Depending on just how big of a knitting nerd you are, you may or may not know about The New York Sheep and Wool Festival in Rhinebeck NY (aka simply “Rhinebeck”), to which devout knitters from across the globe make their annual pilgrimage. I swore I would get there this year, but haven’t figured out how to make it happen. And now it’s too late anyway, because if you know anything at all about Rhinebeck, you know that no one arrives without having plotted, discussed, planned, knitted and blocked the perfect wow-’em Rhinebeck sweater. Ysolda Teague took it one step further, inviting eleven other designers to join her in designing their perfect Rhinebeck sweater and modeling them (at last year’s Rhinebeck) for her new book, The Rhinebeck Sweater, which, by the way, happens to have the most charming schematics I’ve seen. (Boy, type the word Rhinebeck a few times and it starts looking truly bizarre.) I got to see the collected garments at the trade show in June, but I don’t remember seeing this one, which turns out to be the one I truly love. It is Aunt Fred by Pamela Wynne, named for her Aunt Fred and inspired by the namesake’s goldenrod kitchen. I love a shawl-collar pullover, but I especially love how extra nerdy chic this one is, thanks to the colorwork pattern and color choice. Then again, think how lovely it would also be in a nice ivory and steel grey combo. Bonus points for the seamless set-in-sleeve construction.
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