A cardigan?!?!

No, you are not dreaming.  As the title does suggest, yes! I am knitting a cardigan.   I posted back in January some 2012 knitting goals.  The #1 goal I wrote was to knit a garment.  There are some other things on that list, but I'll get back to those in another post.  Okay, so what garment?  Well, I am going to knit something that should be relatively easy - a top down cardigan with a forgiving fit.  The pattern: Rocky Coast Cardigan from Coastal Knits.  This book was written by Alana Dakos and Hannah Fettig and the Rocky Coast Cardigan in particular is one of Hannah Fettig's designs. 

I actually pegged this design to be my first garment sometime in the spring or at least before I knew I would be visiting my family in MD.  I originally planned to knit this shawl using the yarn that the pattern called for and it just so happened to be my luck that the yarn store I would be visiting in MD (Fibre Space) carried the yarn the pattern calls for: The Fibre Company Organik.  This yarn is absolutely lovely, let me tell you, but it retails for around $12 a skein.  I was going to need at least 11 skeins for this project which would make this a $120 cardigan, give or take.  Now, I'm all for knitting a cardigan with awesome yarn and ending up with a beautiful cardigan worth $120, but I wanted to buy more at the store than just this yarn.    The yarn budget only stretches soo far, if you know what I'm saying.  In looking around the store I came across Miss Babas Yowza - Whatta Skein! and knew I found the perfect substitute.  

Top swatch = US 10.5 needles; bottom swatch = US 11 needles

The pattern calls for a gauge of 16 sts & 20 rows in 4 inches in the Cable Stitch pattern on US 10.5 needles.  I swatched with the US 10.5 needles and ended up with 9 sts in 4 inches.  Since I needed less stitches to an inch, I went up a needle size and swatched with US 11 needles.  The US 11 needles gave me a gauge of 8 sts in 4 inches.  Spot on.  I kinda like the look of the 10.5 swatch more, but I decided to go with what gives the right gauge.

Back panel

I'm knitting the 43"size which should give me the 4-6" of positive ease that the pattern calls for.  I'm 11 rows in and so far I'm enjoying it.  I'm still not 100% on whether I like the look of the fabric that the US 11 needles gives, but I'm trusting in the gauge and knitting on.  Another new skill learned in this project: knitting cables without a cable needle.  I can't wait to get further along so that I can try it on!