how long does is take to knit a sweater

[TwoLeftNeedles]

Well.. I can knit 20 stitches per minute if it's not lace.

So assuming a 40" sweater at 5 to the inch... :thinking: that's 10 minutes per round.... Six rows an hour....

Twenty hours? If you count don't time for

* frogging
* answering DH's and DS's questions
* rescuing the yarn from the cat
* forgetting what I'm doing

[countingsheep]

"Mr. Owl, how many licks does it take to reach the center of a totsie roll totsie pop?"

Much like knitting a sweater - to me! The world may never know - for that matter, I may never know! I loose track.

My problem is that I start out seriously excited the first time that I make a pattern and I work on it exclusively. If I make the same thing again (usually done at someone's request) I'm not quite so excited. That's when I'll switch back and forth between a couple of projects and loose track of how long I've been working on that sweater.

Another factor is size and pattern. My nephew's hoodie just flew on the needles. The cable patterned sweater-type thing that I'm doing now is much slower - I have to pay attention to the spacing of the cables and front and back and all that plus it's much bigger.

Don't stress about the time factor - try to enjoy the process! The only reason that I ever worry about how long something is taking is the deadline - birthday gift, Christmas gift, whatever gift! I do sometimes complain... "this is taking me forever! Will I ever finish it?" But I don't worry that I'm knitting slower that I "should" be.

Plus... my DH said something to me once that really helped put it all into perspective: "You started knitting because it was fun, right? If you start stressing, it takes all the fun out of it so why do it?" He was right. I knit because I love to knit! :XX: I'll pick something else to stress over. Like finding a new place to hide my yarn stash! That's stressful! :rofling:

Angela

[Carol_OH]

The first question people ask when they see me in a handmade sweater is "How long did it take you?" I never have a definite answer. It really depends on how much time I'm willing to put into it, how many other things I get distracted by, and of course the size of the yarn and needles.

I generally answer that I started knitting it one day and finished when it was done. I've never worked on one thing exclusively, so I'd have to say from a few weeks to a few months.

*nods* or in my case, a few years!

[Sylvie]

I really think that it doesn't matter how long it takes! The important thing is that you finish it and proudly wear it, isn't it??
It always takes me several months for a sweater cause I work full time and I also am a stitcher... but I knit anyway, even only 20 to 30 minutes a day! :XX:

[margie]

It took me about 6 weeks to finish my first sweater, which was a pretty basic pattern. I spend a lot of time knitting, too!! I have decided that unless I have a pattern that I LOVE, and a yarn that I LOVE, knitting a sweater is probably not the best project for me- As soon as I start a project, I want to work and work and work until it is done. Smaller things work for me!!

[quirky]

Well.. I can knit 20 stitches per minute if it's not lace

I am not sure my heart even beats that fast!

Well it took me 20 years to learn to knit - I suppose it will take me 20 years more to knit a sweater. If I start now I might have just enough time to knit my own funeral gear!