The Pearl Buck Swing Jacket is a wonderful design -- simple and classic. It comes together easily, and requires only a bit of care when blocking and piecing together to look very elegant.
The Jaeger Extrafine Merino is beautifully soft on my skin. The elderberry color is lovely, too, full of depth and drama -- it looks rather more purple in some lights, but usually tends more towards the burgundy with purply-blue undertones.
(Julia, who is usually so camera-shy that she is pouting in all of her school pictures this year, decided that this time she did want her photo taken, and so she refused to move out of range, and in fact climbed into my lap for quite some time.)
The pleat at the back is the most unusual thing about this jacket, but the half-diamond edging at the front and the back yoke worked from side to side are also subtle but interesting details.
I made a minor adjustment to the length of the sleeves as follows: in the first decrease section (at the lower arm), instead of 11 plain rows between the decrease rows, I worked 13, giving a total of 14 rows for the shaping, worked 5 times altogether. At the "continue even" section just before the beginning of the cap shaping, I worked 12 rows straight, and the piece measured 11 1/4 in. instead of 10 1/4 in. as given. This kept the stitch count on the needle the same as in the instructions, but added about an inch to the length. I could just as easily have worked an extra inch straight at that last section before the start of the cap shaping, but this would have made the bell-shape end lower down, and I wanted to extend it closer to the elbow. (The bell-ness does not show much after blocking.) If I'd thought about it ahead of time, I might have added an extra inch to the length of the body, so that the sleeve/body proportions would have been the same as in the original -- as it is now, after I lengthened it, the sleeve is just a smidge shorter than the body, and would look a bit better if it was about two inches. This is a minor quibble, though!
It is also very comfortable, partly from the lovely merino, but also the shaping and fit. Ten out of ten!
What a comfortable and elegant-looking cardi. I love the colour too.
Posted by: Paisley | May 24, 2006 at 12:08 AM
What a well-made jacket! It's beautiful!
Posted by: Siow Chin | May 24, 2006 at 02:58 AM
The swing pleat makes all the difference, it's beautiful!
Posted by: erin | May 24, 2006 at 05:40 AM
It is so beautifully made. Well done! I adore the colour.
Oh, I also am enamoured of your garden.
Posted by: suse | May 24, 2006 at 05:59 AM
Beautiful cardigan. It has nice detailing but not too much. And it looks very comfy.
( Don't you think Rosemary and Thyme was a bit lame this season?)
Posted by: Elizabeth | May 24, 2006 at 10:18 AM
it
is
gorgeous.
Posted by: blackbird | May 24, 2006 at 07:17 PM
It looks wonderful! Great fit and beautiful color! What a great job you did!
Posted by: Marie | May 24, 2006 at 07:29 PM
I'm so inspired! Thank you for sharing.
Posted by: Katy | May 25, 2006 at 06:14 AM
It's wonderful, Jeanne! I love the color, too.
Posted by: laura | May 25, 2006 at 09:46 AM
A beautiful jacket, in color, design, and quality! :)
I'm so impressed by anyone who knits clothing - I've never done anything fitted or with sleeves!
You should be very very proud - I know you'll enjoy wearing it!
(((hugs)))
Posted by: knitnana | May 25, 2006 at 09:52 AM
It's a lovely jacket. Thanks for sharing your tips on lengthening the sleeves. That's the one modification I plan to make and this gives me a good place to start.
Posted by: Dallas | May 26, 2006 at 08:57 AM
Oh Jeanne you did a beautiful job! Thank you for all that you've done on this knit along. I'm very inspired to get this one done soon. I have really appreciated all of the technical info that you have shared as you've been knitting.
Posted by: Beth | May 31, 2006 at 06:02 AM
That's a really beautiful and classic sweater. LOVE the color. Perfect finishing as well - all around great knitting. Wear it proudly.
Posted by: Nancy | May 31, 2006 at 07:29 PM
I know I'm a little late but your jacket looks great! I really love the color, too.
Posted by: Kat | June 02, 2006 at 10:19 AM
I read about this knitalong on another site and gasped with joy - I've been lusting after knitting this from the moment I saw it in Knits! It would have been my first sweater, so I decided to do one other before diving into it, but I found my yarn on a trip overseas so I'm so pysched. Yours is beautiful, and it's good to read your comments on it. Thanks for hosting the knitalong!
Posted by: Sarah Lankenau | June 08, 2006 at 05:43 PM
I recently bought a sweater with a back like the Pearl Buck and now I know why I thought I had to have it! It reminded me of this sweater! I'm so glad I had my memory jogged. I think this sweater is gorgeous.
Posted by: Claire | March 13, 2007 at 08:00 PM
Where do I get this pattern??? I love it!
Posted by: Teege Culp | September 18, 2010 at 08:32 AM
Teege, you can find the pattern in the Winter 2005 issue of "Interweave Knits", which I suspect is now out of print. If you don't have or know anyone who has it, you might try your public library.
I've found WorldCat to be very useful in tracking things down in libraries -- here is the entry for Interweave Knits: http://www.worldcat.org/title/interweave-knits/oclc/34594188&referer=brief_results
Posted by: Jeanne | September 18, 2010 at 08:55 AM