FO: Hooded Baby Cardigan

Pattern: based on the Easy Baby Cardigan pattern available free from Knitting Pure and Simple, with many changes
Size: 3 months
Yarn: Lamb’s Pride Superwash, colors Blue Heaven and Misty Blue, (100% wool), worsted weight, 200 yards/3.5oz per skein
Needles: Size 5 & 7 bamboo DPN, Size 4 & 6 16″ bamboo circular
Amount of yarn used: less than 1 skein of each color
Gauge: 5 st/in
Started: October 7, 2006
Finished: October 16, 2006
Recipient: no intended recipient

Just a quick little sweater that I made simply because the blue yarn was sitting on a shelf in my living room.  It kept calling out to me, begging to make it into a itty, bitty striped sweater.  I finally decided to accept the fact that I am not a good Socktoberfester  and that I just HAD to make the sweater.  I am so pleased with how it came out.  I was originally planning on just making up a little cardigan pattern, but then I saw this free pattern and decided that I could adapt it to what I needed.  I made a lot of changes.

First of all, instead of starting at the hood, I decided to start at the neck.  I did this because I wasn’t sure what kind of border I wanted on the hood.   I didn’t cast on for the 4 purl stitches at the beginning and end of the row, knowing that I would pick up stitches for the button bands after.  I knit 8 rows of each color for the stipes.  I then followed the instructions for the rest of the main body until I got to the bottom border.  Instead of doing as instructed, I switched to smaller needles and knit 5 rows of 1×1 ribbing and then bound off loosely.

I didn’t like how the sleeves were at all in the pattern, so I changed them.  I followed the instructions on how to get the arm stitches arranged on the needles, but then decreased every 4th round until I was down to 24 stitches.  I then knit 3 rounds even, decreased 1 stitch, switched to smaller needles and knit 4 rounds of 1×1 ribbing and bound off loosely.

For the button band, I picked up 51 stitches (about 7 stitches for every 8 rows, plus a couple for the ribbing), using the smaller needles.  I picked up the stitches by inserting the needle from the outside.   I knit 5 rows of 1×1 ribbing and then bound off loosely.  I then attached the buttons and used safety pins on the opposte side of the front to mark where the buttonholes should go.   I then picked up stitches on the other front piece of the cardigan as stated above.  I knit 2 rounds of 1×1 ribbing.  On the next row, I cast off 2 stitches at each safety pin.  Next row: I cast on 2 stitches where I had cast off the stitches on the previous row.  I also used Elizabeth Zimmerman’s button-hole tips described in Knitting without Tears.   I then knit 2 more rows of 1X1 ribbing and bound off loosely.

For the hood, I picked up the same number of stitches that I had originally cast on (ignoring the ribbing from the button band).  I then basically reversed the hood instructions that were stated in the pattern (ignoring the purl 4 at either end).  Mine ended up being a tad longer, because I wanted to end it with4 rows of the darker blue.   I finished with  kitchener stitch to close up the top.  I then picked up stitches around the hood - 6 stitches for every 8 rows, and knit 5 rounds of 1×1 ribbing and bound off loosely.  I seamed the hood ribbing to the button band ribbing, and attached fake ties (knit about 3 inches of 2 stitch i-cord in the darker blue) and knot the ends.

Phew!  I think it took me longer to write about it than it did to knit it!  Now, it is just waiting for a little baby boy to be born.  I am sure it will find a home soon.