Simple Knit Crop in hella fancy yarn!

I bought the Celadon in Cinders Rad DK 100% SWM yarn at the Kindred Red trunk show in Berkeley over a year ago.  It's a really awesome colorway dyed by one of my favorite indie-dyers who also happens to be one of the most inspirational ladies on my IG feed.  I took my sweet time finally using it though because not only did I want to find the perfect garment/pattern for it, I wanted my knitting skills to develop enough to make it just right if any alterations were necessary.  Finally, (no) thanks to our continuing lockdown, the right time arrived!

Crop tops seem to be all of the rage these days and for a 4'11" woman with a 38D bust and a wonky shaped abdomen from an imperfect emergency C-section, they are my everything.  If this pattern looks familiar to you, it's because it's the Stagecoach sweater without the colorwork, a slightly extended body and longer ribbing on the sleeves.  I knit size 2 of the pattern with size 6 circular needles and size 4 circulars on the ribbing.  Even though the pattern calls for more, I used less than 400g of yarn to complete this sweater. 

Above is the sweater hot off my needles, prior to blocking.

Thanks to our heatwave, it only took less than 24 hrs to block this MF.

This yarn is like a rainbow with bonus beats.

It looks great ribbed, in stockinette and with all of the M1L increases around the yoke!

You're just going to have to take my word because the photos simply do not do it justice.

Just look at that drape!

 We had so much fun during our funky family photo shoot, I decided to include all of the silliness!  Here's my rustic, artsy vibes with shouting and a sunbathing toddler included.

With the playgrounds still closed, we spend a lot of time in and ON our driveway.

 Xena is almost 2.5 months old now and for the most part, thankfully, she's been oblivious to all of this COVID-19 BS.  

 Just feeling all of her love - a hug, a gentle tug or outrageous eye roll helps to take away all of the pain, stress and frustration in the atmosphere.

If you just look at my butt, you can tell I haven't been missing any meals but considering the fact that prior to getting prego, I was your typical ass-less Korean, I am fully embracing all of the "new" junk in my trunk.

Also, I am still very happily married; I just forgot to put my wedding and engagement rings on after I got out of the shower today.

This pattern is designed for 3/4 length sleeves but I just wanted regular sleeves with longer cuffs so I have the option of rolling them up.

 This is definitely one of the coziest and best fitting sweaters I've knit yet.  I love the way it feels on my body and that it's made just for me, by me!

 Xena's super stoked too!

 Since this sweater was knit in DK, it's actually light enough to wear during the summer in SF, because ya'll know our summer isn't really "summer".

  Like many families, it's been a struggle balancing work and play in a tiny apartment but I continue to stay positive and global pandemic aside, on the daily, I remain very thankful for all that we have.

No Frills Knit Cardigan by PetiteKnit

I've accomplished many things in life, some notable, many NSFW and plenty, more than questionable.  And now I can proudly add, not just knitting one but knitting 2 cardigans, to that steadily escalating pile of "shit I did during these fucked up times".

This is seriously the most ingeniously designed top down raglan cardigan pattern.  It's designed by PetiteKnit in Denmark and is written in Danish and English.  I downloaded it from Ravelry for about $6, a price I would more than gladly pay for any pattern designed and written this well.  

It starts with a provisional cast on to create the neck band and then the yoke is worked back and forth creating the foundation of the cardigan with raglan increases.

I knit the extra small size of the pattern on size 6, 40" circulars.  I used about 4, 100g hanks of The Fibre Co.'s Cumbria - unto the hills - brown masham wool, merino and mohair blend yarn in the Scafell Pike colorway.  This is some of the nicest yarn ever to grace the tips of my needles.  It's luxuriously soft against bare skin and its natural fibers are easy to admire.

I love how the pockets are built into the cardigan and put on hold while the body is finished.  The sleeves have a clever inconspicuous decrease where you slip 1 st knit-wise, slip 1 st purl-wise and then insert the needle into both stitches and knit them tbl at the decrease round.

 In preparation for the completion of this sweater and inevitable photo shoot, I could've gone on a diet or started exercising more than usual but instead I've been baking all of the breads and cookies and eating fried or baked carbs with every meal and instead of apologizing, I'm just going to love my body the way it is.  I want to go even further and encourage everyone to stop feeling guilty or shameful and just love their bodies however they feel best suits them during lockdown.  Whether it's doing cross-fit in their living room, backbends in their hallway, eating SPAM from the can or just nuking some totally expired frozen food, just do you!

 And if you want to boost your vitamins D levels while simultaneously making a complete ass of yourself in front of your neighbors, grab a toddler and hire your IG hus or someone you love (who would rather being doing anything than taking photos of you) to take some outdoor photos!

This cardigan fits me perfectly.  It's exactly what I wanted and I would happily wear it every day if it wasn't hotter than Hell right now.

Many people might find it frivolous and silly putting on make up (especially under a mask) or wearing heels while WFH but at the risk of sounding totally superficial, I have to admit that for as much as I love chilling in sweatpants with no bra and my unbrushed hair yanked up in a scrunchie for weeks and months on end, I love dressing up and feeling fly and fancy just as much!

Hope you enjoy the rest of my sweater still life images.

When your cardigan matches the cement in your driveway, you gotta capture that.

17cm of 1x1 ribbing on the bottom of the cardigan and sleeves.

Classy M1R and M1L raglan increases.

The provisional cast on mirrored join at the neckband is nearly invisible!