Urban Aran Cardigan: Assembly Required

Of course, most everyone knows by now that I’m a huge fan of Jared Flood aka brooklyntweed and sometimes I think my mission in life is to knit every single item that he has ever designed or knit. Back in September I cast on the Urban Aran Cardigan and it has been slow going since then. I already had the booklet, Street Smart, from which this pattern is derived, and I’ve made the Must Have Cardigan which I found (surprisingly) easier than the UAC. Unlike the MHC which is easily memorized, for the UAC you have to keep one eye on the pattern at all times. The cables are not as intuitive as with the MHC.

In any case, I persevered and I pushed on. I finally finished the two fronts the other day and immediately set out on the task of piecing this mother together. And oh what a mother! When Elizabeth Zimmerman says that knitters hate to sew, I think know she was talking about me.

To my credit, I have taken the time to baste the entire garment before actually sewing the seams. Fortunately (or unfortunately depending upon your viewpoint), basting has allowed me the chance to try the jacket on and I think it’s too small! I can barely get the fronts across my big boobs! Oh well. I’m not one to give up on a sweater just because it doesn’t fit. I can always find someone to fit my hand knit sweaters. I knew that a ribbed sweater would fit snugly and I do own several already.

And did I mention that it still needs a zipper and that I’ve never installed a zipper before?

Stay tuned. This saga continues.