BELLEVUE CARDIGAN

A summery, slightly cropped cardigan with a fun lace edging, two yarn weight options and two sleeve options! Worked from the bottom up, the cap sleeve version is completely seamless while the short sleeve version has minimal seaming.

Meant to be worn open (but you can also add a button or tie). Works up quickly in a small amount of worsted or fingering weight yarn and is a perfect topper to take that short sleeved or sleeveless dress into the evening, air conditioning and autumn.

WORSTED WEIGHT BELLEVUE
Works up super quickly! I knit mine in just 3 days!

SIZES
Finished Bust 33.5” (36″, 38″, 42.5″, 44.5″, 47″, 51.5″, 53.5″, 56″) / 85 (91.5, 96.5, 108, 113, 119.5, 131, 136, 142) cm

Worsted weight Bellevue is shown in size 36” / 91.5cm with zero ease, with cap sleeves. Note that the fronts do touch, but swing back when worn.

MATERIALS
Worsted or aran weight yarn. Shown in Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Worsted (100% superwash wool, 225 yds/113g skein) in colour Manzanita, 3 skeins for size 36” / 91.5cm.

Yards: 510 (550, 580, 650, 700, 760, 820, 860, 920) for cap sleeve version.

For short sleeves, add an additional:
Yards: 60 (60, 70, 70, 70, 80, 80, 90, 90)

US 7 / 4.5mm circular needles, 32” / 80cm or longer, or size needed to obtain gauge
an additional set of US 7 / 4.5mm needles, circular or straight, if working short sleeves
waste yarn
stitch markers
tapestry needle

GAUGE
18 sts and 24 rows = 4″ / 10cm square in Stockinette Stitch

FINGERING WEIGHT BELLEVUE
Takes a little longer but is so wearable. Perfect for summer mornings and evenings.

SIZES
Finished Bust: 32.5″ (35.5″, 38.5″, 41.5″, 44.5″, 48″, 51″, 54″, 57″) / 82.5 (90, 98, 105.5, 113, 122, 129.5, 137, 145) cm

Fingering weight Bellevue is shown in size 35.5” / 90cm with 0.5”/1.25cm negative ease and short sleeves. Note that the fronts do touch, but swing back when worn.

MATERIALS
Fingering weight (4ply/sock) yarn. Shown in Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock (80% superwash wool, 20% nylon; 215 yds/67g skein) in colour Douglas Fir, 4 skeins for size 35.5” / 90cm.

Yards: 580 (640, 700, 760, 820, 880, 950, 1020, 1090) for cap sleeve version.

For short sleeves, add an additional:
Yards: 40 (50, 50, 50, 50, 60, 60, 60, 60)

US 2.5 / 3mm circular needles, 32” / 80cm or longer, or size needed to obtain gauge
an additional set of US 2.5 / 3mm needles, circular or straight, if working short sleeves
waste yarn
stitch markers
tapestry needle

GAUGE
26 sts and 32 rows = 4″ / 10cm square in Stockinette Stitch.

MORE INFO
Skills needed: cast on, knit, purl, increase, decrease, optional chart, seaming for short sleeve version only.

Each pattern is a 5-page PDF file with full colour photos, with written and charted directions for the lace pattern, schematics and abbreviations.

You get BOTH the Worsted and Fingering weight versions when you buy! A great value! Sorry, these patterns are not available separately.

Available through Ravelry, payment through Paypal (no accounts required).

$8.00

Note: As of July 5, 2010, sales tax will be added to this price for all Canadian residents only. The rates are: British Columbia 12%; Ontario, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador 13%; Nova Scotia 15%; and everywhere else in Canada 5% GST. Tax will be added in the Paypal payment process.

Looking into the booth from the aisle. Featuring Olgajazzzy in the middle!

Gudrun’s beautiful corner.

My own corner!

I LOVE these posters for Ysolda’s upcoming book, Little Red in the City – those buttons and skeins of yarn were surprisingly difficult to pin up there though!

Small Bob hangin’ with the toys and trains.

Fantastic photos hanging outside the photobooth. So fun.

And for a bit of knitting content, the shrug I was working on before TNNA, and before I was sidelined by my elbow pain:

It’s in Sweetgeorgia Merino Silk DK, and though I didn’t get to wear it in Columbus, I’m back working on it now! Mmmm, silky.

So here’s the lace pattern that I finally settled on for the aguas sweater. It’s “Roman Stripe” from a Barbara Walker book, and it’s reversible too! This pattern has an odd number of rows to it, and is very easy to work.

Unfortunately this swatch lied to me a bit – I cast on using the 6 sts/in that I got in this swatch and it was WAY too big. It’s taken a few restarts for me to be happy with the size, so I think I’m finally on my way with this project.

I did get sidetracked by the little pink sweater in my last post, and have worked up almost 2 whole sweaters in the last week and a half! I guess I’m having a bit of a burst of pattern creativity at the moment, which is great. Time to go and knit!

CASTLEGAR CARDIGAN
A lightweight cardigan for breezy spring days, overzealous air conditioning, or autumn layering. Warm enough for the breeze but light enough for sunshine!

The fingering weight gauge takes a bit of time to knit up, but it’s worth it for this classic, wearable everyday cardigan. Knit seamlessly from the bottom up, with a fun circular yoke and twisted rib details.

Castlegar is knit seamlessly from the bottom up, with a circular yoke. The lower body is knit flat in one piece while each sleeve is knit in the round. This sweater does not have waist shaping.

There is only one length across all sizes for the body and sleeves; feel free to lengthen as needed at points given throughout the pattern.

This pattern is split into two files (available together only).
Each is a 6-page PDF file in full colour with schematics.

YARN
Fingering weight yarn, approximately 175-200 yds / 50g. Shown in Koigu KPPPM, 8 skeins for size 37″.

Sizes 31-45 inches / 78.5-114cm
Contains sizes: 31 (33, 35, 37, 39, 41, 43, 45)” / 78.5 (84, 89, 94, 99, 104, 109, 114) cm
Yardage required: 1180 (1250, 1340, 1400, 1485, 1560, 1660, 1750)

Sizes 47-59 inches / 119.5-150cm
Contains sizes: 47 (49, 51, 53, 55, 57, 59)” / 119.5 (124.5, 129.5, 134.5, 140, 145, 150) cm
Yardage required: 1820 (1895, 1990, 2050, 2140, 2220, 2295)

Shown in size 37 in / 94cm with zero ease. Zero to 2 in / 5cm of ease is suggested.

NEEDLES AND NOTIONS
– US 2 / 2.75 mm needles, 32 inches / 80cm or longer, depending on the size you’re making
- US 2 / 2.75 mm double pointed needles or needles of your choice for small circumferences in the round
- stitch markers
- eight 5/8 in / 1.5cm buttons
- tapestry needle
- smooth waste yarn

GAUGE
28 sts and 40 rows = 4″ / 10cm square in stockinette stitch.

HOW TO BUY

This PDF file contains fill-in forms, so you can fill in the number for your size right on the computer! Then you can save the file so that your numbers are all set for the next time you open it, or print with the neat typed entries. Just click on the space to type!

Available through Ravelry (no account needed), payment by Paypal.

$7.00 USD

Note: As of July 5, 2010, sales tax will be added to this price for all Canadian residents only. The rates are: British Columbia 12%; Ontario, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador 13%; Nova Scotia 15%; and everywhere else in Canada 5% GST. Tax will be added in the Paypal payment process.

Malabrigo Sock in Aguas -

This yarn is 100% superwash wool (my fav), dyed with an all-over mix of blues/greens/turquoises. Some of the colours of Malabrigo are much ‘splotchier’, with distinct bands of each colour – I didn’t want something like that, because in my opinion it can really detract from the shape and stitch pattern of the sweater. All you end up seeing is the crazy colours (which is good in small doses!).

The yarn is 440 yards per 100g skein, very generous. I have four, for a total of 1760 yards. Should be more than enough, especially with shorter sleeves. I do tend to buy my yarn in sweater amounts, because really, my first love is knitting sweaters.

Next up – swatches.

This is the “knit-only rib” from Reversible Knitting on 3.75mm needles. I love the swatch in the book, and it’s a fun stitch pattern with just a two-stitch, two-row repeat. Reversible, of course, so that would work for the drapey front bits. (Please excuse the fact that the colours in these two photos don’t really match. It’s a tough colour to capture!)

However, as I got further into the swatch it became pretty obvious that this stitch pattern biases quite a bit. Because it’s garter stitch based, it’s also not as open of a stitch pattern as I was envisioning for this sweater. The biasing improved a bit with blocking (the swatch above has in fact been wet blocked) but it was irritating to knit it. Since this sweater is knit from side to side, it would also have been a bit of a problem to get the pieces to fit together properly!

So here’s the sketch of my idea. I had the a while ago – it’s not a revolutionary sweater concept of course, I’m sure everyone’s seen (or owns) a cardigan like this! It’s also similar in shape to my Rayne Wrap Cardigan that I released nearly three (whoa) years ago.

One big difference with this sweater – the working title of which shall be “aguas” – is that it has set-in sleeves and seamed shoulders. This will help it sit better on the tops of the shoulders, and means a better fit through the sleeve and shoulder. I haven’t quite decided how I want to do the sleeve yet, but I’m thinking a fairly slim fit and perhaps ending just below the elbow.

Aguas will be knit from side to side, like Rayne, but in pieces to be seamed together. It’ll have the traditional cardigan pieces of a back, two fronts, and two sleeves, but knit from side to side. I drew up a quick schematic of how I’m planning to make the shaping work.

As you can see I’ll be casting on at the centre front and work across to the armhole and side seam. The fronts are long and extended for the drapey ruffle at the front. Many of the storebought versions of this shape have sort of a shawl collar at the back of the next that extends down the fronts, but this one will be more straight down without a collar.

I want to use a lighter weight yarn with this incarnation, so I’m going with Malabrigo Sock in, you guessed it, the colour Aguas! I’m afraid I’m not very creative with working titles.

Up next – knit this whole sweater in fingering weight stockinette? I do love stockinette, but maybe not that much. So stitch pattern ahoy!