If you are watching the Netflix series below, and you are a knitter, did you recognize that fish sweater worn by one of the actors?
This post is just for fun. I was binge watching the Below series on Netflix, while knitting the Maine Cables Hat and ….whoa, is that a sweater pattern I recognize?
Suddenly, in season 1, episode 5 of the Netflix movie “Below” a man comes walking into an old abandoned house. As he comes into focus I immediately recognized the sweater he was wearing as the Halibut pattern by Caitlin Hunter of Boyland Knitworks. At least I was pretty sure it was.
I paused the movie to Google the sweater to make sure and yes, the design matched. I’ve never knit the pattern, but it is very recognizable because of the big halibut fish images across the yoke.
The episode continues with him walking around in a scene where the fish-filled sweater is easy to view. Probably anyone who has been knitting a while will recognize this popular pattern.
I’ve never knit it, and have no plans to. In all honesty, the design does not interest me. It’s unique, but I couldn’t picture myself wearing big fish across my body. But, to each his / her own.
The Below series stars Josh Hartnett. The actor Charlie Heaton is one of his sons. You will recognize Mr. Heaton if you are a fan of Stranger Things. There are beautiful scenes of Newfoundland and the area, which I completely enjoyed. Now back to finish my viewing.
I’m curious if you watched the series and also recognized Halibut?
Knitting the Warm Up sweater number three. Peace Fleece wool yarn in color Siberian Midnight. Here’s how I made the modifications.
For a few months now I’ve had some beautiful Peace Fleece yarn sitting in my yarn stash. Finally, I could wait no longer and cast on for the Warm Up sweater. This is Warm Up number three for me.
Warm Up Pullovers One and Two
The first pullover was knit using Lettlopi Icelandic wool, in wide brown stripes. The second pullover was made using Peace Fleece, and I also knit it in wide stripes.
Warm Up #1 – Lettlopi yarnWarm Up #2 – Peace FleeceWarm Up #3 2025July – quick modeling
Sweater number three was knit using Peace Fleece in color “Siberian midnight”. It is a heavy worsted wool with bits of white, and sometimes red, throughout. After washing I find this sweater to be not quite as soft as the non-tweed Peace Fleece. I did a quick, early morning photo shoot.
Changes, or Mods Made to Sweater #3
I changed up the collar for my second knit. The original collar was the only part of the pattern I wasn’t happy with. I gave sweater number two (red stripes) collar a bit of a curl, then did the ribbing.
This time, I decided to go with a tall, funnel neck. I’ll probably end up folding it down. I went up a needle size, and knit a smaller pattern size. Sweater number two, also came out very wide, with long armpits. I’m trying to avoid that this time.
Photos of Warm Up #3
Cast on size 10 needleRibbing size 8 needle
Now that I am finishing up the body ribbing, I can measure the width. This sweater measures 21 inches across the body. This is of course before a wash. It shouldn’t change too much. My red striped sweater is 24 inches across, so I’ve made this one a bit smaller, which was my intention.
I also want to mention that the warm up pattern calls for worsted weight yarn. I am using a bulky worsted, so my yarn is heavier. Even the Lettlopi yarn is not as thick as Peace Fleece. This is why I went up to bigger needles, and knit the size 2 sweater.
Warm Up #3 Notes
This is how I knit this sweater. I had to change things to accommodate my bulky yarn choice.
Cast on 56 stitches, using a size 10, 16 inch, circular needle. I knit a twisted rib for 5 inches. (I would use 60 stitches next time for a bit looser fit.)
To increase to the 60 stitches needed for the size 2 sweater, I made increases by doing a “Make 1, knit 14” – around. Still using the size 10 needle.
I continued to make the short rows using the larger size 10 needle. I mainly did this because I don’t have a size 9 circular needle that was short enough.
At the raglan increases, once I had enough stitches, I was able to switch to a 24 inch, size 9 needle. From there, I went up to the 32 inch size 9. The remainder of the sweater is knit in a size 9 needle, except for the ribbing. I dropped down to a size 8 needle to do the twisted rib at the hem.
Body is finished and fit is good!
As I knit the increases, I watched the length. At about 12 inches, from neck to split, I split for body and sleeves. On my red sweater, the armpit length is 15. So, I did better with this one.
For the bind off I am using the tubular bind off for body and cuffs. HINT: I picked out the white bits to make the yarn smoother for sewing the bind off.
Knitting the Sleeves
I picked up the stitches and ended up with 50 to begin with. I followed the decreases and knit 10-11 rows before making the decreases. At 40 stitches I continued knitting until the sleeve measured 16 inches. I used the magic loop method, which I am beginning to like best for small circumference knitting.
Switched to size 8 needles and did magic loop. Twisted rib for 3.5 -4 inches, knit a normal knit and purl row as the last row. I did a tubular bind off.
Finished knittingBefore washing
Knitting this sweater was very relaxing. After my last, super long project (Birthday61), the Warm Up was a joy to knit.
Each time I have knit this pattern I think it would be a very good pattern for a beginner sweater knitter. Be aware that if you use this thicker yarn, the sweater will come out larger.
My sweater knitting journey is over. At least it’s over for Birthday61. This project was so very slow at coming to the end. I’m glad to be done.
Cheers to me, I have finished knitting Birthday61!
This was a pattern that haunted my days. I’d come too far to rip it out or leave it to mold. I had to trudge on. As I began the sleeves, I couldn’t find a good way to do that small circumference.
On the first sleeve, I tried Magic loop, DPNs, and 9 inch circular. I ended up sticking with Magic loop.
Off the needlesTighter than I preferWashed
As I knit the first sleeve, and of course noticed I was getting nowhere fast, I said the hell with this!
I did the short sleeve version and I’m not sorry. I almost couldn’t believe I was done. I kept wondering if it was really true!
My sweater ended up being a bit tighter than I would have liked, although it’s a bit better after washing. The fabric is very nice, and I was so happy with the yarn. I’d definitely buy Biches n Bûches again. I do have nearly 3 full skeins of yarn left because I had planned to do long sleeves.
I don’t want to dis this pattern. (See the pattern page at Ravelry.) If you are an experienced, and fast knitter, this may be a great pattern for you. It is well-written. Many knitters have successfully made the long-sleeve version.
In a nutshell: One row is knit (in the stitch below) and purl, and one row is all purls. So lots of purling. I don’t mind purling. What I do mind (I’ve discovered) is knitting 2 rows that equal only one in reality! This is what makes the squishy fabric – and contributes to the time invested in the project.
ALSO… No one is evergoing to notice the work (time)I put into knitting this top. It is a pretty plain looking, short-sleeved, pullover. I’m the only one who will ever know the months it took to create.
I have finished knitting Jennifer Steingass’s Solvi sweater pattern and here is my review.
Jennifer Steingass is the designer of the Solvi sweater which is a pullover. I began knitting this pattern on October first. Now it is mid-April and I have finished the project.
The delay in finishing was due to many things, but mostly because I doubted a good outcome. Do you ever start knitting a pattern with much excitement only to loose that excitement somewhere along the way? If you have done enough knitting, I suspect you will say “yes”.
I love the yarn. I chose “Peacock” blue in Harrisville Design’s Shetland. What a beautiful fingering weight yarn, and in a great color. For the long colorwork yoke, I dug into my stash of fingering weight wool. I tried to keep a more muted color scheme going with colors that flowed into each other. I’m happy with the colors.
What caused me to pause this knitting project (many times) was the large look of the yoke. It seemed very wide, and the depth was an inch over the schematic size. I considered ripping it all out, but what a pain in the neck! So I put it aside and worked on other things.
Finally, I picked it up and got to knitting. I would finish and see how it was.
I was right. It ended up large.
I like an oversized sweater, but this one is too much. I could easily have knit one size smaller and been happy with the fit! (I knit size D – or the 4th size.)
The sweater has a very wide neckline that flows into a wide, colorwork yoke. I like the pattern of feathers that comes down the front, but the whole thing is just too wide. This is my fault for choosing the larger size. There is nothing wrong with the pattern. Just be aware of the width of this sweater. My gauge was good, but I was between sizes and chose larger. It was my mistake.
I used the same size main needle for all the colorwork as well. I was considering going up a needle size because colorwork tends to be a little tighter. I’m so glad I did not do that!
Mods I Made
Because the yoke was getting too long I had to leave out a bit of the feathers pattern. This project has been put aside quite a bit, so I can’t remember exactly what I changed.
If I knit a larger size sweater, I often go down a size for the sleeves. I did that for this one. I followed size 3 (C) stitch counts so the sleeves would be more narrow. I also knit them longer. For the cuffs, I did not do the last row of tightening up, and instead did a tubular bind-off with a sewing needle.
For this pattern, I finished the body first. I used a new skein of yarn for each sleeve. I had three little balls of yarn leftover, which you can see in my first photo above.
I will absolutely be wearing this sweater next winter. It will work best as a layer over a turtleneck on the coldest days.
I usually have good luck knitting Jennifer Steingass patterns. Her Ravelry pattern page is Knit.Love.Wool. and the link goes there. The previous sweaters of hers, that I have knit, have fit me pretty well. Her patterns are well-written and easy to follow. Most are colorwork patterns with stranded work done on yokes and sometimes sleeves.
Meadow MoonGoldenfern
Now, I am moving away from colorwork yokes. Stranded knitting is my favorite thing, but an all-over Fair Isle is a lot more fun.
