Last winter I martyred myself on the Rowan altar for the distinction of having completed a piece of high-fashion knitting patterns - Elfin. Months of stockinette tedium followed by more months of blinding mohair lace-work resulted in a sweater that I loved, but an experience that I loathed [Elfin- Is this the Pattern for You?]. One short year later, every yarn store is stocking new materials- such as Paton's Pirouette, Katia Ondas, or my favorite Knitting Fever Petals - which substitute in minutes for all my hard labor with a simple whip-stitch on and a tug. This winter, I elected to take a new approach and instead chose a large project which promised no boredom, and no easy substitution whatsoever...a cabled adult-sized sweater. 
I chose the "Cabled Sweater" pattern by Bernat and worked it with Noro Retro- a yarn with an intensity of color I've rarely seen elsewhere. Knitting a cabled sweater is like giving yourself a case of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder...since every single stitch in every single row is unique and must be counted and accounted-for. You can try on your very own DSM IV Diagnosis for a month...see how it fits and if you like it, keep it. Altogether, I suppose I paid attention to around 8,000 stitches for this sweater.So here's my recommendation...make a cabled sweater if any of the following describe you:
- You're the type of person who balances a checkbook...still.
- 3 am seems like a good time to get out of bed and check to be sure you turned off the oven.
- You frequently find yourself stuck in public bathrooms waiting for someone to open the door so you can get out.
- You have memorized exactly how many steps it takes to get to your gym, the number of calories that burns off, and then deducted it from your planned workout.
- You have a running ledger of the date each menstrual cycle began since you were 13.
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