It took me two weeks to knit my new cardigan, a Drops Design free pattern called “Sweet as Honey” – and it’s definitely one of my favourite finished projects so far! I usually find that raglan cardigans tens to slide down my shoulders a little, which can be really annoying – but this one doesn’t. It fits just as it should. It’s also knitted in my favourite yarn weight, fingering – thin but warm enough for this time of the year. I used hand-dyed Irish Fairytale Yarns merino with silk and I love this yarn – merino wool gives makes it warm and soft, while silk content adds a little sheen and makes the yarn more sturdy. The colourway I chose is Old Oak – it’s a very warm, medium brown shade, just perfect to pair up with red or green.
The pattern for this cardigan has been in my queue for months. I also bought the yarn long time ago – but I really couldn’t muster up courage to knit it, because of all the lacy and cabled detail, and because of the not-so-clear way in which Drops patterns are written. But guess what? I suppose knitting from these patterns time and time again made me quite proficient in interpreting them because once I drew the general sketch with all changes marked – I call it my project map – it turned out to be really easy!
Even though I usually like more modern type of clothes, I love the slightly vintage look of this sweater, and to show it off even more, I decided to use small faux pearl buttons from The Buttonshack.
Probably the only thing I’d change if I knit it again in the future would be the sleeves – I think they are a little too wide. Not very much so, but a little more narrow and fitting sleeves would be better for me. Other than that, I love everything about this project! I’m also tempted to knit it in some bright, cheerful colour, because checking the photos on Ravelry I think it looks super cute in mustard yellow or rusty orange.
So here’s my latest project – I hope whatever you are working on is keeping you happy too!
The sweater is beautiful! I like the slightly vintage look, the color is definitely a pretty one, and I feel the buttons are just the perfect touch. (And yes, you’re quite the Drops pattern expert now. ๐ )
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Thank you! I want to knit another one, and then another one, but then I remember there are so many other patterns out there to knit ๐
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Knit all the things! Of course!
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This turned out fantastic! You do such beautiful work! I think I’m way more into writing patterns than you are. I did finally write that bottom-up triangular shawl pattern. I’m not exactly content with it, but I like it well enough not to frog the lot and go back to the drawing board. The sticky bit is that shawl point. It has a knit-as-you-go edging, and that bit of edging at the pointed bit needs to be piece-of-pie shaped in order to lay right. I haven’t yet worked out how to get the decrease to point proportions right. But, hey, that’s what I love about knitting. You never stop learning. Every new thing you make is a learning experience, and each time you make something, you add some new skill or design element to your knitting repertoire that recombines and morphs into new things, and your whole knitting thing just evolves. It’s like, “Oh, I see how that works now. The next time I do this, I’m going to change this bit, or do it differently here. . . .”
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When I started crocheting again after many years, I thought my ultimate goal would be to write patterns. Especially amigurumi! But then I just never did it and I don’t really feel I want to write my own patterns anymore. I think I’m really focused on the process of knitting/crocheting, just doing something out of nothing (almost), and working with the yarn – but I’m not really creative enough (or patient!) to write my own patterns. I absolutely admire pattern writing as a skill, it’s amazing!
And I fully agree about the learning part in knitting – we can always challenge ourselves to learn something new, and there’s always something more to learn. It’s great and it never gets boring this way!
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Wow, this is such a beautiful sweater! This would take me THREE YEARS to finish if I tried it, I’m in awe that it took you only two weeks! The lace is so exquisite! Great job! ๐
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Thank you! At times it felt like 3 years, I was actually surprised that it was only 2 weeks ๐I think I was so intimidated by this pattern that I had to knit it fast just to prove to myself that I can make it ๐
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It’s so cute! The buttons are just the perfect match ๐
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