East Hale Cardigan
by Alexis Winslow
pdf download – $5.50
buy pdfOriginally Published in Knitscene Magazine, Fall 2011
This classic men’s zippered cardigan features a garter stitch border with an i-cord edging and shawl collar. The body is knitted in one piece along with the border and collar from the bottom-up. The shoulder seams fall slightly to the back-side making a less bulky silhouette while still providing structure. Stitches for the top-down sleeves are picked up around the armholes and short rows form the sleeve cap. The cardigan has a really great fit and is easily adjusted for men of different heights.
TECHNICAL INFO
FINISHED SIZE
38 (42, 46, 50)” chest, zipped. Cardigan shown measures 42”.
YARN
Cascade Yarns, Ecological Wool (100% Undyed Peruvian Highland Wool; 478 yd [437 m]/ 250 g): color # 8019, 2 (3, 3, 3) skeins.
NEEDLES
Body and Sleeves--Size 9 ((5.5 mm): 36” cir and dpn. Ribbing--Size 8 (5 mm): 36” circular (cir) and double pointed (dpn). Adjust needle size if necessary to obtain the correct gauge.
ERRATA & FAQ
ERRATA
Left front- the last two pattern rows in that section should be reversed. The pattern should read:
Next row: (WS) Sl 3, knit to end
Next row: (RS) Knit to the last 3 sts, p3.
Rep last 2 rows until collar section measure 2.75”…
FAQ
Q: What kind of zipper should I use?
A: I bought a YKK one-way separating zipper in size 8 (that’s how many mm across the teeth are) with silver aluminum teeth, cut to 20”. It’s really heavy duty, but I like that look on a man’s garment. I don’t think they sell it in gray anymore, but you can find a similar one here. I buy all my zippers from that shop, Pacific Trim. You can even send a swatch of your yarn to the shop, and they will select a zipper color to match for you!
Q: Can you give me some guidance about which size to pick for my boyfriend?
A: The sample I made of the East Hale Cardigan for my husband has about 3.5-4” of positive ease at the chest. I would suggest erring on the side of too big in this case. He’ll be more likely to wear the cardigan if it’s 1/2 a size too big, than if it were 1/2 a size too small.
Q: I am confused with the Notes concerning the short row shaping of the sleeve cap. What do you mean by “the wraps should not be worked with the wrapped stitches
A: after you turn the work and create a wrap around the stitch, you will be able to see the wrap—it looks like a tiny horizontal bar at the base of the stitch. For aesthetic reasons, some patterns instruct you to incorporate the wrap by pulling it up onto your needle and working it together with the stitch like a K2tog. But I liked the way the wraps looked and that they provided a little more structure to the sleeve cap, so I decided they should stay when I wrote the pattern. You could incorporate them, but the fabric seems to be a little more floppy. So when you get to a wrapped stitch on the next row, just ignore the wrap and work the stitch normally.
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