Reading Cardigan KAL - Prologue
Casting on September 23
September 23rd marks the first day of fall and the start of our Fall 2023 Knit Along! This fall we have chosen the Reading Cardigan by Jared Flood of Brooklyn Tweed. This cardigan was published earlier in the year, and we have been working over the summer to get our sample knitted and prepare blog posts to have ready to publish weekly. The Reading Cardigan was released in May by Brooklyn Tweed and while it appears to be a humble ribbed cardigan, there are some well thought out details that made this pattern jump immediately into my queue. So immediately that I bought yarn that day and began swatching.
I knitted this cardigan over the summer months and have spent time compiling my notes and locating tricky parts in the pattern that might need some clarification if you are not an experienced sweater knitter. While I knitted my sample some months ago, we will have help available in-store as staff will be knitting along with you!
This pattern is rated as an intermediate level, which I believe is accurate. I would not recommend this as your first sweater, but if you have made a raglan sweater before, the shaping is the same just done in pattern. The Shaker Rib stitch mimics the look of brioche knitting but is much easier. If you can knit, purl, and yarn over it should be no issue for you. The most complicated part of the pattern that I came across is just keeping track of your increases, as the body, sleeves, and neck all increase at different rates. I have a trick for that coming in a post when we get to the raglan increase portion.
I made size 2, which will give me 7” of positive ease (meaning 7” larger than my measurement). The models in the pattern both have 12” of positive ease on their sweaters, and it just seemed like too much for me. I didn’t want to have to manage a too-big sweater that slides off my shoulders. I plan to wear this for multiple seasons, so I might also need to wear a coat over it. My sweater came out the perfect size. It is cozy, but not sloppy.
The pattern calls for a worsted weight yarn and we are recommending Brooklyn Tweed’s Shelter, Tones or Imbue as called for in the pattern. Purchase yarn to knit the Reading Cardigan and get 10% off your yarn purchase online with the code 2023KALCARDI. We cannot apply this code retroactively, so please be sure to apply it before checking out. If you purchase your yarn in-store, just let us know you are participating to get 10% off.
Brooklyn Tweed Tones — 140 yards (128 meters) per 50g skein
11-13 (12-14, 12-15, 13-16) (14-17, 15-18, 16-19) (17-20, 18-21, 19-22, 20-23) skeins
Brooklyn Tweed Shelter — 140 yards (128 meters) per 50g skein
11-13 (12-14, 12-15, 13-16) (14-17, 15-18, 16-19) (17-20, 18-21, 19-22, 20-23) skeins
Brooklyn Tweed Imbue Worsted — 104 yds (95 meters) per 50g skein
14-17 (15-18, 17-20, 18-21) (19-22, 20-24, 21-25) (23-27, 24-28, 27-31) skeins
There are multiple options to make this sweater just how you want it. You can make a cropped, classic or tall cardigan length and the sleeves have two length options.
If you are unsure as to which measurements you should choose, I suggest finding a sweater or jacket that fits how you hope this sweater will fit you and measure it. Find the size on the chart that most closely matches and you should be good to go! This schematic is also available on Ravelry and in the full pattern when you purchase it.
Stop by the shop and check out the selection of Shelter, Tones and Imbue colors. As always, we would love to help you pick out just the right color.
You can also shop Shelter, Tones, and Imbue online to hold for in-store pickup or delivery straight to your door.
The KAL blog posts will be published every week, but there is no obligation to keep up with the pace of the posts. Knit on your own schedule and the posts will be available to you whenever you are ready. We will have in-store help available too if you need an extra helping hand.
We have broken the KAL down into an introduction, five ‘chapters’ of knitting and a finishing prologue:
Prologue: Pattern and Yarn Information
Chapter 1: Swatching, Casting On, and the Collar Extension will be posted on September 23rd
Chapter 2: Raglan Shaping will be posted September 30th
Chapter 3: Separating for the Sleeves will be posted October 7th
Chapter 4: Body will be posted October 14th
Chapter 5: Sleeves will also be posted on October 14th
Epilogue: Finishing will wrap up the KAL and be posted on October 28th
Some other things you might want to add to your notions list for this project are:
An extra cable if you are using interchangeable needles (helpful for when you put stitches on hold for the neck).
Purl Strings stitch holders will make it easy to put your sleeve stitches on hold and make it easy to try on your sweater as you go so you are sure you get the length just right.
Coco Knits Row Counter (or any row counter). The Coco Knits one is my favorite because it is magnetic (it sticks to their Maker’s Board and Maker’s Keep. It also locks so you can throw it in your knitting bag without worrying about it advancing accidentally.
Bulb pin markers or other locking stitch markers, and a lot of them. I use them to mark every increase and decrease as I go and there are a lot. Marking them as you go makes it so much easier to track your progress and saves you headache should you have to frog your knitting…trust me.
