Inland cardigan / JOURNEY

Yesterday I introduced you to Spate, my fingerless mitt pattern from our new book JOURNEY. Today I'd like to share my Inland cardigan.

I knew I wanted to design a garment for the book and I'm always drawn to cardigans, I find them so wearable. In my sketch book I've had this idea for a cozy tunic length cardigan. Originally I had envisioned Cowichan inspired details like a rounded garter stitch collar and a bit of a boxier fit but once I started swatching the yarn told me otherwise. The Quince & Co Puffin that I was working with didn't want to look quite that rustic -- no, it was telling me that despite it's loosely spun single ply construction it wanted to incorporate a few more refined details. I had so much fun swatching with this yarn, I love designs that appear entirely from the swatching process, when you let go of the ideas you had and let the yarn do the decision making. A simple 1 x 1 rib knit at a nice loose gauge became a big cozy collar, changing to smaller needles for the body and the lines of rib travel uninterrupted down the faux side seams ending in a wide band at the bottom hem. For the front bands I chose a vertical rib that is worked at the same time as the body, leaving very few details to be finished at the end.

After thought pockets really finish off the comfy cozy look I was trying to accomplish with this design. And who doesn't love pockets, form and function, I love to bury my hands in them especially when wearing the cardigan open.

Since finishing the sample I've knit my own Inland using a warm shade of grey in Patons Classic Wool Roving. I wear it daily and the yarn does tend to pill (it is a softly spun roving after all!) but it's so squishy and soft I don't mind one bit. I think the Quince & Co Puffin is harder wearing. I promise I'll snap some pictures and share the project as soon as I can.

I hope you've enjoyed hearing a little more about Inland.