My Image Winter 2010/11 M1003

I finally got my act together and put the buttons and buttonholes on my leopard cardigan.

The original pattern, which is from the Winter 2010/2011 issue of My Image magazine, is for a duster length cardigan, which I made full length here. I like that one, but I don't wear it often, partly because of the length. I thought I'd get more wear out of a high hip length cardi, so I cut off 12 inches (!!) of length, but otherwise made no alterations to the pattern.

The fabric is a printed sweater knit from Fabric Mart. It is a cotton-lycra blend, and so soft! I've been hanging on to it a while, waiting for the "perfect project" to come along. I don't know if this is perfect, but I sure like it a lot better in my closet than in my stash.

The other change I made from the first version was to interface the bands with a non-stretch interfacing (Pro-Weft, which is my favorite general use interfacing). I knew I would be putting buttons and proper buttonholes on this one, so I wanted the bands to be stable. I also noticed that on my first version the bands tended to ripple a little, and the firmer interfacing prevented this.

I wore it with my cropped ponte knit pants and my black turtleneck, both of which are pieces from the Wardrobe Basics SAL! I only have 2 more pieces to complete for the SAL (assuming that I have given up on the trench for now), which are the khaki skirt and the LBD. I found the perfect base pattern for the khaki McQueen skirt I intend to knock off, and I'm in the pattern tweaking process. The LBD is percolating in my brain, although I have the fabric for my vision. I just need to decide on a pattern or two.

For those who celebrate, I hope you have a wonderful Easter!