"Deco" Cardigan by Kate Davies FO

Pattern: "Deco" by Kate Davies

Source: Kate Davie's Website

Yarn: 6 balls Sadnes Garn Tove

Source: Romni Wools Toronto

Colour: Green

Needles: 2 mm, 2.5mm, 3mm circulars
Size: 44?!

Start: April 2013 Finish: August 2014

Modifications: Added 2" to length/Changed sleeves to cropped length

Can't believe this piece has been done for two months and I'm just now posting it! Absolutely everything about this project has taken longer than expected to complete.

As for the sweater itself (rather than the process of making it) I've gone on and on and on about its issues in past posts already so suffice to say now that...

• "Tove" is beyond fabulous, 'really makes the sweater, so glad I fretted over choosing it.
• As reported on Ravelry, the pattern knits small, so small that with gauge and a very severe blocking, all but the sleeves were knit twice - the 2nd time in a size 6" larger than I wanted.

In the end, I have a cropped, boxy, almost shrug like cardi rather than the standard fitting, neat cardigan I was originally "going for". Its still a wee bit narrow through the bust but I'm nonetheless happy with the result for a few reasons...

• The colour! Very tricky to capture on film (hence the delay in getting FO shots that actually represent how the thing looks) but just as pictured in the pattern - fresh and modern, classic and a little bit vintage. Love it!

• The buttons! Ditto the colour. Beyond that, I like their slightly over sized appearance. The balance between slightly big buttons and cropped cardi pleases me immensely.

• The gros grain ribbon facings! I resisted the urge to get something with a multicoloured print and I'm so pleased with how the gros grain echoes the lines of the slipped stitch detail without "shouting" and drawing attention away from the yarn and knitting. The facings really make the sweater front hang beautifully too.

Love how the slipped stitches of the yoke work with and into the detail around the collar!

As for the knitting, the yarn made it wonderful right up to the point where I was doing the short rows at the shoulders the second time. At that point, nothing could make up for doing the short rows for the shoulders for the second time. GAHHHHH!

I chose the pattern for all the interesting knitterly details and I did learn from doing them (twice!).

Isn't it clever that she visually mimics ribbing around the bottom and cuffs using the slipped stitch motif of the yoke?! It gives that classic impression of ribbing while maintaining a nice boxy line and matching the rest of the sweater.

Finally, how refreshing to work up and wear a DK rather than worsted weight piece.

Going forward I'll have an eye out for patterns using DK yarn and I'll continue to check out Kate Davies patterns but only with a clear understanding that whatever it looks like on her site, her sizing and my "sizing" do not match! Lesson learned!

Thanks for dropping by!