Kay Jay Kreates

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It's the most wonderful time of the year!

The crisp chill in the air 🗹
Leaves falling from the trees 🗹
Cuddling with your loved ones by the fire 🗹
Sipping hot tea or cocoa (I drink tea all year round but still...) 🗹

Sweater Weather is finally here!

For a while there it seemed like it would never come. Here in Atlanta, GA, it literally just started getting cool a little over a month ago. Matter of fact, it was actually 73° a few Sundays ago, which is nice, especially for tailgating, but that's "a whole nother" story.

Don't get me wrong, I love a nice warm Fall day but I LIVE for the days where you can throw on a nice cozy sweater or hoodie to stay toasty. It's even better when the sweater is handmade.

I have a few knit sweaters currently on my needles and a bunch more queued up on Ravelry that I can't wait to start. But, I promised myself I would do better at finishing the projects that I start. So, it is my mission to power through my current projects before I fall deeper into the "excitement of newness". I swear I have "Shiny New Penny Syndrome" or something but I'm definitely working on it. I, myself, am a WIP. Lol!

The Long Weekend Cardigan

I began knitting The Long Weekend Cardigan by Yarnspirations Design Studio back in January of 2017 (so long ago, I know). It is an over-sized open front cardigan that features a waffle stitch knit pattern.

When I first started working on this pattern, it was only available in one length, long (which I love), but it now comes in 3 different lengths. So, based on your preference, you can choose to make the sweater long, medium, or short.

The pattern calls for Patons Classic Wool Worsted, which I used in the colorway Jade Heather. So far, all of the individual sections of the sweater have been knitted and blocked. All that's left to do is seam everything together and add the front band.

Garter Cardi

Last year, for her birthday, my daughter was gifted a cute custom Tee from our favorite custom T-Shirt company, 2Gink. Since it was cold at the time (she's a winter baby) I figured I'd knit her a nice little matching cardigan to wear with it.

I decided that the Garter Cardi by Audrey Drysdale would be the perfect cardigan to go with her adorable little birdie tee. It's one of the many cute designs featured in the book 60 Quick Knits for Little Kids. Although the pattern calls for Cascade Yarns Pacific Chunky, I went with Knit Picks Mighty Stitch Bulky, which is a super soft acrylic/superwash wool blend that comes in many fun, bold, and bright colors. For my daughter's sweater, I choose the colorway Eggplant.

The chunky gauge of this sweater, which is super trendy right now, makes it a really quick knit. It took me a few days to knit and seam everything together. All that's pretty much left to do is add the button band and the buttons. Hopefully I can get it done before Christmas, or her birthday, which is a few days later.

Bay-and-Gable Tunic

Also on my needles is the Bay-and-Gable Tunic by Sachiko Burgin. This hip-length raglan sleeve sweater features a small slit in the back and a textured lattice panel down the front that I absolutely love.

Though I promised myself that I wouldn't start any new projects until I finished the others, I couldn't resist casting on this project. Interweave had a huge sale during Black Friday/Cyber Monday where they were selling Plymouth Yarn Homestead for super cheap. Since I already had the pattern on my "list of things to knit", I figured I'd go ahead and buy the yarn while it was on sale. And, of course, as soon as it arrived, I couldn't wait to get started.

Knit Picks Heartwood and Twist & Tweed Collections

In addition to my current sweater projects, there are a few more in my queue that I hope to complete before the end of Sweater Weather season. The Princess Pullover and the Cable Mesh Pullover by Kerin Dimeler-Laurence are both featured in the Knit Picks Heartwood Collection. The Ballard Pullover by Allison Griffith and Harley by Jenny Williams are both featured in the Knit Picks Twist & Tweed Collection.

Princess Pullover