Knitted Gift in Action!

My sister sent me some photos of her Christmas gift in action:

I made her a Riding to Avalon hoodie (Ravelry link) in the Midnight Heather colorway of Andean Treasure. I changed things a little by adding a knitted, turned hem to give the bottom edge of the sweater a little more weight. The cuffs, collar detail, and hood are knit in a sort of twisted seed stitch pattern that gives a little texture and structure to the finished fabric. Midnight Heather is a strangely complex color, since the heather is made up of fibers ranging from almost black, to navy, to bright turquoise. The depth of the color makes it fun to knit with - I've already knit my sister a vest in Embers Heather, and now I want to do something for myself in Dill Heather. And Tidepool Heather. And Hot Rod Heather.

This was one of those down-to-the-wire knitted gifts, and I had to emergency block the finished piece on Dec. 23rd using an old towel on the floor of my parents' house. My mom had an old hand-held travel steamer for garments, and it did the trick on the alpaca yarn.

I really liked the way it turned out, and I'm glad I chose Andean Treasure for the yarn substitution. It had just enough sheen and halo to give it some interest without detracting from the stitch pattern, and it blocked nicely without stretching too much vertically. It's also warm enough for Wisconsin winters!

Pattern: Riding to Avalon from KnitScene Fall 2008 (Ravelry link)
Needles: Nickel-Plated Options Interchangeable Needles, size 5
Yarn: Andean Treasure in Midnight Heather, 10 balls (for smallest size of pattern)