Or, What's that in the basket on the floor?
It is hard to forget the days when I had to live lean. I saved money for weeks to buy Red Heart yarn to crochet afghans. This was BKD (before knitting days). Thinking of those days when the kids were little and money was short, I thought that I would start looking around for Shetland substitutes. Knit Picks had just introduced their Palette line in a very limited color range. It was wool and it was affordable.
I decided to do the Northwest Sunset Vest,(or is that Sunrise?), from Meg Swansen's, "Sweaters from Camp." I compared Jamieson & Smith yarns via a color card with the Palette colors. The Palette colors are much closer to the true color than is the picture in the book. 
Sunrise from my front door here in the Pacific Northwest.
Back vent and new motif up the middle.
The first challenge was to find Palette yarn from that small color range that would work for this vest.
Palette had a limited choice of the dark neutral colors, IE, no dark greens, blues, browns, maroons etc. The only thing I could choose was black. Thank goodness black is available.
The Palette choices were Purple, Lilac and Hyacinth for cool colors. For the warm colors, I chose Orange, Apricot and Peach and Black for the background.
Pattern changes include lengthening the body, adding a back vent, and changing the neckline and the checked borders. The vest is still in the steeked stage so the back vent doesn't stand out well. The vent was thrown in for a bit of pizazz. Unfortunately, I neglected to compensate for the 13 stitches the back vent used up in the vest body. I had to add a 13 stitch vertical motif up the back. I redesigned the bands and used by favorite checkered Starmore-type design. A pain to knit, but worth every untangling of balls of yarn. I also prefer a wider band. Mine is 16 rows long.
In my haste to distance myself from Geese knitting, I forgot my usual FFF, (fabric firming facing), I normally knit before starting the checked pattern. UGH! I picked out the entire bottom cast on and tinked the bottom row of checked pattern. I threaded the live stitches onto a string. I will do a purl row and knit the facing onto the bottom, being careful to decrease for the mitered corners that will match the front border facings.
All this fiddling is great fun for me but a lesson hides within. When a person changes a pattern, it is best to actually think about it and write down your plan. Saves a lot of frogging and head banging later. I haven't decided if I will do a straight front with a crew type color band or a deeper V-neck front. Give me a pattern and I will tinker with it.
I am by nature, a person who is a, "by the seat of my pants," knitter. I relish it. Essentially, I don't read well, so I compensate. I hereby apologize to all the designers I blaspheme by these alterations.
I have enjoyed using the Palette yarn. It doesn't split, doesn't have knots in it, and it is uniform. It's was a shame that the color range was limited when I purchased the yarn. The great news is that the since I started with this project, Knit Picks has increased the colors to a respectable limit and Palette has become very popular for Fair Isle without my help or critique of the yarn.
Part 2: 10/03/07
And this is where I left off. Here is what stares at me every morning when I wake up. Every night when I go to bed, I think I hear it say, "What about me?" Guilt ridden, I have resurrected the project. Smoothed out the creases and what I have so far. 
I need encouragement. It is like Geese all over again for some reason. Probably it will snow here before I get going on the knitting.
BUT, Stay Tuned!
Beautiful work as usual, Junie! It looks as though you don't have far to go ... maybe a couple more repeats of the motif? The V-neck of the original is very attractive, and flattering; it also echoes the angles in the motif. Just think, as soon as Sunset is finished you can embark on Abalone!
Posted by: Pru | 10/04/2007 at 05:52 AM
Lovely! the color choices are beautiful. I yet to leave a pattern alone too!
Posted by: Laritza | 10/04/2007 at 06:10 AM
Absolutely lovely! I'm never going to believe you are a slow knitter - you finish and start so many things. And they always look good!
Posted by: Fran | 10/04/2007 at 06:54 PM
It looks beautiful, Junie!
I am a tinkerer, as well. I think I am genetically unable to knit a pattern as written! :g:
Posted by: Romi | 10/05/2007 at 06:48 PM
Junie, you knit the most beautiful things!
Posted by: Sara | 10/06/2007 at 06:15 AM
keep plugging away on it and one of these days you will finish it. that will be a proud moment indeed.
Posted by: marti | 10/06/2007 at 10:09 AM
That came out so beautiful! It is only a vest also so you are very close to being done and just in time for winter.
Posted by: Lorri | 10/06/2007 at 02:18 PM
I really love the colors. They are very vibrant and graphic with the black, even though the pattern called for browns. The black functions like silhouettes against the sunset.
Posted by: Carolyn | 10/07/2007 at 08:43 AM
Junie- Patterns are not the letter of the law- they are guidelines. Not everyone likes everything and at least you have the skills to make the changes.
It does illustrate, you don't need a bajillion colors to make a successful Fair Isle.
Posted by: Lorraine | 10/08/2007 at 07:46 AM
Ohhh, but it is beautiful Junie!! Just take one rounds each day..and you will get there....or make it 2 rounds!:-)
Posted by: Helle Reed | 10/11/2007 at 02:51 AM