Friday, July 15, 2011

Res Completa: Hooray Cardigan

Way back in my past life, a couple of weeks before Daniel was born, I was starting to get antsy waiting for him and decided to cast on for a sweater I had reallyreally wanted in order to take my mind off of things. I thought at first there was no way I could finish before he made his appearance, but once my maternity leave started and I still had no baby, all that sitting and waiting made me a very productive knitter. The sweater in question was something I thought would be great for this summer, and it has been. Indeed, though these photos were taken a few weeks ago, this is the outfit I'm wearing this fine summer day, in the middle of July*. But with long sleeves underneath.



Pattern: Hooray Cardigan, by Veera Välimäki
Yarn: Tess' Designer Yarns Superwash Merino, almost exactly 2 hanks (about 1100 yards)
Needles: US 6 circs
Start to Finish: March 11-20, 2011
Mods: I think I may have added a couple of extra buttonholes.



I lovelovelovelovelove this sweater. I adore the way the cables pop in the grey merino. I'm thrilled with the way the pink buttons worked out (they're handmade stamped leather from my pilgrimage to Buenos Aires' yarn district). And the way the variegated yarn looks in reverse Stockinette also makes my heart sing (dramatic, yes, but true). The shape I find quite flattering and there are some neat little elements in this design, like the rolled edges on the ribbed borders. Great pattern, great yarn, a very wearable piece -- Hooray! (Sorry.)

*Meanwhile, some of us were able to go fully topless a few days ago and a mere two hours away.


Keri, he LOVES your burp cloths!

18 comments:

Clumsy Knitter said...

OMG I LOVE your sweater. I love Veera's designs but I admit that when I first saw the pattern it didn't do much for me. Now that I see yours, I'm putting it into my (neverending) queue. Nice job!

Nettie said...

That is such a beautiful sweater!! That yarn is perfect for it and you look amazing in it! Are you sure you've just had a baby??? ;p

Chantal Boucher said...

Wow! What a beautiful sweater! It suits you very well. ...And your baby... so cute!!

Silvia M. said...

What a gorgeous sweater and such a cute baby!

Shari said...

your sweater is beautiful! Cute baby!

Jane said...

This is beautiful! I am putting high on my list of things to knit.

Susan said...

Two FOs to brag about! Don't you love how carefree and cute the little ones can be? Especially as they play with the simplest tbings.

Aline said...

Wow! you knit fast. Great work! That yarn looks tempting.

Teresa said...

Beautiful cardi! I'm rather jealous that it's cool enough in your locale to wear any extra clothing at all. The cables *do* pop in a very lovely way in that shade of grey. It's a fantastic FO.

Jodi said...

The cardigan turned out just beautifully! I love the shaping -- very flattering, and the contrast buttons are a nice touch.

That is one cute baby. :-)

ysabelh said...

Wha! It really beautiful!!!

Jacey said...

Your new sweater is gorgeous! After seeing your FO, I headed over to ravelry and found that I already queued this design, but decided to bump it up to the top page. I went ahead and purchased the pattern, and already have yarn picked out. So, thanks for the nudge to get started! And your little one is growing quickly! He;s adorable.

Anonymous said...

Reverse stockinette certainly has been underused lately. I am using variegated yarn in stockinette that looks almost better on the reverse side. So glad to hear about yours.
Your baby is so much fun!
Chloe

April said...

Such a beautiful sweater and I love the buttons. I'm definitely inspired to make one for myself now.

Larkin said...

yum yum! so pretty! i heart the cables popping too.

Claudia Bugh said...

Lookie what you've been up to while I've been sleeping! Just gorgeous ~ modern and yet still rustic (my fav combination).

Love to see the baby ~ he is soooo chubby and adorable AND I can just see he's an easy baby - I can't help but compare to someone near and dear who is NOT easy - LOL

Julie said...

That is such a gorgeous cardigan!! I love Veera's designs, they are always so lovely. It looks great on you!

Katie said...

Love this cardi....add to my wish list! Great choice of color as well!