Slade: An F.O. (almost)

Ta-dah!  Here is my latest finished object for my very patient son:   Slade, a seamed cardigan, by designer Michele Wang, published in Brooklyn Tweed's Men Volume One.  This enjoyable pattern was clearly written and easy to follow.

The pattern suggests that the ribbing in the back, front and sleeves begin with a Tubular Cast On. This was the first time I used this particular cast on, and although I found it quite fiddly, I am very happy with the result.  I think it works perfectly in a pattern like this.

Ravelled here

The only part of the cardigan that I am not happy with are the sleeves.  The sleeves are knit from the cuff up and seamed into the cardigan.  There seems to be an excess amount of knitted fabric in the upper part of the sleeves.  My gut is telling me to try to reknit the upper sleeves and reduce the amount of stitches to make the sleeves lay more nicely.

But I am ignoring that inner voice for the time being.  Honestly, it is at times like these that I wish I had a friend who was a super knitter, who could tell me what to do to fix it.  Hopefully I can figure it out myself.  I think I just need a bit of a break from from this cardigan for the moment while I get some Christmas knitting done.

I have not yet found the perfect buttons for this cardigan, but I think it's the kind of cardigan that looks better unbuttoned. 

As for the yarn I couldn't be happier.  I used Harrisville  Designs WATERshed, a worsted weight 100% wool yarn.  It feels very similar to Brooklyn Tweed's yarn. (in fact it's made in the same place).  This is the colour Granite which I showed you in an earlier post.  I bought this yarn at Urban Yarns in Vancouver.  If you can't get to this yarn store to check it out, they have a great online store where you can order any of the many beautiful colourways available.  This yarn was so lofty that it even hid the seaming I did.

The flecks of colour found within the yarn just add an extra degree of interest to what is basically a plainly knit sweater.  I would definitely like to use this yarn again.

Maybe next time I will try Harrisville Shetland which is a 100% wool fingering weight yarn, also available at Urban Yarns.  If anyone has any words of wisdom to solve my sleeve problem let me know! 

I hope you are all finding time to craft at this busy time of year.  : )