Pattern : Eric Cardi, Rowan Milk Cotton Collection
Yarn : Rowan Milk Cotton DK (Aniseed and Apple Pip)
Needles : 3.75mm
I have fought with this pattern for a long time. Originally I cast on for the 0-3 month size in October 2008. However, I found the pattern awkwardly written and the yarn difficult to work with. As a result it languished in my knitting basket until well after the birth of the intended recipient. During the big knit last summer it came out of hibernation and was frogged. I was determined not to let this pattern beat me, after all it looked very cute in the book! This time I cast on for the 9-12 month size as this was the largest I could manage with the yarn I had. There was no way that I was buying more of this stuff!
This pattern has been a real struggle for me. As it is a raglan this meant that all the pieces had a great deal of shaping and with each shaping came the frustration of having to decipher the instructions. I was also left with 5 pieces - 4 of which ended in points - to sew together. I don't like this as it was hard to sew them together neatly and has left some ugly seaming at the neck.
I added a couple of irregular stripes at the bottom of the cardigan as I felt it was a shame that the contrast colour was only used for blanket stitch around the edges of the finished garment. I think that the stripes would have been better if they had been regular as they look like an error rather than a choice. However, there was no way I was ripping out to correct this once I'd decided that the stripes didn't work!
All in all, I'm happy that this project is off the needles if only that it means I never have to see this pattern again. Even though this yarn is very soft and will be perfect for a baby's cardi, I won't be using it again as it has been such a paint to knit with. My copy of The Milk Cotton Collection will be going up for sale so that I can't be tempted by any of the other cute knits in there - I just can't face another awkwardly written pattern.
