A Finish!!

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My knitting needles and crochet hooks have been working hard theses last few weeks and I've finished or very nearly finished some projects!  I've decided to stagger the unveiling of these projects over the next few days rather than do it in one go!

This is a baby cardigan I started sometime before Christmas for the then imminent arrival.

The pattern is Mini Manu by Kate Davies.  I love her designs - many of them inspired by traditional Shetland style knitwear involving fair isle and colour work.  This is a scaled down version of her pattern 'Manu'.  I absolutely loved knitting this, although it was an education.  The cardigan was worked seamlessly, a technique I've been introduced to over the last year or so.  I think it has made a big difference to my finished articles as there is no seaming or piecing involved thus gaining a better end result.  What I particularly love about Kate Davies' patterns is that they often include techniques that I've either not heard of, or never tried before.  'Mini Manu' has taught me how to do an i-cord bind off (something I'd never tried) and short row shaping (something I'd never heard of) as well as knitting pleats.  An education indeed!

The yarn I used is the recommended yarn - Orkney angora DK.  Oh my, this yarn is luxurious and divine - so soft and lovely and quite perfect for a little baby.  Kate Davies often uses British made wool in her designs and since I've been following her blog and browsing her patterns on Ravelry I've been introduced to British yarns I never knew existed, including my current favourite yarn (more of that another time!).

If you fancy knitting up your own version, I highly recommend blocking at the end.  I was concerned about how the cardi would look when finished - I learned a lot of techniques on the job and wondered if I would have a substandard finish because I wasn't initially confident with them.  Blocking truly evens out a multitude of sins!  I wasn't sure what sort of buttons would finish off this cardigan - I seriously think buttons can make or break a garment.  I'd scoured some of my favourite online haberdashery stores for appropriate buttons with no results.  Imagine my surprise when on an unscheduled visit to Hobbycraft for something completely unconnected I found some spotty dotty buttons in the most perfect colour!