Striped Laurelhurst Cardigan

I think that I have discovered my perfect Fall outfit. I have had my eye on the  Straight Stitch Designs Laurelhurst Cardigan for a while, but never got around to making it. When I saw this version from the Indiesew Fall Collection I knew that I wanted to make a Laurelhurst right away. And not just any Laurelhurst… I wanted to make that exact one. The fabric looked so cozy and perfect for Fall weather, so I ordered some the same day. We were having cooler temperatures when I ordered the fabric, but by the time it came (only 2 or 3 days later) the temperatures were back in the 90s and I wasn’t feeling like snuggling up in a big, blankety cardigan anymore. Thankfully the heat wave has passed so I got my pattern from Indiesew and got to sewing.

The fabric I used is from the Indiesew shop, but it is now out of stock. It’s a little bit more of a sweater knit feeling than the knits that I usually use and it is really soft. I love the charcoal gray stripes and they go really well with my rayon jersey Union St tee. I added my Ginger Jeans and I have a really comfortable, all handmade outfit!

The Laurelhurst is sizing is solely based on bust measurement since it’s drapey and loose. I went with a size 10 and did grade out to a 14 at the hips just because that is what I’ve done with the other Straight Stitch Designs patterns that I’ve made. I don’t know if grading out was totally necessary but I felt like it was better to be safe than sorry.

I somehow ended up with a little bit less fabric than I needed so I had to cut the back as two pieces instead of cutting on the fold. This fabric was a bit of a challenge as far as stripe matching because it seemed a bit off grain. In order to get the stripes to be straight the knit is running sort of diagonally. I didn’t really look too closely at the fabric before I prewashed it so this may have happened in the wash. I haven’t washed it yet as a finished garment but I hope my seams don’t get all twisty. (This probably won’t be an issue because at this point I’m not sure I’m ever going to take it off.)

The cardigan is designed to have all raw edges but I decided to hem the sleeves. I think I will be OK with rolled up edges on the front and bottom, but I had a feeling that curled up edges on the sleeves would drive me nuts. I didn’t add any length to the sleeves and did a 3/4″ turned up hem. The sleeves are still nice and long, which I really like.

This is a quick, fun project. It took me just a few hours and would have taken quite a bit less if I hadn’t had to do so much stripe matching.  It’s a great, easy layer to throw on but looks way more polished than my worn out hooded sweatshirts. I’m thinking a basic black version may be next on the list!

~Teri

p.s. As part of the Indiesew blogger team I was provided with the Laurelhurst pattern. All opinions are my own.