Another darling cardigan by the talented Jennifer Wood - this time in sport weight yarn which is great for our northern California climate. This was a very fun knitting project.

I cast on snuggly over TWO size 3 needles since I have extremely broad shoulders in relation to my torso size. (In retrospect, this may not have been necessary.)

When picking up front sts at the shoulders, I did this very loosely to allow for stretch in this area.

There was a mistake in the TEST pattern, so I did 3 sets of short rows for front shoulder shaping. There should only be 2 sets done for the smallest sizes. It did not seem to affect my fit negatively, though.

Apparently, when picking up stitches at the top of the sleeve cap, we are supposed to make an effort to center the Twist Chart over the “shoulder seam” line (which may not be readily visible from the right side of garment). The center of my Twist Chart fell slightly more toward the BACK of my cardigan since the armseye is slightly longer in back than in front. When picking up these sleeve cap sts, be sure that the right and left sleeves match with regard to positioning of the Twist Chart center.

The pattern says to removed some markers when the additional front and back charts start. I did not do this because I need all the visual cues I can get!

Hem Bands (Bottom and Sleeves)

I did 5 repeats of the basketweave stitch pattern (20 rows total), including the set-up and bind-off rows. This made hem bands approximately 2.25” wide. I did the same thing for the bottom of the sleeves. Be sure to follow pattern instructions for Basketweave IN THE ROUND for the sleeves. For the sleeve bind-off (in pattern), I used Jeny’s Surprisingly Stretchy Bind-Off.

Collar

I picked up my collar stitches so that the seam would be hidden underneath the collar when the garment is being worn. This looks nicer on the inside of the cardigan, in my opinion. According to the designer, this is a matter of “personal preference.”

I used a size 0 US (2 mm) needle to pick up the collar stitches. Following the pickup row, I switched back to a size 3 US needle. This helps to keep the neckline (which is plenty wide) from stretching too much.

I followed the pattern instructions exactly with the following tiny change to the front edges of the collar. I do this on almost all edges because I think it looks nicer and lays flatter:

1. Slip the first stitch of every row purlwise with yarn held in front. Then bring the yarn to the back (if next stitch is a knit stitch) between the two needles.

2. Knit the last stitch of every row.

These are not additional stitches. They are substitutions for what is indicated in the pattern.

It’s important to bind off loosely around the bottom edge of the collar. I had to redo my collar bind-off since my first attempt was not loose enough. The second time I used a size 7 needle and did all knit stitches rather than binding off in pattern. It looks very even, and I’m pleased with the final attempt.

The collar wants to roll since it’s primarily stockinette stitch. Therefore it will need aggressive blocking. In fact, I resorted to tacking mine down invisibly from the inside using sewing thread.

Sleeves

I did the 11 repeats of the decreasing sequence per the pattern instructions for my size. After this, I did 15 additional rows rather than the 9 suggested by the pattern. Then I started the basketweave hem band. My arms are longer than average.

Finishing

The pattern is designed to be worn with the front bands abutting. However, I can wear mine with the front bands overlapping, if desired. The placement of the collar allows for the cardigan to be worn either way.

I used sewing thread to tack down the front facings on the inside.

Neck Closure

This is my own addition. The pattern shows a purchased metal clasp as a closure, but I did something different. I created a knitted tie with leaves on the ends. Following are directions on how I did this.

I used two size 1 US DPNs. Each tie starts with a 3-stitch I-cord. (Be sure to leave a long length of yarn for sewing onto the top of the cardigan.) One cord is 12 inches long and the other is 14 inches long. There are many Youtube videos showing how to do a 3-stitch I-cord. So my instructions will begin with what to do after the desired length of I-cord has already been created.

Row 1: Kf&b, K1, Kf&b (5 sts now on needle)

Row 2 and all even number rows: Purl

Row 3: K2, YO, K1, YO, K2

Row 5: K3, YO, K1, YO, K3

Row 7: K4, YO, K1, YO, K4

Row 9: K5, YO, K1, YO, K5

Row 11: K2tog, K4, YO, K1, YO, K4, K2tog

Row 13: Same as Row 11

Row 15: K2tog, K2tog, K2, YO, K1, YO, K2, K2tog, K2tog

Row 17: K2tog, K2tog, K1, YO, K1, YO, K1, K2tog, K2tog

Row 19: K2tog, K5, K2tog

Row 21: K2tog, K3, K2tog

Row 23: K2tog, K1, K2tog

Row 25: SL1, K1, Pass the slipped stitch over the st just knitted. Place this stitch back onto the left needle. Place the remaining (last stitch) over the one above it.

Cut yarn leaving a long tail. Thread this end onto a tapestry needle. Thread the yarn through the remaining stitch and weave it up the length of the leaf through the back and up into the center of the I-cord for a good distance. Pull down on the leaf and I-cord and cut the yarn end close to the I-cord.

Sew one tie to each side of the top front of the cardigan. I sewed mine a little more than 1.5 inches from the front edges to allow the front panels to overlap. Tie into a bow, if desired.

Stylecraft Batik DK Yarn

Although I love this yarn, I can’t give it 5 stars until Stylecraft improves their quality control. Along with the usual irritating joins, there were at least 2 balls that I could not use because the color/dye was not stamped properly on the yarn. On these defective balls, there were vast areas which would have caused large, light blotches had I used them for knitting. The rest of the lot looked quite nice as you can see from my photos. If you order/use this yarn, I would advise buying a couple of extra balls because this is quite likely to happen. And unless you live in England, it will not be easy or quick to get more of it.

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