My first designed sweater (Lace In Green)

Here is my first designed sweater after I completely finished it. Now I want to say it is something good to make your own garment. I really love , and have lot of  wonderful patterns which others lovely designer did, and of course I will make some of them, but after I know how to choose , and how to alternate the pattern according my own measurements so it won't be waste of the time. Also most of time, I will make my own patterns, and my own design because I adore knitting stitches, and when I saw stitches many designs play before my eyes, and inside my imagination . I always asked myself -what if I want to do this so sweet stitch as a sweater or a hat . Now thanks God I think I can mange and get risk to try any stitch I love in the future.

Before and after

Now we come to the finishing stage. there were some problems for me; How I will finish it collar, or just picking up, and simple button band. I have decided to finish it in a simple way which is simple button band, and button hole around the whole sweater. Oh here is the other problem came, How many stitches I will pick up?!! so I had to know more about the ratio of picking up around straight lines, and curved lines; I have learned some ideas about that, and of course I had to chose the needle size too. I have done half of the band twice using different ratio with different sizes of needles so I had to wrap the band twice.
Finally after I know the suitable ratio for picking up which works for me, and the better size of needle, I have decided to finish it in a simple way, but learn something new which is (Double band, and magic buttonholes). Here is the pictures of the double button bands before finishing and after finishing it. Thanks  God finally learn something new from long journey.

Here the double bands inside and outside before i sew the buttons.

Close look at the stitches

This is the stitches of my sweater; it called (candle light lace) this stitch is 10 stitches repeated+11, and 16 rows repeated. The bobble edge is 11 stitches repeated+2 , and it is 22 rows. It is my own design sweater, and I suffered a bit with this stitch (candle light lace) to shape it. lol it is my first one. I have shaped it -Thanks God- increasing, and decreasing. It was challenging -for me of course to keep the stitch with all those shaping specially I have chosen my own sweater to be set-in sleeve with this fitted armhole, and shoulders.
It was steps shoulders ; I didn't use short rows to shape the shoulders . I didn't try this method yet. Maybe next time. I have tried to trace the stitches using graph paper to know how I will increase , and decrease it, but I didn't work with me, and I had to wait until I get in the problem , and try with it. Thanks God I finally discovered how I did this or learn a bit about this. This was like you get some lesson of swimming and you suddenly find yourself in the sea, and you should to swim. I have enjoyed to solve problem when I countered them.

sweater workshop

workshop for my sweater. I used the paper pattern sometimes to see if I am in the right direction or not .

paper's workshop

This is my paper pattern; the outline pattern. This is my the first time to do my own paper pattern. Of course this is my second sweater lol any way , but I already did a sweater before, and I didn't make a pattern for me. I just chose the major circumferences , and hopped it will be ok for other measurements. Thanks God I got my whole measurements, and did my own pattern considering also my lengths  specially the armhole depth, and the length of shoulders which are very very important to do a real fit sweater or any knitted garments.The other papers lol  are lot of mess, I didn't know how to use the gauge , and swatch to account everything. Now I realize what really gauge means after I know that. I use some graph paper to trace the armhole, and cap of the sleeve to define what I will do. It was my first time to know how to trace those measurements using graph papers, but actually they were not very accurate because of the reaction of the stitch-in my own opinion- or maybe I traced them wrongly so I modified some rows of the cap and armhole according my gauge. Of course they were a lot of calculating and re-calculating . I think it will be less next time than this time. Or hope so.