IN THIS ARTICLE:
grad school over (yay and boo), knitting instead of job searching,
duplicate stitch — the easiest knitting colorwork technique ever

After a long stretch of unbearable busy-ness with grad school, I’m relieved that it’s over (yay!) but now find myself with much more time on my hands (still yay!). However, I’m also in the midst of a stressful job search (boo) but truth be told, I’m hoping I don’t find one TOO soon as I’m really enjoying all of this newfound free time. And this seamless shawl collar cardigan is one of the fruits of my freedom.

With so much time at my disposal, I knit this seamless raglan cardigan with very affordable (and surprisingly delightful) Lion Brand Fisherman’s Wool. For the basic raglan pattern, I used Knitty’s Shapely Boyfriend, but with garter stitch edges and a shawl collar (instead of 2×2 rib). I didn’t taper the sleeves, as I wanted them to look slightly flared, ’70s style. I also wanted it to hang open, so I didn’t add buttons.

I figured if I wanted a closed cardi look, a belt would do the trick. Since I was looking for a project with a load of brainless knitting that I could do while watching TV, all of the (self-designed) colorwork was embroidered on (using duplicate stitch) afterward. I had such great results with duplicate stitch in the past that I’ve planned a load of projects using it instead of stranded colorwork. If you haven’t done it yourself, give it a try. However, because you’re doubling up on yarn at the location of your colorwork, be aware that the area you embroider will be a bit stiffer than the rest of the piece, as well as raised — sort of like one of those old school iron on patches. I, for one, don’t mind this. I love the resulting cardigan and have been wearing it to death, as L.A. recently went through a bit of a cold spell. The wool pills quite bit, but I expected as much. Good news, though, is that it’s gotten softer with wear. The perfect cozy cardigan to wrap around myself while sipping creamy Mexican hot chocolate on a chilly evening.