Finished - Simplicity 2560. The cardigan quest continues.

Worst hair day ever. Thank goodness for hats is all I can say. Anyway here I am sharing one of my current favourite winter outfits, my ohmygoodnessI'minlovewiththisfabric striped wool merino Mandy top (unblogged) that basically gets washed and put right back on my body (fabric from the Cloth Shop in Ivanhoe), and my new cardigan, Simplicity 2560.



So last year in Me Made May I wrote about cardigan patterns, and I notice that this year that a lot of people still lament the lack of decent sewn cardis in their self made repertoire. Since I wrote that post Muse has released the Jenna cardi, which has received a lot of love, and SBCC has released the Cabernet Cardi. I made up the Style Arc Fiona cardigan, and despite feeling a bit mediocre about it when I first made it, it has become my House Cardigan, and is pretty much my most worn self made garment I think.

Simplicity 2560 is now out of print but there's a few copies for sale out there. I was drawn to it as it was quite similar to a beloved RTW that I still haven't thrown, a very drapey cotton knit cardigan from Target that is still worn in denial of it's impending doom.



Those ruffled sleeves are, quite frankly, foul. But like my RTW version it has some light gathering below the bust, dolman sleeves and a separate neckline piece. I could see through the fugly to the potential. My final cardi is a mashup of a couple of views, sizes and some extra ideas of my own. I chose to make the length of view C, in a size 12 in the upper pieces, and a size 8 in the lower pieces, the smallest size, to reduce the amount of gathering (good lord - it's nearly a peplum!!!) I extended the sleeve length using a Burdastyle dolman sleeve pattern piece. The neck band is meant to be attached as a single layer, and worn bunched up like a scarf with the exposed raw edge hemmed. I didn't really like the idea of this finish, so decided to make it doubled, with the two raw edges hidden on the inside, like a more traditional band.


The fabric is quite unique. It is a modal-poly blend from Darn Cheap Fabrics. I actually wanted to make it in a mustard wool jersey but couldn't find what I wanted. I was drawn to this fabric despite it's high synthetic content as it had a lovely hand, but also a very unusual colour. It's a weird pinky-brown colour, and I realised I was so attracted to it as it's so similar to the colour of my wedding dress.  It has a lovely drape despite being a fairly heavy knit. The double layer of the neckband may not have been the best choice but as a wearable toile I'm pretty happy with it.


Because of the weird colour I made it all on my sewing machine - matching this to overlocker thread would have been impossible, and with an open cardi I didn't want any mismatching thread to be visible. I ended up binding the neckband seam with some organza ribbon as it does have a tendency to flop open and become exposed, so that at least keeps that raw edge tidy. 

The sleeves were initially finished with a twin needle but were a bit floppy and loose at the cuff so I added some snugger long bands instead. I like finishing tops this was it gives me the option to fold them back like this and wear as 7/8 or full length.



It's not got the flawless finish that I aspiring to, but I've still worn it a bunch, and I think the pattern's worth another crack, in something a fair bit finer like a wool or linen jersey. I'd be tempted to make the neckband as drafted next time, maybe attempting to finish that raw edge with a rolled hem on my overlocker and try removing the gathers for a different look. 


Any other new cardi patterns that I should know about? Is anyone else on the perfect cardi quest or do you prefer to let RTW to do your cardi provision for you? I've another Fiona in planning stages, plus a Named Saunio, a Thread Theory Camas and a McCalls 6708 (also out of print!).







Comments

  1. That worked out beautifully! I would never have been attracted by the line illustrations, but you've adapted it into a really great little cardi! I'm just about to attempt this one. http://www.burdastyle.com/pattern_store/patterns/v-neck-cardigan-042010 The problem with the Jenna cardi is that it doesn't sit very nicely when it's worn open, so I'm trying a v-neck, but I'm going to crop it and add a deep waistband, do three-quarter sleeves and sleeve bands. The construction looks quite simple and I'm hoping to do french seams to attach the neck/front band so it will look neater when it flips open. I'm also going to adapt the Seamwork Astoria into a cardi when I have time. The hunt for the perfect sewn cardi continues!

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    1. Ooh thanks for the Burdastyle link - I've not seen that one before! Because it's a woven neck band you might be able to slip stitch down the inner seam for a really nice seamless finish? I'm definitely adding it to my list of patterns to try!

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  2. Cardigans! Love this one and your links to the others, especially the Cabernet. I'm still deciding on which cardigan I'm going to knit so in the meantime I must sew one - so much faster!!

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    1. Oh yeah, knitting cardigans takes so long!

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  3. I have two mccalls 6844 that I wear all the time and are similar to the one you've created - double neck band and then a lower peplum or no peplum and 2 lengths. So quick to make, I have another in the queue! I do like the look of muse Jenna.

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    1. Oh I like that one a lot, especially the no peplum. It's going onto my list next time spotty has a sale, that's for sure! Thanks for sharing!

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    2. Colette seamwork Oslo too? Just tagged you in my Instagram pic of how I sewed up a coppelia on my overlocker with bobbins (doesn't look like you IG ver much though ;o)

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    3. Haha yeah I had to reset my password to even look! Great tip! And I was wondering about the Oslo, maybe a bit shorter....

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  4. What a save - from an ugly pattern to something very pretty! I love the color, and the execution! I too have sort of failed to dive into the world of cardigans, as I can't really find many that look like my RTWs (IMO). I did make a Camas into a cardigan though (basically left off the buttons) and I really like the look of that (I like it more than how it's supposed to be as a shirt). I also have the Papercut Copelia for an alt cardigan, and I was curious about the Jenna. I really love the look of this one though, with the subtle gathers and the neckband treatment. M6844 does look pretty cute too and similar to this (as colesworth said above).

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    1. Yeah its hard. It all comes down to how well the neckline is finished I think, and something with negative ease like the copellia seems to be consistently quite successful. I've got a Camas as cardi planned also.....

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  5. I was juuuuust saying to myself this morning that I was going to give up on even trying to sew a cardigan. All of my efforts have been unenjoyable to sew, and failures to boot. And then here you come, making me think I should give it another try (especially when you say something like "linen jersey"). This one turned out beautifully - way to look beyond those scary sleeve danglers!

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    1. Thanks Morgan! Yes I think some linen Jersey would be gorgeous - such a shame it's so hard to find!

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  6. Wow you have great vision! I am so bad at seeing past fugly-ness. :) I think your cardigan looks great and I love that colour. I with you on finishing sleeves with cuffs - it makes pushing up sleeves easier and I think it looks really professional.

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    1. Thanks Heather! Sometimes the fug is all too much!

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  7. Your version is so much more awesome than those terrible line drawings! I love the colour, it looks gorgeous on you. Love your stripey top as well, I wish The Fabric Store would get in some navy and white striped merino (or black and white, or grey and white...just not black and another colour like they have at the moment! I'm too picky about stripes...)

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    1. Oh I know. Have you ever ordered merino from that NZ online company? They often have stripes....

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  8. Oh your wedding dress! I had forgotten how very beautiful it was/is! And the cardi looks like a workhorse. Ugh. Good cardigan = eternal search. Seriously. I've even given up on RTW. I really must attempt to find a good pattern. Yours looks great and I can really see it in a mustard wool jersey. Let the search begin!

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    1. Thanks lovely. Hard to believe it's coming up 2 years! Yeah I've still got my eyes peeled for mustard wool...

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  9. This has worked a treat. I really love the back 'peplum' feel to it. Oh and i love your hair in the scarf!

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    1. Thanks Kirsty - it's pretty cute, and helps to add some shaping... And it's not a scarf, it's a little hat, but I can see how you'd think it was a scarf - I call it my bonnet as it's a repro of a hat worn in the 1800's of all things! It's so warm!

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  10. Your cardigan looks lovely, well done on seeing past those line drawings! I still really like the Julia cardigan but haven't got round to it yet.

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    1. Thank you! Yes the Julia looks lovely, so similar to the Fiona!

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  11. Looks great! I love the peplum thing and the shawl collar is a very clever substitute for the front band. .. the really wide cuff you put in place of those terrible things (btw - how do they suggest finishing the edges on those ruffles ?-| ) are the best solution ever ... p.s love your bonnet xx

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    1. Goodness, I didn't even look at the instructions for the ruffles! The horror!

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  12. I'm so impressed that this resulted from that pattern! I would never have given it a second look, unless it was to have a giggle at the flouncy ruffly bits... You are inspiring! I can see why it's part of your favourite outfit. Beautiful colour, too :)

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  13. This is really lovely! To be honest, I'm really not into the pattern at all, but your version is really nice!

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    1. Thanks Ginger - honestly if I didn't have my rtw version I wouldn't have looked twice at it either - so many things to shudder at!

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