Finished, Sort Of

I've finished the knitting on my Balete Cardigan, and I've blocked it.  I've still got to add the ribbon to the front bands and sew on the buttons, but I don't want to rush that.  I can turn it in for credit on the Flash Craft A Long now and add the finishing touches later when I have time to focus on the finishing.

There was a question about where I found my ribbons and buttons, which is an excellent question since I'm always looking for new sources too.  The buttons came from Amazon, from a place called Bezelry.  They have a nice selection of really pretty metal buttons that would work nicely for sweaters.  I found the ribbons on Etsy.  The dark gray ribbon with black roses (on the left, below) came from the Bias Bespoke Supply Company, which also has it's own website that has more selection than the Etsy store.  The other ribbon, the black with gray and silver flowers (on the right) is from a brand called Kafka, which is German.  I ordered from Ribbonworks Design's Etsy store, but this brand is available from several shops.  

I'm going to be using the ribbon on the left because it's the only one I have enough of for the front bands and the inside edge of the hood.  I am mentally planning a cardigan that I can use the Kafka ribbon on though - it definitely needs to be used too!

Have a great weekend!

Sleeves

I have begun knitting sleeves!  Just the first sleeve so far, but it's a start.  Obviously, the entire sweater needs a good blocking, but I'll wait until I'm finished knitting.  I have until the end of the month to finish it to participate in the Flash Craft A Long, but I can't sew on the ribbon facings and the buttons until the knitting is finished and I've gotten the whole thing blocked.

Must get back to knitting!  Have a great weekend!

Trimmings For My Hoodie

I finally got them all so I can show you the trimmings and notions I've gotten for my Balete Hoodie.  The timing is actually perfect, because I've finished the hood and I'm working on the front bands right now.  That means the entire thing is a dark fuchsia blob, wadded onto the needles.  Not at all photogenic!

Anyway, here's what I'm using to finish the hoodie.  The buttons are a dark gray, and I will use one of the ribbons to trim the front bands.  My favorite is the slightly fancier ribbon on the right, even though the ribbons will be on the inside and will probably never show.  I'll know they're there.

Once I finish knitting the front bands I will need to knit the sleeves, but then it's just a matter of blocking the whole thing and sewing on the ribbons and buttons!  I've got 12 days left to get that finished and I think I'll be fine.

Moving Along

My Balete Cardigan is moving along nicely.  I've put the sleeve stitches on holders and the lower body is flying along.  I plan to make this a little more cropped than the pattern is written, so I'm to the point where I'm trying it on frequently.  

I've got my buttons picked out and I'm planning to face the button/buttonhole bands with ribbon for stability.  I've done it once before on a cardigan and I really like how it works to keep the front edges from looking sloppy.  Last time I used fabric (Liberty Tana Lawn) for the facings.  I've ordered some ribbons for this cardigan and will decide if it will work when it arrives.  I think they're supposed to arrive this week, so I'll show them to you Thursday!

A New Cardigan

Tuesday I showed you my progress on the Evening Dew Cardigan.  No, it's not finished, but I started a new cardigan anyway.  (The Evening Dew isn't frogged either, it's just paused.)  ESK started a Flash Craft A Long with Velvet Acorn patterns and since I've liked her patterns for a while, and I had yarn that would work, I decided to jump in and knit.

I'm knitting the Balete Cardigan in Malabrigo Rios in Hollyhock.  It's knit top down from the neck and then you go back later and work the hood.  I'm still on the upper yoke section, before you divide for the sleeves.

One thing that's fun about this designer, in addition to the huge number of patterns, is that she has a knitted variation and crochet variation for most of her designs.  Also, the majority of her sweater designs are sized for toddlers through large adult!  This particular design starts at 1-2 year old size with a 23 inch chest circumference and goes to 4XL with a 59-3/4 inch chest circumference.  That means you can get a LOT of use out of a single pattern.

This FCAL only goes for the month of April, so I'll be back to the Evening Dew Cardigan soon!  In the meantime, I'm enjoying a worsted weight, stockinette stitch, palette cleanser type project!

Evening Dew

I showed you the Evening Dew cardigan a few weeks ago and just wanted to update my progress.  I've joined the fronts to the back now and I'm working on the body length now.  I'm probably more than halfway down the body (I haven't measured and I haven't checked the pattern either so this is totally a guess), and once that's done things should move very quickly.  The sleeves are knit in stockinette stitch and then it's just a matter of finishing.  I've been weaving in ends as I go so that should help the finishing too.

This is a relaxing pattern that only requires a little bit of brain power and at this time of year I'm not really in a hurry to get it finished.  There's plenty of time now before I'll need a sweater again!  I know I say this every time, but I really love this yarn (Berocco Ultra Alpaca Light).  It's got such a comforting bounce and softness to it.