I’m happy to say that my crafting life is off to a good start for 2013. Only Jared Flood can look at the shape below and think it’s going to make a good cardigan shape, but here it is.

I started this cardigan in April 2011. I wish I had finished it to wear during the fall but the construction on this is not the easiest process to go through….but very much worth it.

I love the banding and I love the finishing on the sleeves. I’m really impressed with the elegant simplicity of this piece. And considering how many shortcuts I took, it really is a foolproof design.

A couple of the changes I made from the pattern as written.

-I only used one size needle for the band and body. I didn’t want the band to draw up too much as I’ve seen with some cardigans. On a bigger body this is not always flattering.

-I pieced the pieces together as I finished them. the idea of knitting, blocking and then finding out one piece was a little short and trying to block it out was not my idea of fun. And I’m not fond of blocking on a piece like this anyway. Because it’s an open cardigan that is meant to drape without any body-hugging shaping, exact measurements are really not important.

One thing that I wish I had done was learn a more neat cast-on before starting this project. I’m tempted to pick up stitches and make an i-cord edge around the bottom. I’ll have to think on that a little as I’m enjoying wearing this too much to put it back on the needles.

Talk about a great start to the year! How is your new year shaping up so far?