Knitted Cardigan with Baby Blossom Chunky Yarn

 Picture this:  two toddlers on riding musical toys traveling up and down the hall, two teenagers emerging from their bedrooms  to replenish their food supply, 5 adults conversing in the kitchen and living room, and my injured husband sleeping in the bedroom with the effects of medication from a broken leg.  Needless to say, knitting, crocheting, and blogging were not exactly at the top of my list this past week.  Even when the company went home, there was so much more care taking to do  and countless trips up and down stairs.  When I finally got Bert somewhat more comfortable, I was able to think about myself for a while. For my frequently readers, you may remember my husband, Bert, from my Man Shawl post in September.  Doing tree work with a friend in our garden, he managed to wedge his food between two logs and twist. We were relieved that the surgery went well, but now the long slow part continues.  It is really hard for an active guy to be sedentary.  I was able to get out to go for groceries and necessities, but I did not want to leave him stranded during the beginning for any length of time.  As any of our fellow knitters will tell you, this is when that knitting stash comes in handy.  I had been mostly crocheting for awhile, but I had enough of a special yarn to knit a cardigan for my granddaughter. This Baby Blossom Chunky by Hayfield Knitting Essentials is 70% Acrylic and 30% Nylon.  It is a a#5 weight yarn that is knit with #9 and #10.5 needles (using USA scale).  There are several selections of pastel banding yarn color combos.  What makes this yarn special is that one of the bands has shorter strands of green and dark pink strands in the background color.  When knit into a sweater, you get the effect of blossoms and leaves.

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Hayfield publishes an easy paid pattern (Baby Blossom Chunky #4677)for birth to 7 years, but any pattern for a chunky yarn will work with this yarn. Both round neck and v neck styles are offered. The cuffs and neck band are knit with a #9 needle.  The body of the sweater is knit with a #10.5.  The design is easy to follow, and the chunky yarn knits up quickly.  This was a fortunate choice for a busy week.  Since my granddaughter is a slender 1 year old, I selected the 1-2 year old size. It fits now, and will carry her through the spring, but I will have to make the larger 2-3 year old size for next season.

One feature I like about the cardigan is the the button and button hole banding.  They are knit right into the sweater without picking up rows of stitches.  The buttons that I chose for the piece were pastel flowers that coordinated with the pastel bands in the cardigan.

Now that I have blocked and photographed the cardigan,  my granddaughter can wear it for winter into spring. As soon as I have time I will pick up one of the other color combinations for next year.  Although this is a custom yarn, it does not cost too much to knit.  I was able to knit the 1-2 year old size with two 100 gram balls.  The 2-3 year old size will take two balls as well.  Since I have yarn left from the smaller sweater, I will make a matching hat or headband.

Have you discovered a special yarn that makes you smile when you knit  or crochet with it?  Please share your recommendations and photos of any projects using the yarn.