Cascading Cardigan and Top: Simplicity 2603

Yes, 2010 is the year of wovens, but this project was started in 2008, then finished on January 2. Those knits are sneaky. I'm sure my sewing room will still be seeing quite a few of them this year.

Since the 80s, I have been drawn to drapey styles with angular points hanging down. Also since the 80s (or, more accurately, since birth), I have lacked the height and build to wear them to best effect. But heck, what good is it to be 40 if you can't just cut loose and make something even though you know it's not your best style?

This pattern has achieved extreme popularity on PatternReview recently, but I didn't see many modeled examples of the look worn by shorties like me. So that added to my interest in making and reviewing the cardigan, in the name of public-spirited education. You can see my full review by clicking on the link in the sidebar.

Darn it all, as soon as I finished the thing, and was really itching to wear it, the weather turned so cold that I haven't. The fabric is a lightweight rayon knit from fabric.com. They have sold out of the black, but some nice colors remain. I am sort of considering the rust. Except that 2010 is the year of wovens.

Anyway, I get cold and, while this fabric isn't super-thin, it isn't thick fleece or wool, either, so it must wait for warmer days. Speaking of super-thin, want to see something that is?



I loved this rayon knit print (also from fabric.com). I got the gray stars and also a graphic plaid type of print. Wow. This fabric is as sheer as my sheer living room curtains. I made up the gray as a kind of muslin, checking out the shorter length (views C and D). I didn't like the length, the color did not flatter me and the knit, for all its lightness, was not very stretchy. This version turned out tight in the shoulders and arms.



So, on to the black I went. I really do like this version. I took all the good advice in the many reviews at PatternReview: I cut the pieces on the floor with a rotary cutter, so that the front edges and hems could be left raw. I sandwiched the elastic at the back of the neck between the wrong sides of the seam allowances. Copying Tany (an excellent person to try to copy: she is leagues beyond me and a wonder), I used the sleeve cuff pattern and instructions, and I love this detail.



I would say, overall, this style doesn't seem to be a disaster for a short person. Tying it up controls the volume. In my house, tying it up tightly to the back might also prevent it sweeping through the dust. Worn loose, this is a highly impractical garment for a stay at home mother!