The back of my jacket!!!

Yesterday I finally finished the back of my jacket. It took me four tries to do a top hem I was happy with, but here it is!!!I even blocked it lightly so the edges would lay flat for a picture.

I'm very happy with how it came out. This is the Karabella Soft Tweed in Cranberry and the only thing I don't like about the yarn is that it picks up every little white fuzzy it can find. I'm afraid it will take a lot of defuzzing to keep the sweater looking good.

My gauge is a bit off because I'm a loose knitter - I'm knitting on size 6 needles and getting 17 sts and 26 rows per four inches. I did some math and it seemed that if I knit the smallest size, it would turn out to be the size I wanted. So far it's working out perfectly!! Every measurement falls between the 35 and 37 size . . . . and size 36 is what I was shooting for!!!

Here is a close up of the top hem that gave me so much trouble.I started by trying to knit it in, and it looked terrible. Then I decided to try basting the live stitches down, but I don't have my tapestry thread yet and the Soft Tweed wasn't working because it was so bumpy. (Don't ask what I was thinking on that one!!!) I tried to knit it in again . . . and it was looking so crooked. Finally, I did a little prep work (by adapting a suggestion from Wendy via e-mail . . . and also other tips I've read here) and wove a thin waste thread through the purl row I needed to pick up so I could easily see it. It worked like a charm. It was still somewhat difficult and time consuming, but really worth it!!

Now I'm ready to get started on the Left Sleeve!!