Silver Belle

2008-01-27T22:43:00.000-04:00

Silver Belle is finished and I have already enjoyed wearing it three times! My next garment will be knit in a size small as I continue to have sizing issues and this piece (like others) is a bit large. In any case, I do love Silver Belle and enjoyed the journey.

For more details look here and check out knittingdivagirl at Ravelry.

Progress

2008-01-25T19:04:00.000-04:00

I've completed one sleeve/front combo and am almost finished the 2nd one. Things are going quite smoothly now, and the pattern has become 2nd nature to me. As I mentioned before, I'm making the sleeves size small, but the body size large. I folded the sleeves in half and tried them on to ensure that they'd fit, and they're perfect. I increased as it said for the sleeves, every eight rows. Then, when I got to the part where I have to add stitches to begin knitting the front, I simply increased so that I had sufficient stitches for the large size (evenly dividing the increase stitches on both sides). I think it's going to work, but you never know, until all is said and done!

More info at my blog here

Casting on... here's the plan

2008-01-05T14:46:00.001-04:00

I've swatched, gotten gauge with size 7s, and am ready to cast on. I'll need to make some mods, more than I've done for any other sweaters I've made, so I'm a bit nervous. I'm mostly concerned about having a torso long enough to accommodate my bust, so I've been reading this KAL as well as people's project notes on Ravelry, and here's what I've come up with. Please let me know if you see anything I might need to change.

* Knit the peplum in small and lengthen it
* Make the sleeves in small, narrower and longer (I'm unsure how to do this part, but I know I want thinner sleeves that will end closer to the armpit -- advice welcome!)
* Lengthen the torso, in size medium, to accommodate the bust (maybe CO an extra 10 or so stitches on each end, or more to compensate for narrower sleeves -- any thoughts here?)
* Put top of peplum on stitch holder instead of binding off, to do a three-needle BO to attach the torso
* Change the collar (applied i-cord or cable, like ladysmithknitter's and LilySmuul's Silver Belles)

Thanks so much!

Getting Started ...

2007-12-30T17:32:00.001-04:00

Well, after a couple of false starts, I'm finally getting the hang of it and have about 8" done on my first sleeve. I love the challenge and complexity of the pattern and the fact that it stretches me beyond the fairly simple cabling I've done thus far. The Jaeger yarn is a dream to work with, as well as very easy on the wallet ... I highly recommend it! I wanted the sleeves to be less baggy than shown in the pattern, so I cast on for size small, with increases every 10 rows, but will actually end up knitting a size large, to accommodate 'the girls' and my behind. More info at my blog here.

New Member

2007-12-20T22:29:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone,

Thanks for inviting me to participate in your KAL! As you can see, I've already got my yarn all set to go. It's the Jaeger Extra Fine Merino in 'Blue Star', which was one of my Christmas presents to myself and just arrived this week in the mail! I have 20 balls, so if I decide to lengthen it, or have any problems??, I'll at least have sufficient wool.

As some of you suggested, I'm in the process of writing out the pattern, firstly because my printer is doing strange things to the pattern, but secondly, I want to make sure I'm understanding it all. I've been writing out the charts from the online pattern, as my printer isn't picking up a lot of important details ... :P*****!! I was going along fine until I reached panels B & E (I saved the long ones 'til last!) and I tried to determine the difference between 4-stRC/LC and 4-st RPC/LPC. For the life of me, when I look at the pattern on the computer, I can't tell the difference on the charts between them ... the icons all look identical. (And yes, I am wearing my glasses, which was my husband's first response).

Could someone help me out by perhaps either telling me which panels have which cables, or better yet, if you happen to have it already typed out and are willing to share, would you kindly leave me a comment on my blog here, with your email address and I'll send you mine. I'll make it worth your while :)

**Update December 21st ... all is well! I tried the super, duper printer at work and everything printed off perfectly this time, so I'm good to go! **

Brown belle

2007-12-16T08:18:00.000-04:00

I am so in love with my belle. I finished it over a week ago after knitting all but the sleeves twice because the bust was too small on the small size. I finally made a small peplum with a medium yoke and made it to fit me. I have more details of the modifications on my blog

p.s. I will be wearing this sweater a lot!

Ready to cast on

2007-12-14T14:16:00.000-04:00

I got my yarn (Elsebeth Lavold Classic AL in dark teal) from Webs and am itching to cast on. But I must finish the holiday gifts first!

I've noticed that many people have extended the peplum, which I intend to do as well. But being a "busty" gal, I'm more concerned about the top fitting. I'll do three buttons, as I've read about here, but would you suggest any other mods? I'm thinking of doing the sleeves using the size S instructions and the front and back with the size M, though I haven't looked closely enough to see whether that's possible.

Thanks for any advice you have! All of your Silver Belles have been so inspiring!

Slow Start on Silver Belle

2007-11-11T19:22:00.000-04:00

My Silver Belle was started on November 1st, and I have only completed 4 inches at this time. I have set a goal to knit at least 8" this week, now that should get me on track and moving on this project (I do plan to add 2" to the peplum).

My cables are looking a bit open to me so I think I may need to tighten up on my stitches. It was love at first site when I was Silver Belle and would be such a disappointment to complete it and not be madly in love with it.

Error

2007-10-29T13:37:00.001-04:00

I have been happily knitting away since I returned from London & suddenly realized that I've made an error. I'm going to have to undo like 8 rows! I'm not happy.

BUT, looking closer at other's photos, my cables are not the same as others. I do not have a lot of experience knitting cables but I do know how to do them & I do know how to read the patterns for them so I'm not sure if I've done something wrong or if others have decided to do their cables differently.

I'm referring to the Panel B cables. My cables look like they are twisted. I actually love the look of it & was very happy with it. Unfortunately I was not reading the pattern correctly for the last 8 rows & for 3-st LPC I was only cabling one stitch instead of 2 stitches. Therefore I have to undo the last 8 rows :(

But why do my cables look different to everyone else's, i.e. twisted, not smooth like the Panel C cables? Have I totally screwed up the whole thing? I'm going to keep doing it because I like it but just thought I would ask to see if anyone could explain why my cables look different. Thanks.

Silver Belle Look-a-like

2007-10-28T07:26:00.000-04:00

I'm home from my trip, for a few days before heading off to Shanghai. Didn't get as much done on the planes as I was hoping because flying through Europe, they don't allow knitting needles! I had to check-in my carry on so that they wouldn't take them away from me!

My next trip I should be able to continue knitting, thank goodness. My knitting is looking good. I have almost finished the bottom peplum and I have half a sleeve.

Anyway, I was looking through the newspaper ads & noticed that Kohls is having a sale & right on the front cover is a cardigan that is definitely a ready-to-wear version of the Silver Belle! It has the 3 buttons though instead of the 2. I may have to go to Kohls just to check it out a little closer.

Of course, the knitted Silver Belle is the most beautiful as it has lots of texture but I thought it was interesting. Obvioiusly this is the thing to have for the upcoming winter season!

Silver or Caramel Belle Cast on pics

2007-10-25T13:18:00.000-04:00

My cast on pictures of my silver belle! After writing out the pattern, I realised that, on the sleeve, anyway, it's on a 20 st loop. Easy, you'd think. Wrong, you'd be. For some reason, I have had to unpick a fair few times. Luckily, it's quite easy to pick up.

The cabling I've found ok. Apart from the fact that I talk like Popeye a lot of the time, with it gripped between my lips.. although I expect that Popeye didn't say stuff like "go and get your pjs on please" and "watch out the cat needs to go out". Maybe he did.

I'm knitting the sleeves on straights. Just because I thought it would be easier. I do grapple a bit with circs. The yarn, well I love the colour, but I'm not sure about the texture, it's a bit stiff, not cosy enough for me.I'm using Jaeger Extra Fine Merino Aran. I'll reassess at the end.

Help with sizing please!

2007-10-19T16:01:00.000-04:00

Dear Silver Bellers

OK, my yarn has arrived and I'm all ready to go. BUT, I don't know what size to make, medium or large. My bust is ample, granted, but can any of you knitted up silver belles please measure if you have made a medium or a large and tell me what the finished measurement around the fullest part of the bust is on these sizes please? I know the pattern says knitted measurements, but if that's the case I may have to do some jigging as I don't want the bust to fit and the rest to swamp me! The knitted measurements are too small for my bazookas!

Help please!

Love from an eager and ready to go Silver Beller

I'm new, but have a peplum already!

2007-10-16T16:53:00.000-04:00

Hello all, I'm glad to have found this KAL as I was flagging in my efforts to finish this sweater in time for the winter weather. I'm using color 300205 (kinda cornflower blue) cashmerino aran. The peplum went surprisingly quickly (will have photo posted when my camera battery is recharged), but I took an ill-advised 2 week break before starting the sleeves. My excuse is that I had to type out the pattern panels. Now that's done I'm going to cast on the first sleeve this week. I'm planning to wear it for Thanksgiving, I hope I can make it with the help of this KAL.
MaryAnn

New Member

2007-10-15T13:58:00.000-04:00

Hi Everyone!
I just joined the KAL after seeing some completed Silver Belles on Ravelry. I've had the pattern in my queue for awhile. I've wanted to make the cardigan ever since I saw it in Vogue Knitting. But I thought it was probably way beyond my capablility!

I'm glad to see other people's results, encouragement, and tips!

I'm waiting on my yarn to get here. I ordered if from Knit Picks last week. I'm going to use Swish Superwash in Jade. I ordered an extra ball because I've seen posted that several people have run out. Now I'm worried that I still didn't order enough because I want to lengthen my Silver Bell, as well.

Last night I worked through all the lines of the peplum typing it out line by line since with all those charts I figured I'd get really confused. I still need to do that for the sleeves.

It looks like some people started with the sleeves and yoke first to get an idea of how long to make the peplum so now I have to decide if I want to do that too. Any thoughts about which is better? Peplum first or sleeves and yoke first?

LillySmuul

2007-10-13T12:53:00.000-04:00

It's finished same time ago but could not post pic in here because there were no buttons til today. ;)

I'm happy with it. It's most beautiful cardy I ever made!

There is also sideview in my blog.

So far....

2007-10-10T09:02:00.000-04:00

Hello all! I am excited to share with you the progress of my belle "brown belle' as I call it, casted on just over a week ago. I have been following the progress of everybody's belle and was really interested to see how sizewise, the small one turns out to be. I decided to knit a modified "extra small" version with two less pattern repeats on the peplum. I will be modifying as I go along to get a perfect fit (hopefully). I also liked a few suggestions about using 3 instead of 2 buttons and making sleeve increases further apart and I hope to incorporate these into my knitting.

The yarn am using is Jaeger Extra Fine Merino Aran in "Coffee" which I also ordered from Cucumberpatch as suggested by Beverly. I love the colour and the texture.

More details on my blog later. Happy knitting!

Silver Belle update

2007-10-02T21:48:00.001-04:00

Hi and thanks for your comments. Here is a picture of the wool and another one of the work in progress. Cindy, I did something like what you are talking about. I basically worked up to row 13 and then back tracked to row one and then up again to 13 to increase the length. I used a greater number of initial stitches and plan to decrease to the number recommended for the medium size, starting at the end of the repeated rows. I'll let you know how that works.

Bezzie

Ready to start this but a few WiPs to put to bed first.

2007-10-02T16:43:00.000-04:00

I have my magazine and some Teal Cashmerino Aran from Jannette's Rare Yarns, but if I start another item before finishing the other big DB knit I will never get either finished.

2007-10-01T20:53:00.000-04:00

Hi
I'm new to blogs. This is my first post. I was so excited to learn about other knitters working on the same pattern at the same time. The finished Silver Belle's that I have seen so far have been fabulous. I have dreamed of this pattern for a long time but did not come across it until now. My dream of it is as a duster....a below knee length coat.

I can follow the pattern but I don't know how to adapt the pattern to make it at least Peplum 20"longer than it is. Does anyone have any suggestions?

I love the cable trim that some of you have put on. I also like the idea of 3 buttons instead of 2. Thanks for those ideas.

I chose to use a neutral color and am using Bernat's Cashmere in Earth. I'll see if I can post a picture.

looking forward to future posts.

Bezzie

What's In A Name

2007-09-27T08:39:00.000-04:00

In August I stopped by Knit One in Squirrel Hill to find some yarn for Silver Belle. I was thinking of something bright and cheery since life has been dreary here, but I came away with some Cascade 220 in a lovely pewter shade. I saw it and fell in love! It's the loveliest color with the ugliest name "Gris". I told myself I had to finish at least one project before I could start Belle but now I can't wait to try it out. Thanks for letting me join! It's always more fun to knit with others.

Chart

2007-09-22T09:04:00.000-04:00

OK, I don't know about anyone else but I was having a hard time following the charts. Now you have to remember that I have started this project so I can work on a plane with it, so I wont have a lot of space for laying out all sorts of papers in front of me. I've finally come up with a solution that works & thought I would share in case someone else was wanting to make their instructions a little easier to read.

First I printed out the pdf file, enlarging the whole thing. I pulled up each page on the screen to fit the width & chose "print current view". I now have my pattern on 2 landscape pages, each page of the pattern split over the front & back of one page. I printed it on cardstock paper.

I colour coded the Stitch Key. I then coloured in the Panels according to the Stitch Key. As I am not very familiar with reading charts like this, having never done it before, I found I was refering back to the Stitch Glossary way too much. So, I typed out the Stitch Glossary in a Word document, typing it into the footer. I colour coded it according to the stitch key & printed it out on the bottom of the page that has my charts on it. I now have my charts & my Stitch Glossary all on the same page.

I then laminated the pages so that they will stand up to the wear & tear of constantly being used!

Having done all that, I'm actually finding that the knitting of this is not as bad as I thought it would be. Parts of it I have gotten into a rythmn with. But I do need to constantly check back to the chart for the cable section.

Hope this helps someone. Certainly makes it a lot easier to read for me! :)

Just Starting

2007-09-21T10:58:00.001-04:00

OK, I have decided that I want to give this a try. I have been a knitter since I was 5 but I have never made something with so much pattern. Time to expand the horizons. It is really nice to have a place like this where others are knitting the same thing. Helps when you have questions. Thank you to those that set this up.

I couldn't find the Debbie Bliss yarn so I'm using something similar. This has a different twist which I think will be interesting. I have never done a K1, P1, K1 in the same stitch before. Not sure if I'm doing it right but it seems to be looking ok.

Cindy

story of the making of a Silver Belle and more photos

2007-09-21T03:47:00.000-04:00

I have already reported the making of Anne's Silver Belle, but now I have better pictures, courtesy of ace photographer Jennifer of Woolbaa, and a story to go with it. Please go to the news links at Woolbaa:

http://www.woolbaa.com.au/show_newsitem.php?item=60&PHPSESSID=6375fd98a6374f337297007df58eded5

to take a look.

another belle.......

2007-09-17T14:10:00.000-04:00

Finished, worn, LOVE! I made my silver belle out of the debbie bliss cashmerino, color #205. I followed the pattern for the small, except in the length. I wanted it a little longer, so my peplum measures 12 inches. The only other modifications I made were three buttons instead of two, and I knit the collar for an inch longer. I actually wished I would have made the collar even longer, another inch at least. However, I will not be taking it apart to add more!

*more photos posted on my blog.

Silver Belle in French!!

2007-09-14T20:51:00.000-04:00

We received this message today in our inbox about a Silver Belle KAL in French!

Check them out by clicking Here

This is wonderful to hear that an international KAL is going on as well!!

Here is the exactly e-mail message:

"just a little message to tell you that in french, we are starting a KAL around Siver belle

http://silverbelle.canalblog.com/

My english is so bad (and few of us dont speak english) so we cant join your blog.

Happy knitting and congratulations for all your Silver Belle.

Kokolat.(sorry for my english)

kokolat@wanadoo.fr"

Isn't that just wonderful !!I love it! :o)

Thanks so much for stopping by to leave us a message Kokolat!

You can actually Translate the Webpage by copying blog web address and Clicking Here and where it says "Translate a web page" page the web address.
"Select from French to English" language option. Then click on 'Translate'! Viola!! :o)

Hello there!

2007-09-13T16:13:00.000-04:00

Thank you so much for the invitation to this KAL! I did not even realize that I had this magazine and thought I had to make a dash to the bookstore to get it! Just gotta peruse again and decide what to make after I start to knit again after a moritorium due to some charity knitting at this time. A gal can dream, can't she? What looks especially good?

Hello from Jura

2007-09-13T09:26:00.000-04:00

Hello ladies, and thank you for letting me take part. I joined a long time ago as I saw this knit-along announcement on Ravelry, but was agonizing about what yarn to get for my Belle all the way until last Friday, when I ordered Jaeger Extra Fine Merino Aran in “Persian” color from Cucumberpatch in UK. Thank you, Beverly, for I wouldn’t have known about this seller without you leaving a note on this blog! The yarn has arrived and I am very glad with trusting this choice. It is beautiful yarn.

My name is Jura, I am a Lithuanian currently living in Sweden (my blog is lacking anything crafty). I’ve been binge-knitting since the age of 5 (to illustrate, I had a 2 year long hiatus recently after I failed a similar to Silver Belle project – it made me so upset!). Yet the biggest needles I ever used before are 3mm. So, even if I cannot commit lots of time for it, I hope for a (relatively) Quick Belle! I am starting today in the evening.

Extras from LillySmuul.

2007-09-12T16:24:00.000-04:00

Would like to show you little addition I made for sleeve:

finished

2007-09-12T15:52:00.000-04:00

Hi, fellow knitalongers. Just wanted to pop over, and let you know what I found out about my Silver Belle. I finished mine, and I really love it. The absolute one thing I did that I think made a big difference was in the collar. I knit for a probably 3 inches (instead of 2) and I bound off with a size 10 needle. You know, hold the size 10 in your right hand, knit the stitches onto the 10, from the 8, and bind off.
Also, instead of two buttons, I made buttonholes for three. That was something I got from others that have made it. The model appears to have NO chest. Therefore, it works on her. For those that have something there, I recommend three buttons.
I am leaving on a trip tomorrow and didn't have time for photos. However, I will post some when I return.
Have fun!

Just Joined

2007-09-10T22:54:00.000-04:00

Hi, I have just joined the Silver Belle KAL - first KAL ever! I fell in love with Silver Belle the minute I saw it. Now I have an excuse to go do some buying!

Some cotton based yarn trials.

2007-09-10T08:05:00.001-04:00

Tonight Anne has left my place with a sample ball of Rowan Calmer and Jaeger Trinity to try swatching. Since she thinks the smallest size is much too big for her maybe she will be able to stick with this size in the smaller gauge.

I am going to try Rowan All-Seasons cotton in the smallest size: the slightly larger gauge I'm going to guess will make it a perfect size for me.

More later!

2007-09-10T02:31:00.000-04:00

Hi

I have joined this blog to take part in the Silver Belle KAL - i have just casted on for a black one.

Kind regards
Charlotte in Denmark

Pictures at last of Anne's finished Silver Belle!

2007-09-09T21:28:00.000-04:00

Apologies for the pictures. I have no idea why they are so unbalanced...they only look like this once loaded. These are the first pictures I've taken, so I don't know what I'm doing!

Knitted in Rowan RYC Cashsoft Aran. Smallest size knitted, gauge of yarn 19 not 18, but still too big. The pictures show this...Anne made me try it on and as you can see, even though I am 36" bust and have a long sleeve top on underneath it is close to fitting me.

On Anne: Front:

Back:

On Cathy:
Front:

Back:

Trying this on was certainly an educational experience for me...I was thinking of knitting it in Rowan All-seasons cotton at the medium size thinking that at 17" instead of the called for 18" this would give me just the right size...now I'm thinking knit the smallest size and it should come out about perfect!

One more of Anne: she thinks it is way too big for her, but I think it is perfect:

One more finished belle!

2007-09-08T15:58:00.000-04:00

One busy knitter from Estonian craft forum has finished her 'Blue Belle' .
She used 3mm needles and made size small.
But because her daughter stole (good way) her cardigan, she has to start other one soon... ;)

I also made few tutorials:
'How to knit cable without a cable needle' and 'How to do knitted cast on'

Maybe it's helpful for some knitters. ;)

Finished!

2007-09-08T11:20:00.001-04:00

Ta da! *^v^*
I finished her last night!

Frankly speaking, sewing it together wasn't as difficult as I thought, when I got to know the technique, mattress stitch became my best friend! I put some links at the end of this post that show stitching methods.

I knitted the collar a bit wider than the patterns says, about 8 cm, because it didn't work well when it was thiner. I also recommend very loose bind-off of the collar.

I'm very happy with the length of the cardigan, although as you can see, I had to knit quite a long part of the single cable in the upper part of the peplum (and my torso is normal length) - I have no idea how the model in the photo can have such short peplum, she must be a child, not a grown up woman.

I'm glad I added some rows to the sleeves, because they fit just fine, if I sticked to the recommended length they'd be 3/4 which is no good in the sweater.
On the other hand, I wanted the sweater to be snug around the bust, which resulted in the ugly front part of the button band, opening itself. I definitely must change it, I've been thinking about two solutions: 1. several clasps or press-studs instead of 2 buttons, or 2. turning the cardi into a pullover, sewing it up at the front. I'll check if I can buy some nice clasps and then decided what to do.

Details:
pattern: Vogue Knitting Anniversary edition - online free pattern
yarn: "Zorza" by Anilux, wool/acrylic blend
needles: 4 mm circulars, 60 cm long
started: 3rd August
finished: 7th September

I absolutely was able to knit this quicker, I just got distracted by other things, well... But it turned out that knitting a sweater doesn't take as long as I thought (= ages!...). And it wasn't some stockinette mindless job, it was looking-at-the-charts-all-the-time project, but it was relatively easy and intuitive.
My Belle is not perfect but I love her anyway! *^v^*

Here is me wearing my Belle this morning:

Here are the sewing techniques:
mattress stitch
several techniques (grafting, mattress, ect)
mattress stitch on stockinette pieces and garter pieces by Theresa from Bagatell::Knitting in Norway

The back

2007-09-08T09:37:00.001-04:00

I didn't know how to post a photograph in a comment, so instead of commenting on cathyc's post I'm writing this. I'm in the middle of sewing in the yoke on my Silver Belle. So far, I don't think it's going to pull up in the middle but I could be surprised when I finish putting in the left side. Here is how it looks with just one side sewn in.

I should have the other side finished after I drink my coffee!

possible problem with the back panel.

2007-09-07T23:25:00.000-04:00

I hope when I can produce some photos of Anne's finished Silver Belle that my description will benefit from an actual view of it, but here goes: the back panel is sewn in. Therefore inelastic and therefore tends to pull the rest of the back up a little, so that the horizontal cable around the middle will come up in a slight arrowhead shape with consequent pulling of the part below it, of course - this is not unattractive in the opinions of those who have so far seen it, but if you don't want that to happen, maybe there is a way around it...maybe that panel can be made slightly longer to make up for its inelastic finish.

I don't have a clue as to whether this will work...an expert knitter who was with us when the finished garment was formally unveiled suggested something like that could be done.

Anyway, perhaps it is food for thought.

progress

2007-09-07T10:19:00.000-04:00

Hello all, just checking in to give you my progress shot and let you know what I have learned.

I have both sleeves finished, and thought that I had the peplum finished. However, when I held all of the pieces up to me, I thought the peplum was too short. Therefore, the peplum went back onto the needles and I will add a couple of inches.

Also, from this point, I have used all 14 balls (recommended amount) of the cashmerino aran. I don't know what has happened, but it has been eating yarn like crazy. My gauge is correct, but for some reason I have been flying through this yarn. Thank goodness my sister was nice enough to give me hers and I have enough to finish. Therefore, I recommend buying a couple of extra balls, if you decide to use the cashmerino aran, just in case.

Have a wonderful weekend........and could some one PLEASE show us a finished photo! :)

Major league yarn substitution being considered.

2007-09-07T05:21:00.000-04:00

Hi. My friend Anne (who doesn't have a computer and so we have joined forces) has already knitted one of these. Photo coming soon, I promise. Meanwhile, she wants to go straight onto another and it seemed like a good time to jump on board and get all the benefit of her experience.

But it is summer coming up here, so I like the idea of a non-wool base and Anne wants something lighter than the RYC Cashsoft Aran she used for the first one.

So, firstly

(1) Thinking cotton mix and Rowan All-seasons seems the obvious choice: does anybody approve or disapprove? It's the right gauge and nice stitch definition. The other option is straight pure cotton: but maybe it'll be harder to knit and have serious stretch issues. This is more based on my theory of cotton than my experience...I haven't knitted much with it.

and secondly:

(2) For something lighter: I've only come up with Rowan Kid Classic at the moment, same gauge and 150m compared with 100 for the Cashmerino Aran, so it has got to end up being lighter. But I've never knitted with it, so maybe somebody else has a different idea...

Silver Belle Almost Finished

2007-09-05T16:17:00.000-04:00

I'm knitting Silver Belle out of Debbi Bliss Cashmerino Aran. I had enough in my stash, which was a nice surprise. I've made a lot of progress on the sweater in the last few days. I finally finished the left yoke this afternoon. I've basted the entire sweater together to see how it looks.

This is a view of the back -- you can see the gap where the middle cable panel will be continued. You can also see how I reversed the direction of the twist on the four-stitch cross cables so that the two halves of the back would mirror each other.

A couple of views of the front. Again, I changed the twist of the cable on the left yoke.

There is a lot of finishing on this sweater. I still need to seam the sleeves, knit the back cable panel, sew in the yokes, knit the front bands, sew on the buttons, and pick up and knit the collar. I think I'll work on something else tonight and save the finishing for tomorrow (not that I will have it finished in one day. I won't.)

If you want to see all of my posts on Silver Belle so far, and how I've modified the pattern, you can visit my blog.

Yarn arrived

2007-09-05T12:28:00.001-04:00

I am very excited and can't wait to start Silver Belle. I am making it in Jaeger Extra Fine Merino Aran in a lovely shade of blue. This has now been discontinued and was available from http://www.cucumberpatch.co.uk/extra_fine_merino_aran.htm at £1.95 per ball which is very good value.
I will get started as soon as I have finished the cardigan I am making in Sirdar Peru Naturals but it is knitting up quickly so I should be starting Silver Belle at the weekend.
I am Beverly and I live in London UK. I have two children, a girl aged 19 and a bay of 17 and my eldest is going away to university on Sunday which I'm not looking forward to, I'll miss her terribly.

Hi!

2007-09-04T19:09:00.000-04:00

I'm Ille, estonian living in Ireland, highly addicted knitter,just can't stop anymore...;)
I'm using Debbie Bliss Cashmerino aran yarn for Silver belle.Yes,it is expensive but luxurious yarn. So soft and beautiful!
I'm knitting size small.

Yesterday finished right sleeve and left one is half made .

Started with sleeves because then can see how big peplum to knit.

I also made some changes:

Hello!

2007-09-04T09:30:00.000-04:00

Hello, everyone!
I'm so glad people keep joining this KAL, because Silver Belle is a great pattern and should be made and worn all over the world! *^v^*
My name is Joanna, I am a knitter from Poland, my blog is here: FriendSheep, and Silver Belle is my second ever sweater. ^^

Let me write a few words as an encouragement for those of you who just started this design or still hesitate to do this - it's a great piece!
How do I know?
Because I've almost finished mine! *^v^*

Here is the peplum - and here is the colour I've used, deep violet/purple, it depends on the light and it's rather difficult to take a good photo of.

I used Polish yarn called "Zorza" which is a wool/acrylic blend, and 4 mm circular needles (60 cm long). I knitted the peplum in size M and the sleeves in size S (I didn't want them to be too wide), but I added some repeats of the pattern because I'm tall and I have long hands. Btw, I was knitting both sleeves at the same time, because I wanted to avoid the "second sleeve syndrome", in this way it took me longer to finish them but I have both of them ready at the same time! ^^

Both sleeves and the peplum are blocking as we speak. No photos, because my camera does some strange things with the colour of my Belle, and pieces blocked are not that interesting after all - what's more interesting is the final result! ^^ I even bought the buttons today.
All what's left is to sew them into the sleeve form, sew them with the peplum, knit the missing parts of the peplum and the collar. Sounds like not much, right? But the sewing knitted pieces together is my biggest fear...
Can you recommend to me any good tutorial on-line, please?

And good luck with your Belles, I cannot wait to see all your colour choices! *^v^*

Hello Hello!

2007-09-03T08:38:00.000-04:00

We are SO happy and excited about each and every person that wants to join the KAL!! *squeal* <------ Literally we squeal! :o) It is our first time hosting a KAL, so anyone that is interested in joining just gets us all happy! LOL

There are many of us who will not be able to get started this month and that is perfectly fine. You can start whenever it is best for you! We are just glad you are here!
But in the meantime, we would love to know who you are, as I am sure others that joined would like to know too! :o)

Please say "Hiya" and introduce yourself!

If you would so kindly reply in the *comment section* with your name, blog site (if you have one - no matter how often you update! :op), and if you have casted on yet for SB - if not when you hope to cast on!

See! Easy Peasy! 1-2-3 GO!!

New KAL Starting in September 2007

2007-08-23T05:30:00.000-04:00

We have saved this space for a KAL starting in September 2007. We shall be knitting this...
The pattern can be downloaded for free when the Vogue site comes back on line. It is closed at the moment for maintenance. However, we can e-mail you the free pattern once you join!

If you would like to join the KAL, please e-mail us at: SilverBelleKAL@gmail.com and we will get back to you with an invitation.

Come on, it's perfect for chilly evenings!!