OH, HEY, LOOK, IT’S SNOWING AGAIN! YAYYYYYY UGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH….. Guys. Enough with this winter. ENOUGH. I’m standing on a two-foot snowbank here, or at least, what I’m hoping is a two-foot snowbank and not a pile of trash covered in snow. (Fun fact: in NYC, at least in the outer boroughs, garbage trucks are used as snowplows, so it’s been weeks [WEEKS!] since the garbage has been picked up. Luckily you and your neighbors get to eyeball everyone’s leavings and speculate about their Coke/beer/gallon-jug-of-olive-oil consumption. Seriously, how do those people down the block have MULTIPLE gallon drums of olive oil in their trash? Do they drink it instead of morning coffee?) 
If there’s a silver bullet for lousy weather, it’s knitwear! There’s something so comforting about a hand-knitted sweater, isn’t there? It’s the perfect antidote for February sadness. I’m not a very fast knitter, but it’s fun to do during long evenings (and means that all the hours I’ve spent watching Torchwood this winter aren’t a total waste). 
First things first, this squishy Berroco Vintage was a gift from the lovely and talented Stephanie at Makes the Things! She offered to send me some goodies that she was destashing, and I gratefully snapped them up! It’s not a color that I would have chosen myself, but I thought it would look great with my ever-present blue jeans. Now that it’s done, I really like the color! As an added bonus, it looks nice with my Bough hat! Thank you SO MUCH, Steph! 
I’d never used Vintage, which is a blend of wool, acrylic, and nylon, and I wasn’t sure how well it would react to blocking (since natural fibers block happily, but man-mades generally don’t), so I wanted to avoid a project with cables or lace. Hannah Fettig’s Effortless Cardigan is a super popular pattern, but I wasn’t the least bit interested in it until I saw Ping’s oh-so-gorgeous version. She described her sweater as a “wearable blanket”… ummmmm, yes, please! I knew immediately after seeing her cardigan that this yarn would become one. 
It’s a top-down raglan cardigan with acres of stockinette, so it was pretty straightforward knitting. It came together quickly- I knit the majority of it over my Christmas vacation, and finished the rest in spare moments here and there. It actually blocked nicely, which was a pleasant surprise. I HATED how it looked when I finished knitting it- the ribbing looked so gross- but everything smoothed out after a serious wet blocking. I lengthened the body by 1″ and the sleeves by 0.5″, but I wish I’d lengthened the sleeves more. It’s not the end of the world, though. Those were the only alterations I made. 
I asked Man Friend if I looked like someone’s grandpa when I was wearing this, and he replied, “A little bit… but, a cozy grandpa”. I guess I don’t mind looking like a cozy grandpa! 
What are you guys up to lately? Friends in the Northern Hemisphere, are you busy knitting? What are the rest of you up to? I’ve been sewing and sewing and sewing lately, but between secret pattern testing, sewing for a friend, a future Mood Sewing Network project, and a slew of started-but-not-finished projects, I don’t have anything sew-y to show you. Hopefully I’ll have some finished garments (and some organization in my sewing space) coming up soon! 
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Ginger Makes... 
I love this, it’s so nice and cozy and super cool looking, the shape is great. I use a lot of olive oil. God help whoever is going through my trash…
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Ahahahahaha! Do you live on my block?!?!
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Your mouth is saying “ugh winter” but your face is saying “I love my cardigan!” 🙂
It looks really cozy
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Ahahahaha! You got me! I’ll be a little sad to pack away the flannels and wools. Just kidding, I’ll be over the moon to have an excuse to start making SPRING DRESSES!!!
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You look adorable in your knits! ……. even making me want to learn how…… oh no!!!!
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Come on over to the dark side! 😉
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Good lord, this is adorable! I love the fact that it’s all comfy-cozy but still fitted in the back, so it’s not like it’s too big, kwim? And omg torchwood: I watched it all on netflix a while back (I needed more Doctor Who, but Netflix didn’t have any more, ha!), and the Children of Earth thing KILLED me. I thought that was the end, since that’s where Netflix stopped, and it was so very ending-ish, wasn’t it? But lo and behold, it’s back! We’re working our way through it now. It seems very Americanized, doesn’t it? Like, not just cause they’re in America, but all the explosions and gunfights and stuff…?
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I know right, it’s so Hollywood in season 4 (plus there’s grumpy Mekhi Phifer, which I’m TOTALLY on board with)! I’m so glad you like it, too! #obsessed
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awesome sweater! i was surprised but i really liked berroco vintage. i’ve made a few things for my niece from it and it’s a nice yarn if a little fuzzy.
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Thanks, girl! I was surprised that I liked it, too- I’m kind of a snob about only using natural fibers! I like the slight haze you get from it.
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It definitely looks cozy. I’d wear it! And yes, so sick of the snow, BLAHHHH. If the people you live near are like the people I live near, then they fry a good portion of what they eat, so maybe that’s why there’s so many olive oil containers?
I’ve mostly stopped knitting in protest of the continuation of winter, but I am still working on a knitted belt and a very boring baby hat that kept me sane at work.
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I wouldn’t have thought that people are frying much stuff around here (neighbors are mostly Greek and Italian), but maybe that’s it. Either way it’s kinda gross!
Maybe you’re onto something- I should start sewing spring dresses just to force the universe to change seasons!
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YOU BIG HIPSTER IN YER GRANPA SWEATER!!!
just kidding. you out hip all the hipsters. seriously, how do i get you to be my own personal knit sweatshop? buy you booze???
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Done and done! 😉
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That sweater has TOTALLY been on my ravelry hit list and seeing your is really want to make it NOW! If only I was even 20% done the sweater I started LAST YEAR! And your LL Bean boots are the greatest accessory ever.
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Doooooooo it! I totally bypassed a sweater that just needs a sleeve that I started in 2012… and I don’t apologize. One of these days…
Dude, I wear the Bean boots so much it’s not even funny! The heel is worn down so much that it’s nearly gone, but I’m determined to wear them until they’ve completely disintegrated! They’re perfect for this weather!
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Love it! I’m wearing a Breezy (fingering weight version of your sweater) right now. I wish I had lengthened the sleeves on it a bit more too.
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I love the lighter look of the Breezy- so pretty! I’m a bit too impatient to knit with fingering yarn, though.
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I love this cardigan! It looks so cosy, and I agree that the colour is great with your jeans. I’m currently knitting a cardigan, the pattern is called Manu. It’s knit from the bottom up to the underarms, then you attach the sleeves and knit the shoulders as a yoke. I just got to a stage where I could try it on, and it fits! Hurray!! Re your neighbourhood not getting the rubbish collected for weeks, I am seething on your behalf and shaking my fist at your local council from the other side of the Atlantic!! But, along with crafting, my other hobby is ranting about my local council, my favourite subject being the bin men! You should hear me when they have the cheek to leave the bin over the end of my driveway!! First world problems, eh!! 😉
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Ahahahahahahaha! This comment made me laugh! Our sanitation dept. has traditionally been “connected”, or “mobbed up”, in the common parlance, so people are scared to criticize them, hahaha!
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AND it’s going to snow tonight! Aaaah! I’m like you, I just cannot anymore. Meanwhile, I don’t knit, so I’m working on a boucle duffle coat–the new Colette pattern. All I can think of doing is piling more wool things on myself. Love your cardigan. One day I’ll learn to knit…
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No more!!! I hate all this snow! I hadn’t even considered boucle for a duffle coat, but that sounds amazing! I can’t wait to see it!
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i’m just re-learning how to knit with a neckwarmer and craftsy, but love looking at inspirational knitting projects like your cardigan! love it
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This would be a great first sweater pattern- I definitely recommend it! 🙂
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You knitted that yourself? Drooling. With envy.
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You could do it, I just know it! 🙂
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Ooooh!! I love this! Wearable blankets are all the rage right now. According to me – who eyes the throw on the back of the couch every morning wondering if I can pull it off as clothing! So this cardigan is right up my alley! I love the woodsy color of the yarn, and I have a hard time believing that ANYTHING about it looked gross pre-blocking, but maybe that really is the magic of wet blocking? I’m hoping – because the ribbing on the sweater I’m working on right now looks super gross…
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Girl, I know you could rock that couch throw! Go for it! The ribbing was pulling the body of the sweater in, so it looked really bunchy and gross. Wet blocking really helped it to even out and I stretched the ribbing all even, so the sweater is nice and drapy instead of bulky. Gotta love a good block!
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I love the color and that looks SO COZY!
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Your sweater looks super comfy and a perfect accessory for that dreary East Coast weather.
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Very, very cute. Interesting blog really
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“Cozy Grandpa” is the requirement for all of my sweaters! Both the sweater and your hat are really cute. Nice job, and I’m sorry your weather still sucks. 😦
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I made an effortless too – although I changed so many things it was not effortless anymore, and also just finished my bough! I could do a version of your post!
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OOH, thanks for posting Ginger, I am looking for cardigan patterns ALWAYS, and hoping to knit one one day!
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