Cardigan

Another old draft that I hadn't posted yet - the reason why completely escapes me. Here goes:

As of December 2016:

I am improvising a cardigan from a pattern I saw in one of the Brooklyn Tweed pattern collection books.  It is a while back so I don't remember which one.  I liked the colour and general impression of the cardigan but I didn't think the actual design lines would look good on me: the back shoulder and waist area was strange. So I made my version up as I went along.

I very much liked the idea of a pattern at the front edges (don't know if the original was reversible, as in the same on the right and on the wrong side). I wanted one that could flip over, and still look good.  Even if the pattern wasn't the exact same thing on both sides.

I had seen a cabled pattern on Ravelry called 'Lucky Ribs cable cowl'. It looks pretty easy to knit but I couldn't quite figure it out myself. So I searched "the internet machine" and found it. I even found the website again: it is called Cable with Segments stitch on a website called Craft Elf.

The stitch pattern isn't complicated: it is a K2 P2 ribbing for however many rows you want (I think I went with 12 rows before the first twist row, a bit more below) - and then the pattern said to twist four stitches containing P1 K2 P1 with the next group of four stitches that are: P1 K2 P1.

The reverse of this then doesn't looks quite the same as the right side appearance. The 'central' stiches are just two knit stitches wide, whereas on the right side it is four knit stitches.

For some reason I got that "wrong".  I twisted groups of K2 P2 with K2 P2. Guess what the reverse looks like?  Exactly the same!

I lucked into a variation of this that is truly reversible. How lucky is that?

I am so pleased that by getting a part of the instructions wrong I ended up with a version that I like a lot better. So of course I'm sticking with it!

The only thing I have to watch out for is that if I twist K2 P2 with the next four stitches, then I need to mirror that at the other edge: I need to twist groups of four stitches of P2 K2 with P2 K2. Otherwise the edge doesn't look the same and one side will look really off.

I love the way this looks

This is the back: to avoid the ballooning out blouson effect and get the cardigan to mold a bit more to my swayback, I decided to cinch this in at the small of my back. We'll see how that goes.

The original had a weird tapering line at the back of the top of arms. I didn't like the way it looks and I don't understand the function. So I am going to go straight up. I will make sure to strengthen the shoulder seams so the cardigan doesn't pull the sleeves down.

My problem now is: how do I fit sleeves into armholes that have K2, P2 ribbing at their edge? You can't see them properly in the above photo because the circular needle is pulling the back down - the armholes are to the immediate right and left of the front pieces.

Should I knit them to normal dimensions (in stockinette, not in ribbing) and see where I need to place stitches to keep the ribbing 'ribbed'?  Or what?

Maybe I'm making more of a problem out of this than it'll turn out to be. I should just go for it I think.

This photo shows the cardigan body folded up so you can see the front edges better. The smooth piece on the left is the first sleeve. In stocking stitch, not ribbed.

This is how far I got. Fingers crossed that I'll pick this back up soon. I think I am making more of the sewing together of sleeves and body than it should be. I'll need to seize my courage!

(To be updated. I managed to finish this in late 2017!  I just need photos and then I can write the update)