My First Cardigan

I have knit many elaborate afghans.  I consider myself a fairly accomplished knitter.  But I have never knit a sweater and I have always wanted to try one.

Now that we have a granddaughter, I thought I could start with a child's sweater.  She would be less critical than an adult and she would outgrow it before too long so wouldn't be stuck wearing a poorly knitted item for a long time.

Rachel is wearing size 3 clothing, but I used a size 4 pattern.  I wasn't sure how long it would take to finish this first project.  I chose to knit a cardigan. That is a sweater that buttons up, rather than a jumper that pulls over the head.

  

The pattern was quite simple.  You knit the back, the two front pieces and the sleeves.

  

Next you sew the front shoulders to the back.  Then the sleeves are sewn in.  After the sleeves are in you sew from the bottom to the armpit, closing the body of the cardigan.  Knit the wrist to the armpit, closing the sleeves.  I used place holders to make sure the pieces lined up correctly.

  

The part that was the scariest was knitting in the front placket.  To do this, you pick up stitches from the edge of the front of the opening in the cardigan and sew up and around until it is an inch wide.  I needed to go back to Yarn Explosion and view YouTube videos to figure out the whole process.

  

I also needed YouTube help to knit in the buttonholes.  The pattern I purchased was woefully inadequate for a novice sweater knitter.

  

The ladies at Yarn Explosion suggested cutting a square of felt to use as a backing when sewing on the buttons.

  

After sewing, I cut the excess away, so there was stability behind the button, but it wasn't visible .

  

I like the finished product. I hope Rachel does.

  

Now I am inspired to do a grown-up version.   Maybe one with cables and a more elaborate pattern.  It is fun and rewarding.

But next I am going to try working with a lathe to learn to make wooden bowls.