Bluebell Is Swell

Here's the progress so far....this was a really simple pattern. I think it would be perfect for someone who has never made a sweater before EXCEPT for the fact that you have to sew the arm seams together.....If I made this sweater again, I would decrease further for the waist and make it more of an hourglass sweater than it turned out being. The other thing I changed was opting just for the purled sections on the arm rather than adding in the ribbed rows in between followed by another section of purled rows. I wanted something a little bit simpler.

This pic shows off the glorious sewing job that lies ahead x2. I would love to know why the author of the pattern chose to make a seamless sweater pattern but have arms done on straight needles...perplexing. I used the mattress stitch to sew up the arm that I've completed so far which works great for stockinette stitch but I wasn't quite sure how I should have changed it when I got to the purled rows so I just kept doing the mattress stitch since I couldn't figure out how to do the inverse of it which I'm sure is what I was supposed to do. Since I was nearly finished with

the Bluebell, I decided to start this baby cardigan. I'm not using the best yarn for it, but I mostly was trying it as a demo since I've never made buttonholes or sewed on buttons (in fact, M has to sew a button on a jacket for me sometime this weekend). This sweater will be for J's sisters baby who is due to make her grand appearance on July 4th. I am trying to make an effort to get rid of yarn I already own, so at the risk of losing some of the detail of the pattern, I'm forging ahead with this yarn. We'll see how it looks, it's really soft.

In other news, M and I picked up our rings last night. I love mine! I'ts exactly what I was envisioning, it's very delicate and simple and not too bling bling. We do have to make another trip back though because they were nine very small diamonds in the original setting and eigth (as planned) in my new setting but they lost one of the small diamonds but they are willing to replace it, although it was an heirloom...

Tomorrow is my dress fitting...wish me luck!