Thursday, March 20, 2008

From grandpa to fashion plate

Remember this sweater? I bought this a few months ago at the Salvation Army and unraveled it for knitting yarn. I would like to think that it is much happier now in its current incarnation!


Here's a first look at my new sweater. I've decided to call it the Shalom Cardigan. I'm not sure why that word came to mind, but it seemed to fit very well. The sweater is made from a thick knit fabric, and I really do feel a sense of peace with the ribbed yoke wrapped around my shoulders. It's like a gentle hug.


The cardigan was knit in two pieces--but I would knit it seamlessly in one piece were I to make it again. I held the yarn doubled to obtain a nice, thick fabric. I was even able to reuse one of the original buttons for the closure! Total cost for this sweater was about $5 (plus many hours thinking up the pattern, and a few days knitting time). I'm very pleased.


Check back soon if you're interested in making a Shalom Cardigan for yourself. I'm planning to write up a pattern and will offer it free of charge to anyone interested. The only catch is that I will not be making any size adjustments, nor can I recommend a particular yarn--since mine is thrifted, and certainly one-of-a-kind. But, if you're adventurous, or an experienced knitter, I'm confident that you'll be able to tweak my pattern to fit your needs.

10 comments:

Sara said...

you are a rock star, i love it!!!!!!

and i like the name too

Terhi said...

This is so lovely! Nice to hear that there will be a pattern available. :-)

Anonymous said...

This is beautiful! Love, love, love it! Do please write up the pattern soon. Say, oh I don't know, yesterday? I must knit it! At once!

Julia said...

That's so cute! Share the pattern!

knitting harvest said...

Great sweater! I saw it over on Wardrobe Refashion and immediately popped over to download the pattern. Great work!

NTK said...

I love how that turned out! I'm definitely going to take a look at the pattern! Thank for it.

Anonymous said...

Wow! This cardi looks great! I have downloaded the pattern and can't wait to get started :)

Anonymous said...

I don't know which is more impressive - that you came up with such a cool pattern or that you made it from an old thrifted sweater. Either way, you're amazing! Great work!!

Anonymous said...

Hi, i'm writting from France;
I've knitted your Shalom... with joy.. but... it's too little..
I think I will give it to a daughter of a friend...
I don't understand where I mistaken ?!
I leave you the link to see it...
http://isabellebrode.over-blog.com/article-27200259.html
I've made a link to your blog !
Excuse me for the mistake in english, but lot's of years have passed...

Unknown said...

Hi there, I've just found your pattern on ravelry - it's lovely and i would love to knit it as a christmas present. I don't know anything about knitting with circular needles so i wonder if you could please give me some advice in choosing the right ones to knit with? What length needles did you use to knit the cardigan?

Any help would be muchly appreciated

Laura