I made an Aran sweater in the late 1990s with every cable I ever loved. It was beautiful, and I never wore it, mostly because the collar was uncomfortable. Recently, I’ve been cleaning and clearing and thinking about what I wear. I also work from home and keep the thermostat low, so big, bulky sweaters are welcome.
I thought about cutting this into a cardigan, and I may yet. The first step was to redesign the collar.
I couldn’t remember if the sweater had been knit top-down or bottom-up; the collar unpicked easily which suggested it was a cast-off rather than a cast-on. I marked the points that needed more space and unraveled.
I was able to use some of the strands at the base of the new stitches to cast off along that edge. Eventually, I simply had to cut. I wove each end in three or five stitches on each side, parallel to its row of knitting. The project is almost a success. The squarish-bits between the collar and the bottom of the V still need to go–they bother me. I could pin them open, or I could undo the stitching, unravel them a bit more, and restitch. It’s probably not more than one episode of Law & Order, so I might get on it before much longer.
The woven tape stitched into the back neck (and along the shoulders) was an attempt to keep the sweater from stretching out too much. It works a bit.
