Paul Smith Cardigan

There is a lot to think about when planning a move, especially if you're crossing a border:  customs forms, packing boxes, discontinuing services, change of address, etc., etc.  As a knitter I also have to think about what project I'll do during the move.  It has to be interesting, won't be finished too quickly and simple enough so that I don't have to use too many brain cells when they are occupied with so many other tasks.

For a long time I've been drawn to a pattern from the Harper's Bazaar UK website, the Paul Smith Cardigan.  The funny thing is, I've never seen the actual sweater knitted up, only a sketch advertising the pattern:

Click here for the pattern.  If you want it, get it while it's still available.

I'm going to do something that I rarely do - follow a pattern blindly as written, unless I run into problems with it along the way.  I'm going to trust that it's going to work out.
I liked that it was plain, yet colorful and that it was to be knitted with fingering-weight yarn.  Several weeks ago, not knowing that I would be moving and just because I wanted to make the sweater in the original yarns (fearing that they could one day be discontinued), I ordered the yarns.  The yarn came from the Laughing Hens shop in Cheshire, UK.  Don't you love the name?  Now, I have the perfect project for the next few weeks.

Today the yarn arrived and the yarn was wrapped like presents.  What fun it was to unwrap the little packages.

Inside was all the yarn I'll need for the cardigan.  I'll choose buttons when the project is finished. 

It's Debbie Bliss Rialto 4-ply, 100% extra fine merino wool, 180 m/197 yds per 50gm ball.  The colors are 02 off-white, 03 black, 13 French navy, 09 red and 14 moss green.  I was impressed at how soft the yarn is. 

I hope that this turns out to be a good design.  This is a case of knitterly "living on the edge", I think.

Let the swatching begin!