I’m still going through my older finished projects and posting photos. This one is the Featherweight Cardigan, pattern written by Hannah Fettig. It’s a classic for a reason.
This cardigan was one of my very first knitted garment projects. I was so excited to be making it, and so nervous about whether it would turn out to be wearable!
It is very wearable. It’s a light but warm wooly layer for transitional weather. I’m thinking of making another, and it’s not often I knit a pattern twice. There are so many great designs, and I feel I could keep trying new patterns infinitely and never make all the everything I’d like to. I think this one is worth it though. It’s versatile and easy to wear.
And, it’s an easy and well-written pattern. I love the concept of knitting a sweater in laceweight yarn for a couple reasons. Firstly, the garment is delicate. Secondly, when you buy laceweight yarn, you get more yardage for your money. It just makes sense. The required gauge for this sweater is not terribly small, which means I only needed one skein of yarn for the whole thing. I got an entire cardigan made of great quality hand-dyed merino wool for a materials cost of $24. I think that’s a great deal! Since the garment is basic and not oversized, I didn’t find it took long to make, even in laceweight.
If you have a look at the finished projects on Ravelry, you’ll see some people have made the sweater in heavier weights of yarn, which I wouldn’t mind trying. Also, it’s so plain and basic it would be fun to add interest to the hem or neckline, as you can see some people have done, and it’s easy to vary the sleeve length or the length of the entire garment.
I knitted my sweater in Madelinetosh Tosh Lace, which has been discontinued. Don’t worry, Prairie is still available, and that’s a beautiful yarn. I always prefer single-ply anyway, which I didn’t learn until I had been knitting for a while. I used the shade Kale, which may also be discontinued. It was this funny-sounding combination of a purple-maroon color and pale green. I don’t think it looks funny, though. I love it, although I can’t seem to get the camera to pick up the color very well.
marmalade season 