I thought about what kind of "frame" I wanted this Aran to have, and finally decided on a simple 2 x 2 ribbing. This is a pretty heavily-patterned design in terms of texture. I was afraid that a more involved ribbing would complicate the design too much.

BODY: I don't like my sweaters to fit snugly around the hips, either, and 2" of 2 x 2 ribbing hangs nicely. I decreased from 336 body stitches down to 292 in the last row above the ribbing, then worked k2, p2 ribbing for 2".

NECKBAND: For the neckband I picked up 174 stitches. I worked the first round *K1, k2tog; repeat from * all the way around, which decreased the number of stitches by 1/3 (or 58 stitches, leaving 116). I worked k2, p2 ribbing for 2".

CUFFS: To shape the sleeves I worked sleeve decreases every 5th round until I had 68 stitches left on the needles and my sleeves measured 16 1/2" long. I decreased to 52 stitches and worked k2, p2 ribbing for 2".

I didn't carry the design elements into the cuff on this design, but I have in the past. I do my decrease rounds (on body, neckband, and cuffs) as all knit rounds, which gives a very subtle but distinct line of demarcation between the patterning and the ribbing.

Janet
jknitter@digisys.net