Icelandic “Puffin Pony” Sweater

I can’t believe it, but my Icelandic sweater is finally done and has been worn multiple times already! I took it for a work day with my friend Julia who took these photos. The pinecone came from her hometown of Pacific Grove, CA, can you believe how huge it is? We definitely don’t get pinecones like that around here. Or maybe we do and it’s a secret I don’t know about.

I had quite the saga with this sweater, if you’ve been following along with this blog for the past two years you know all about it and if not, here’s the synopsis. I bought the yarn in Reykjavik, Iceland from the Handknitting Association of Iceland when I realized that a handknit Icelandic sweater cost $200-300 and the yarn to make one cost $35 (and that’s with 5 hanks of yarn leftover). Upon returning home to the states, I knit the sweater up, found out it wasn’t as loose as I wanted – Icelandic people layer these and mine was not as loose as I wanted – so I took the entire sweater out. That sweater was done except for the neck ribbing cast off and the whole thing got torn out. After a brief mourning period (okay it was way longer than brief) I slowly knit it up and finished it last week. It’s warm, it’s the perfect size for layering, I love it!

The Details
Pattern : Héla Short Cardigan with Zip by Védís Jónsdóttir
Yarn : Ístex Álafoss Lopi purchased at the Icelandic Handknitting Association in Reykjavik
Mods : Knit as a pullover, lengthened body and sleeves
Check my Ravelry for more info on colors, mods, etc.

I thought I’d share a few photos of my trip since they were the inspiration for this sweater. In my humble opinion everyone should visit out Iceland, it’s such an amazing country with so much to see and super friendly people. Oh, and so so so so so so so much amazing yogurt. I had no idea and was so overwhelmed. I definitely would love to go back any time…Icelandic trip anyone?