Tag Archives: cardigan

FO Friday: Catbells Cardigan

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Hurrah! My Catbells Cardigan is done done done!

Pattern: Catbells Cardiagn by Megan Nodecker (Rav Link)

Yarn: Briggs and Little Regal 2-ply in Midnight Blue

Needles: US 8 and US 6

Mods: I added 2 inches of length to the body and modified the sleeve decreases to accommodate my strong upper arms.

This sweater was a labor of love and took way longer to make than it should have. I also made several mistakes in the lace that I just fudged back into place because NO ONE will ever notice, lol. This sweater crushed some major stash. I used almost 6 skeins of yarn that equates to 1,500 yards of yarn out of stash!

The finished sweater is super cozy and VERY warm. Briggs and Little Regal is not a next to skin soft yarn but should compensate by being hard wearing, especially on the bottom where I will sit on it. This pattern was well designed and gets high marks from me but I don’t think I would make it again. The all over patterning is just slow knitting for me and probably why it took over a year to finish.

It is starting to get cooler around here so I feel like this garment will come in very handy! Happy Knitting!!

Pockets!!

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Thank goodness for worsted yarn and large gauge needles, my Catbells Pockets fell right off my needles!

I did opt to make pockets for the next size up in sweater. I like big pockets and I cannot lie. I have pockets washed out and drying near a fan. I’m really hoping I can get these dry while I’m at work so I can finish the assembly on the sweater this evening!

Happy Knitting!!

One Custom Sleeve

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One sleeve is now complete! My Catbells Cardigan is looking more and more like a functional cardigan.

I did deviate from the pattern in regards to the sleeve. As designed the arms were to snug in my upper arm. So I knit straight for awhile and then mixed in my own decreases. I used light bulb stitch markers to keep track of where I put those in order to duplicate on the second sleeve. I also made the cuff a week bit longer so the sleeves would go all the way to my knuckles.

I have even started the second sleeve and I’m about halfway done with the decreases. I am just about out of my original dye lot of yarn. I *think* I will have enough yarn to finish the second sleeve. That does mean I will need to use my second batch/dye lot of yarn to make the hem and pockets. Honestly, they look close enough in color that I don’t think anyone will notice.

Happy Knitting!!

Let’s Make Poor Decisions!

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I am in the slog of the body of my Catbells Cardigan. Never ending body for 20 plus inches of the same pattern. I had some kid free time this past evening and decided to mix my favorite summer beer and knitting. It is not lost on me that this might be a poor decision…

I haven’t inspected my knitting this morning, but I feel like I did okay not messing up the pattern! It’s dark worsted yarn so that will hide a lot of sins, lol.

Happy Knitting!!!

Trusting The Pattern

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My Catbells is growing. I managed to get both fronts added to the back section. I am not sure how I feel about how this is looking. I need to trust the pattern but I feel dubious about how this will turn into a sweater.

I am now working in the body section, but back and forth. So I get one “lace” row and one rest row of plain knit. Its close to 200 stitches in the row so it takes me a minute to get back and forth.

I’m now in the slog of 27 inches of body….I think I will be here for a minute, lol.

Happy Knitting!!

Catbells Reignited

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I have a confession, its been a year since I have touched my Catbells cardigan. I just wasn’t feeling it but I have had the itch to have more sweaters for winter and my cold office.

Thanks to a little women’s college softball on TV, I have the first section of the upper back done. It took me a minute to get into the groove of the lace but I got there. DEFINITELY have some mistakes in there. But you know what? Dark navy yarn hides a lot of sins, lol.

Now I need to break out my Ott light and pick up stitches for the right front. My eyes aren’t what they used to be!

Happy Friday and Happy Knitting!

FO Friday: Charlotte Winter

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I finished an EPIC thing and I’m so thrilled I can’t stop smiling you guys. My Charlotte Winter is done and it fits like a dream! This is my first garment for myself in a long time. Having babies has been hard on my body and I haven’t always loved what I see in the mirror. But I for sure love me in this!

Pattern: Charlotte Winter by Carrie Bostick Hoge

Yarn: Berroco Chunky in Grey, Purple and Teal

Needles: US 13s

Mods: I added reverse garter stripes across the yoke to simulate color-work. I worked at a tighter gauge than the pattern and had to math out the size I needed.

It’s the most perfect tunic length and even in bulky yarn it is pretty darn flattering. I so love that I was able to get some finished photos with snow still on the ground. The rest of Kansas might not agree with me. But I’m happy for one last snow!

You can kind of see some extra fabric under the arms ala a dolman adjacent sleeve. My yoke stretched a little more than I had planned so my armpits aren’t in the armpits. That’s what happens with wet/heavy bulky yarn. But the fit feels good and I can always tighten this up a bit in the dryer. I LOVE how far the sleeves come down on my hand. It is so cozy! Plus I can always fold the cuffs up while cooking or typing. I always opt for cozy though…

I do see in this photo one stretched out stitch. It was easy to snag the garter bumps as I was turning this sweater around while knitting. I need to go back and pull the surrounding stitches back into place to close up that hole. If that doesn’t work I’ll duplicate stitch over it with some teal yarn.

I plan to give this an inaugural wearing and decide if I need to sew some grosgrain ribbon on the wrong side of the button bands. My top button is ceramic and very pretty but also very heavy. The bottom buttons are just plastic. I’ll see how it lasts during wear. Ooooo….I remembered when I was sewing the buttons down to leave room under the button for the fabric to slide under. Kind of like having a button shank under there. I usually just sew them down to within an inch of their life. But I feel like a proper knitter now!

Boy do I love this sweater…I gotta stop smiling!

Happy Knitting!!

FO Friday: Leksak

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As promised yesterday my Leksak is blocked and all ready for Fall in Kansas.

Pattern: Leksak by Yarn-Madness

Yarn: Berroco Comfort DK in Menthe and Primary Blue. I used 233 yards of the Menthe and 85 yards of the Primary Blue. So all in all that’s about 94 grams of yarn.

Needles: US 4 (the pattern calls for 6s and I oopsed) My gauge ended up being 5.5 stitches and 8 rows to 1 inch.

Size: 12 months

 

Sorry no finished photos with PB. She is in the middle of a developmental leap and just kind of a crabby mess after we get home from work. Her little brain is really growing up a storm. But bottom line is that I loved this pattern and will most likely re-knit this again as PB gets bigger.

Happy Knitting!!

A Block Away

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My Leksak is completely knitted and awaiting a good blocking!

I slept on my wonky button band issue and decided I couldn’t live with it. And I had the yarn to reknit the bands, so why not? So I pulled back the band and re-knit them being careful to count my stitches on each side. And they were equal. Well…..I think I picked up too many stitches on each side. So they now match…but they are kinda huge. But I’m definitely rolling with this one. I’m not doing that a third time! It’s good enough for and it’s good enough for PB, lol.

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As you can also see, I made the sleeves match. I started my round at the back of the sleeves so the job is only visible from the back. I kinda dig it. This baby is now soaking gently and I hope to have it dry for FO photos tomorrow!!

Happy Knitting!

FO Friday: Gidday Baby Sweater

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PB’s Gidday Baby Sweater has been done and sitting for quite awhile. I just couldn’t muster the gumption to dig out and sew on buttons. Well after a couple of poop-splosions this week I was running out of sweaters for PB. So here is her finished Gidday Baby.

I found some nice neutral semi-transparent buttons in the right size in my button stash. Which is impressive because my button stash is minimal at best. Are they the best buttons for this sweater….no. But do they look okay and make a perfectly serviceable sweater…..yes!

I made some mods in order to shoot for knitting a 12 month sized sweater. I’m not sure if I exactly made it 12 month sized but it’s big enough for PB to wear. So I’m taking that as a win and running with it. My Ravelry details can be found here with a brief description of my mods.

Now do I dare start a true 12 month sweater for PB? And if so what should it be???

Happy Knitting!!