I felt like I was holding my breath the whole time I was knitting this sweater.

I just knew it wasn’t going to fit.

I was on vacation when I started it, so didn’t do a gauge swatch or have my body form to try it on, so it was just a big guessing game.

Not to mention I opted to make the extra small, when I should have made the small, according to my measurements. YIKES.

It was wayyyyy too small; I just felt it in my bones.

I finished it just so I could get ‘er done and get started on my next sweater. And you know what?

I finished it/blocked it (by wetting and pinning into shape and allowing to dry)/tried it on/and…

IT FITS! Whew! YAY!

shapely boyfriend cardigan

Here’s the scoop:

PATTERN: Shapely Boyfriend Cardigan by Stefanie Japel

YARN: 4 skeins of my superwash merino wool in Butterscotch (check back often for new colors, as they sell outttt fasssttt)

NEEDLES: US Size 8/5 mm (for the whole thing… I never switched to the small needles for the ribbing, like a goober. Wish I had.)

SIZE: X-Small (even though I should have made the Small…I don’t know why I did this. Vacation messes with your head, I guess.)

finished shapely boyfriend sweater stefanie

MODIFICATIONS: A lot!

1. The most obvious is I changed the collar. I attempted to create a series of short rows to make a “sort of” shawl collar. I don’t recommend my method at all. It looks a little…off. Not that I really remember what I did anyways. Yikes….

shapely boyfriend knitted sweater pattern

2. I streettccched out the underarm part to add in 6 more stitches than the X-Small called for and the sleeves are still pretty tight, but I like them that way.

3. I didn’t switch to size 6 needles like the pattern calls for. I had them with me. I don’t know why I didn’t switch. I think we were out driving and I wanted to get started on the ribbing, so just used the same needles.

BIG REGRET! The ribbing looks a little sloppy and messy, which I don’t really care for. I learned on the Simplest Sweater I just made that sloppy ribbing is not a great look. And I did it again. Hopefully I will remember next time and not do it AGAIN! Yeek!

shapely boyfriend cardigan

4. I shortened it! There is a section at the end that has you “knit even in stockinette stitch for 25 rows.” I totally skipped that. Which shortened it up and I LOVE it this length!  I’m short, and can’t find shorter sweaters very often, so want to make a few.

5. I shortened the sleeves. Yup. Pretty obvious… I did 3/4 sleeves again, but want to start doing longer sleeves for warmth.

shapely boyfriend sweater cardigan

What I Love About This Pattern

•It fits SOOO snugly. Love that.

shapely boyfriend cardigan pattern finished object

•The color… I dyed it to match (but not matchy-match) these boots:

boots to match shapely boyfriend sweater

It also goes really well with the stitching in my jeans. Yay!

shapely boyfriend sweater pattern

•The buttons… I used all different buttons as that was all I had. Weird? I think I like it! The sweater is a WEE bit tight when I do button it, but still. It works I think.

shapely boyfriend cardigan

So there you have it! My completed Shapely Boyfriend Cardigan!

shapely boyfriend cardigan

shapely boy friend jacket

shapely boyfriend sweater

shapely boyfriend stefanie japel

 

What’s On My Needles Now:

If you haven’t been keeping up with my next sweater progress on Facebook, here is the photo!

dark and stormy cardigan pattern

I’ve started the Dark and Stormy Cardigan. Several reasons I chose this…

1. I wanted to learn how to do a proper shawl collar.

2. I wanted to up my game again and this time do some cabling!

3. It’ssss awesome!!

I’m doing it in the same yarn, in my Glass Blue colorway. I’m currently waiting on another shipment of dyes and will dye up lots more of this shade once the dyes get in!

So whaddya think?

I liiivvvee for your comments, so post below and tell me your thoughts and let me know what you’re working on! I read and LOVE every comment.

Have a spectacular day!

XOXOXO

Chandi