A while a go I have had a lovely chat with my dear friend Kristen aka Knitionary about male designs, especially men in cardigans.

She is the opinion, that every man looks great in a cardigan and believe it’s an essential piece in every man’s wardrobe. Needless to say, that I share her point of view.

A cardigan is so versatile. You may wear it with a shirt for a more formal look or with a T-shirt for a more casual look. You can wear it under a jacket if the weather is cooler or without a jacket. You can wear it in the house and on the road. You will always look appropriately dressed. It’s that easy.

As a result of this chat with Kristen I decided that I definitely needed another cardigan. I have some cardigans which are appropriate for autumnal weather, but I wanted one for chilly spring or summer days and evenings and late summer temperatures. I once again chose Rowan Summerlite 4ply for this project.

While thinking about this knit I got the idea not only to knit a cardigan but to make a corresponding short-sleeved sweater, technically knitting a twin-set. I knit two garments, this cardigan, and Zeta – my 8th of spring knits.

Before talking about Eta, my 10th of spring knits, I want to fall back to my friend Kristen, who also decided to design and knit a cardigan (In fact she shows it in more than one colour combination – she is so smart!).

Isn’t it cute? This lovely sweater is made for little girls and boys. And as the lovely lady she is, Kristen is offering this pattern as a free download! To find out more about this design and the story behind, just jump over to her blog.

Well I’m not that cute, so I’m not able to wear this lovely sweater. Here is the proof:

 

But back to the cardigan. First of all I wanted to keep it simple and therefore I knitted it in plain stockinette stitch. Here are all design details I used for this design.

• V-neck shaping
• For less finishing tasks the body is knitted in one piece to the armholes. I used a faux seam to separate the fronts from the back.
• The set-in sleeves are knitted in the round, also with a faux seam.
• The button-bands are knitted separately and sewn on with slip-stitches.
• To add weight at the hem and to create a more straight look, I casted on more stitches for the rib pattern, which were decreased to the final amount in the last row of the hem.
• In my opinion, every cardigan needs pockets. To add a fashion detail i knitted the pocket flaps in another colour. To showcase this detail I did not add a rib.
• To avoid button-holes, I used magnetic snap-fasteners for this design.