Peggy Sue Cardigan

I recently had the pleasure of participating in a 1950's Knit-a-Long over on Ravelry.com. It was so nice of the moderator of the group to invite me to join. Her and I both participated in a 1940's inspired Knit-a-Long, or KAL as they are popularly known as, last winter. See my Knit for Victory post from last January. That was so much fun she decided to put together another group and I'm glad she did. The cardigan sweater that we knit is a FREE pattern from Linda Wilgus called Peggy Sue . It's an adorable little vintage number that I knew would fit perfectly into my wardrobe.

I altered the pattern a bit (I seem to do that frequently) The original design had a cable pattern that I personally didn't like. Don't get me wrong, it looked very nice and if I were a person who enjoyed doing cables with a cable needle, I would have done the original stitch. However, I discovered the magic of knitting cables without a cable needle years ago and I have never gone back. This is the first time that I have encountered a cable stitch that I couldn't do without a needle. Instead of sucking it up and buying a cable needle, I decided to change it. I remembered the cable stitch on the Quick Knit 1940's Style Sweater that I did for my last KAL was incredibly simple and I really enjoyed knitting it. So, BOOM, just a few little stitch count alterations to make sure I have the right number to match the new pattern and I was on my way.

I used Bernat Softee Baby yarn in "Flannel" available on the Jo-ann's website. Please note that on the website the colors are WAY off. It looks like a medium/dark grey but it is much closer to the soft lilac. In fact, this yarn was deceiving in person too. When I purchased it at Jo-ann's, I thought I was buying a light soft grey yarn. I was surprised when I got the yarn outside under natural light and it turned in to a delicate lavender color. Hmmmm, not what I had expected, but hey, let's go with it. I'm glad I did.

This was the perfect project to work on while I was traveling back and forth between my Dad and I's places. The fairly plain body of the sweater and the simplicity of the raglan sleeves coupled with the cable pattern I chose to substitute made this an easy, mindless knit, without it being mind numbingly boring. I was even able to knit on the plane when the flight attendant accidently poured a glass of wine for the gentleman sitting next to me when he hadn't ordered one. I snatched that puppy right up. TWO free glasses of wine? Thanks Alaska Airlines....

I enjoy doing Knit-a-longs, they are a great way to connect with fellow knitters and an excellent resource if you are having difficulties with a pattern or want to alter it in any way. I look forward to discovering what my next KAL will be.

Until next time, keep creating beauty
Cherry