Monday, January 15, 2007

Busy weekend pt 3: My Jo Sharp shawl collar cardi

My first adult sized garment! I am so proud of myself for making this - not so much about how long it took me to do it, but just proud and happy that it is done!
Details:
Pattern: Shawl Collar Cardigan from Jo Sharp Knit vol 1, size D (the largest). You can't really see it in the pictures, but the cardi has a lovely shape, nipped in at the waist and a slight flare on the sleeves (I would have like more flare on the sleeves, I think).
Yarn: I used the recommended yarn, Jo Sharp Alpaca Kid Lustre, an 8ply/DK weight, shade 855 (Cassis - a lovely winey/purply colour). The pattern recommended 15 balls, so I bought 16, and ended up using 12.5. It is lovely soft yarn and I enjoyed knitting with it, but it is hard to count rows - the slight fuzziness obscures the stitches a bit, so I recommend using a row counter!
Sticks: 4.5mm bamboo. Upsized from 4mm due to my tension tightness!
Time: I started this in mid June and finished it on 11 January. In fairness to myself, I finished the main part of the cardi, including sewing it up, in about September. But by then it was too hot to wear it so I went slow on the finishing (knitting the ribbed collar piece) in favour of doing other more urgent projects.
What I learnt: I should have trusted myself a bit more - the sleeves are slightly too long (even though I didn't do them quite as long as recommended, but not by much) and a bit baggier than they should be - and I knew they would be but I went ahead anyway. But overall, I think they'll be fine, particularly once I have long sleeves underneath. Perfect for NY!

I love it!

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

It looks wonderful, and I *love* the colour.

kgirlknits said...

lovely! Great shape and colour(Not red?!)

Jo said...

Wow, you have been busy! I love the cardi and the scarves... they all look wonderful.

Stephanie said...

I am sitting with my mom and grandmother...lots of "oh's and ah's"

Lovely cardigan!

Anonymous said...

Hey Rose Red,

Great cardi. I think I saw this one as a work in progress. You will certainly look flash in NY in all your beautiful woollens. I am really excited about you teaching me when you return from NY NY.

We hope you and A have a great time and we look forward to hearing all about it.

Love your site, feel very honoured to be an owner of one of your pairs of socks and the mother of E the wearer of the gorgeous red cardigan and denim pinafore #1.

Thanks for sharing and caring. Stay safe and happy.

Anonymous said...

What a fantastic job you did. That color is great! I hope you get years of enjoyment out of it.

librarylass said...

That really is a beautiful cardi, is there an action shot you can show us? I'd love to see the shaping. The colour is gorgeous to boot.

Anonymous said...

The cardigan is lovely . I can't believe it is your first adult sized garment. Good job. Have a wonderful time in New York. Take plenty of photos to share and make sure you go to all the best yarn shops.Guess what the first two leters of the word verification this time are NY.

Anonymous said...

Jane! It's lovely - now I want to make one almost immediately...

thehitman123@gmail.com said...

Cardigans are for old people with grey hair!

Anonymous said...

Oh Jane, it's beautiful. Well done.
When I saw it in the book I didn't give it another thought. Now I'm inspired to cast on immediately. x

Linda said...

Thank you for all the details on your gorgeous cardigan, I am itching to start mine but other things need to be finished first! The colour is lovely.

maniacalmultitasker said...

That's a lovely cardi! It'll hopefully be colder when you get there. Put aside some time to relax at Knitty City - it's got a great atmosphere. I went there at the eleventh hr before they were due to close for 2 or 3 days and wished I had more time! Great Yarns!
(Try Purl Soho too)

Laura said...

Wow! That is one happenin' cardigan! You should take a picture modeling it (those are always my favorite). Great work, beautiful color, really really nice.