Pattern: Niamh by Isabell Kraemer
Yarn: The Wool Barn Cashmere Sock 4ply – 4 skeins in color Violets
Needles: US 3s
Size: M1 (37.75″)
I picked a smaller size because I was getting a little bigger gauge, and I was hoping for an oversized pullover. In retrospect, I wish I had stuck with my usual size (M2) – the pullover fits me perfectly, but it’s not the slightly oversized, baggy look I was hoping for.
A different variation on my Candy Stripe Cardigan pattern, perfect for showing off the natural hues of A Verb For Keeping Warm’s beautiful Gather yarn.
Pattern: Candy Stripe Cardigan
Yarn: A Verb for Keeping Warm Gather (75% Rambouillet / 25% alpaca) (sport weight, 200 yds / 50 g per skein):
— MC Quartz (5 skeins)
— CC Doe (1 skein)
— CC Smoke (1 skein)
— CC Lighthouse (1 skein)
Size: Medium
Needles: US 6s
I used broken rib on the cuffs and increased the buttonband ribbing to 2″, but otherwise made no modifications. This yarn is wonderful when knitted up, light and bouncy but warm 🙂
This is my second sweater pattern in By Hand Serial Lookbook No. 9. It is a beautiful way to use rustic, woolly yarn in natural colors, and perfect for a summer afternoon out boating on the water!
Pattern: Mahone Bay Pullover
Yarn: HW WoolWorks Downeast Woolly – MC Natural Grey (5 skeins) and CC Natural White (1 skein) (200 yds of worsted weight yarn per skein)
Needles: US 8s and US 7s (ribbing)
Size: M
My second go-round knitting one of my new patterns from By Hand Serial Lookbook No. 9. This time, I wanted a completely different look, so instead of a rustic, “sheepy” yarn, I used fingering weight, knit at a fairly open gauge, double-stranded with mohair. The result is a soft, warm yet light pullover that drapes beautifully and looks like a soft spring morning 🙂
Pattern: Mahone Bay Pullover
Yarn: The Wool Barn Cashmere Sock 4-ply (80% super wash merino / 10% cashmere / 10% nylon) – 2 1/2 skeins (383 yds/ea) in color Smitten, knit double-stranded with La Bien Aimee Mohair Silk (70% mohair / 30% silk) – 1 1/2 skeins (547 yds/ea) in color Bois de Rose
Size: M
Needles: US 8s and 7s (ribbing)
Notes: I used a small bit of stash yarn for the CC (unlike the original, I knit the ribbing in MC and used CC only for the garter bump accent).
Pattern: Lunenberg Cardigan – my design, published in By Hand Serial Lookbook No. 9
Yarn: The Wool Barn Cashmere Sock 4-ply (80% super wash merino / 10% cashmere / 10% nylon) – 4 skeins (383 yds/ea) in color Favourite Jeans
Size: M
Needles: US 4s and 3s (ribbing)
This is one of my patterns from the newest issue of By Hand Serial: Lookbook No. 9. I think it might be my favorite – it is, in my opinion, the perfect wear-anywhere, wear-with-everything, three-season cardigan! Knit in fingering weight yarn, it can take on just about any look you want, showcase any yarn you love, and it’s never too heavy or bulky. I already have a second one on my needles 🙂
Pattern: Lunenberg Cardigan in By Hand Serial: Lookbook No. 9
Yarn: HW Woolworks Hand Dyed Merino (or any fingering weight yarn) – 4 skeins (365 yds/ea)
Size: Medium
Needles: US 4s (and US 3s for ribbing)
I love how this one came out – so soft and snuggly, what a warm and wonderful cardigan! I think it’s likely that the yarn is going to pill – it’s not spun very tightly – but I’m going to enjoy it as long as it lasts 🙂
Pattern: Kapsel Cardigan by Shannon Cook
Yarn: La Bien Aimee Merino Aran (100% superwash merino) – 8 skeins (181 yds/ea) in color Yellow Brick Road
Needles: US 6s
Size: 38″
This was definitely not a quick knit – the all-over textured pattern takes more time, but it’s not a difficult stitch, and it’s fun to see how it develops.
Pattern: Winterfell Cardigan Aran
Yarn: La Bien Aimee Merino Aran – 6 skeins (181 yds/ea) in color Caramel
Size: M2
Needles: US 7s and 6s (ribbing)
I’m so glad I went with what I thought would be a larger size – M2 is supposed to be a finished bust measurement of 42.75″. However, I ended up with only a slight bit of positive ease, and I have a 37″ bust – this definitely didn’t give me almost 6″ of ease! I also knit it several inches longer – around 16″ from armhole to hem. I was hoping for a bit of an oversized cardigan, but I ended up with a nice (but close) fit.
I made this cardigan for a fellow artist, in barter for some of her beautiful weaving work. Â Unfortunately, that means I’m stuck with bad mannequin photos, since I don’t have a live model who fits the sweater!
Pattern: Â Red Spire Cardigan (I wrote this pattern for By Hand Serial Lookbook No. 5)
Yarn: Â Quince & Co Owl (10 skeins in color Bog)
Needles: Â US 7s
Size: Â 39″
Trying to get a 13-year-old to be serious during a photoshoot is a fruitless task . . .
I knit this sweater for me, but hated how it looked on – I should have guessed, since bat-wing cropped is not my best look 🙂  I think it’s adorable on her, though.
Pattern: Â Turtle Dove
Yar: Â Illimani Amelie (56% mulberry silk / 40% baby alpaca / 4% merino) – 5 skeins (164 yds/ea) in color Hunter
Needles: Â US 10s and 9s (ribbing)
Size: Â M (54.25″)
It’s too bad, because this yarn is so incredibly soft, I’d love to wear it next to my skin! Â I bought a SQ’s worth at The Mariner’s Daughter in Nova Scotia, and then really struggled to come up with a pattern that was a good match to the yarn – I think this one is, it just isn’t my style.
This one goes in the “fail” category – I substituted yarn and I thought I got gauge, but it must not have been the case as this came out WAY too small. Â I don’t like several of the design elements, as well – too much waist shaping for me, the sleeves don’t fit well at the shoulders (makes me look like a linebacker), and I don’t like how the collar turned out (I like the idea of folding the collar over to make it double-thick, but when I knit the button bands up to the sides of the collar, one side tweaked out really badly and I couldn’t fix it, even with blocking).
Pattern: Â White Pepper Cardigan by Alicia Plummer
Yarn: Â Hinterland Range (50% alpaca / 50% wool) – four skeins in Maple, with partial skeins in Honey and Snow for the sleeve striping
Needles: Â US 8s (I tried going up a size to get bigger gauge, but it made the fabric too open and floppy)
Size: Â 41″
Pattern: Â Lakeland by Fiona Alice
Size: Â M (44″)
Needles: Â US 8s
Yarn: Â Five skeins (198 yds/ea) of Hinterland Range (50% Rambouillet / 50% alpaca) in color Honey
I recently finished knitting one of Brooklyn Tweed’s new patterns; I liked the focus on texture and the unique shaping of this piece. Â It took a while – the stitch pattern calls for a K1 P1 rib every other row – but the FO is beautiful and wearable. Â My only hesitation is that the fabric produced by this yarn, while very soft and lovely to wear, feels somewhat fragile, as if it may stretch under the weight of the garment (even though it’s got a little nylon in the fiber). Â I was very careful when wet blocking it, because it could have easily stretched way out of shape, and I even tossed it in the dryer for 20 minutes at the end to tighten everything up a little. Â The sweater is already a little on the long side, so I’d prefer that it not stretch any further!
I went with the second smallest size – not my usual size range, but even though this garment calls for a lot of positive ease, anything larger seemed just gigantic. Â I’m glad I chose the size I did, as this piece is already pretty oversized all over – any bigger and it would have felt like draping on an overcoat.
Pattern: Â Dunes Dolman Cardigan
Yarn:  Magpie Fibers Swanky DK (80% superwash merino / 10% cashmere / 10% nylon) – 5 skeins (250 yds/ea) in Pretty in Pink
Needles: Â US 6s and US 4s (for ribbing)
Size: Â 46″
A great basic – I love this grey color, it’s warm and cozy, goes with everything, and a flattering fit. Â Plus, it knit up in just five days! Â The yarn is 100% yak and it feels really wonderful – like alpaca, but without so much drape and stretch.
Pattern: Â The Dog Walker
Yarn: Â The Plucky Knitter Yakkity Aran (100% yak) – 6 skeins (160 yds/ea) in color Peppercorn
Needles: Â US 10s and US 8s (for broken ribbing)
Size: Â 42″ (I was worried that this would be too big, but the pattern recommended 6-8″ of ease, and this would have given me about 4″ – I don’t actually think it gave me that much ease, so I’m glad I went with this size!)
The perfect go-anywhere, where-with-anything cardigan! Â I think that Fossil is the perfect neutral, and because it’s knit in Loft, it’s lightweight enough to be worn year-round, and feels light as a feather.
Pattern: Â Willapa Cardigan
Yarn: Â Brooklyn Tweed Loft in color Fossil (7 skeins)
Size: Â 38-40″
Needles: Â US 5s
I finished this in a week – lots of car knitting on the way to vacation! – as a test knit for Jenn Steingass of Knit.Love.Wool. Â I used Brooklyn Tweed’s new fingering weight yarn Peerie, and love how it knits up at a looser gauge – the resulting fabric is very soft but light. Â I’m not as crazy about the color as I was when I bought the skeins – I would have preferred something more summery in retrospect, especially since I opted for the short-sleeve version.
Pattern: Â Anaashah by Knit.Love.Wool
Yarn: Â Brooklyn Tweed’s Peerie (100% domestic merino) – 5 skeins (210 yds/ea) in Gingersnap and one skein in Muslin
Needles: Â US 5s (I used US 3s for the sleeve ribbing, but stuck with US 5s for the bottom hem ribbing)
Size: Â C (finished bust of 43″, which should have given me over 5″ of positive ease, but I think I ended up with a lot less than that)
Also, be warned – this yarn REALLY stretches when it’s blocked! Â I think it grew by at least 3″ – so much so that it went from a fairly short fit (15″ from armpit to hem) to overly long (at least 17″, maybe longer). Â It bothers me enough that I’m going to re-block it and be more careful this time about setting the length.Pin It
I’ve been working on this pattern for some time now – it gives me a chance for one of my favorite colorwork combinations, speckles and complementary solids. Â I love this particular color combo, but I have another in the works to test out some tweaks to the pattern before it’s ready for publishing.
The yarn is Long Dog Yarn – in my opinion, her speckles and tonal solids are some of the most beautiful, saturated and brilliant yarn colors out there! Â The yarns are all fingering weight, knit held double to approximate a worsted weight knit on US 6s.
Pattern coming soon!
I love this version of my Red Spire Cardigan, knit in the luxurious and utterly wonderful Clever Camel yarn.
This yarn (actually made from camel hair!) has such loft and lightness, but with a wonderful cozy warmth. Â It’s truly perfect year-round!
Yarn: Â 11 skeins of Clever Camel (100% baby camel), color Naked, 110 yds/ea
Needles: Â US 7s or 8s (uh-oh, guess I didn’t take very good notes . . .)
Size: Â 41″
My third time knitting this pattern – I love it in every color! Â This time I tried a different yarn combo:
Pattern: Â Walk in the Woods pullover
Yarns: Â Camilla Vad Lambswool (color Tordenbla) (5 skeins @ 50g/ea) and Isager Silk Mohair (color 47) (5 skeins)
Size: Â 39″
Needles: Â US 5s (I had to go down one size to get gauge)
I’ve just released my newest pattern – Walk in the Woods.  This comfortable, classic pullover is perfect for unpredictable spring weather – wear it alone or over a light layer, stick it under your raincoat or over a skirt – this is a wear-anywhere piece that knits up quick!  Little details add to the overall appeal of the pullover; the hem splits right at the side seam to give you extra movement and keeps the edge from rising up, and the seamed construction keeps the shoulders tidy, not slouchy.  The yarn – two types of Isager knit double-stranded – makes the whole garment light and warm.
I’ve already knit three of these sweaters, and am close to finishing a fourth – they are so perfect for all weather and every occasion, I want one in every color! Â You can find the pattern now on Ravelry.
Pattern: Â Walk in the Woods Pullover
Yarn: Â Isager Strik Alpaca 2 and Isager Strik Tweed
Needles: Â US 6s
I convinced my reluctant two oldest daughters to help me model these sweaters, and I love how the photos showcase the different ways the sweaters can be sized. Â On Bella (wearing the taupe sweater), the look is slightly oversized; on Emmersen (wearing the black sweater), the garment is worn with a slight bit of negative ease, and on me (wearing the magenta sweater), the sweater is worn in a traditional style, with just an inch or two of positive ease. Â Three different looks, all flattering and classic!
