FLAK Swatch #2 and Donegal Tweed, Washed & Dry

Here is my second swatch after washing, blocking, and drying. First is the whole thing, then we have the center cable section, then the braid, and finally the filler stitch. You can see how much softer it looks than before washing, in this post. For some reason I think I like the first filler stitch swatch on size US6 needles (bamboo circs) better than the filler stitch on this swatch, which I used US5 metal circular needles on. Since the stitch guage is the same after blocking, I think I'm going to use the bamboo US6's for the saddles with the washed yarn and see how that looks... Oh, also, I'm making a cardigan for the FLAK and I decided to do a cable with circles instead of a staghorn in the center of the center cable and divide that in half with a zipper. I also transcribed the honeycomb cable pattern (on either side of the braid) incorrectly when I wrote out the whole swatch cable pattern in Excel with a knitting font, so the "honeycombs" are actually tiny s-curves instead of honeycombs at this point. I'll fix that on the real thing...












Here is a picture (and a close-up) of the hank of donegal tweed I unwound from the cone and washed. It's almost dry. You can see it fluffed up a lot after washing. The before washing picture is in this post. I can't wait for it to dry so I can start my saddles!!