julia cardigan | mouse house creations

if you’ve been following my me-made-may posts over on instagram, you’ve probably noticed a frequently worn cardigan of mine. i was needing a good spring weight cardigan—one that could keep the chill off my neck, but not overheat me—so i decided to try the julia cardigan by mouse house creations. it has a shaped, doubled up band encircling the entire neckline and hem, giving it a slight cocoon shape. best thing—no hemming required! sweater knits can be tricksy to hem, so that is a definite bonus.

i really wish you could see the details better, but ya’ll know it’s hard to capture dark fabrics!

i used a not quite medium weight sweater knit from girl charlee, and it s just perfect for this. the double layered neck/hem band provides a cozy feel, but the slightly open shape keeps it from being too heavy.

 

pattern notes:

this pattern is definitely a fabric hog. it used every bit of my 2 yards of fabric. it is rare that i throw all the scraps out after cutting, but i really did have nothing left! as i mentioned, the whole neckline/hem is one giant doubled up circle, and i had to piece one section to make it all work. not a big deal, but if you are working with a stripe or patterned fabric you’d be smart to buy extra! now, this pattern does have the option to cut the circle out of only one layer of fabric, but then you would be stuck hemming that giant edge, and i just don’t think it would look as polished. i wouldn’t even consider making it that way, personally.

the sleeves are crazy wide at the bottom. somewhere in the pages and pages of directions it mentions the bell-ish sleeve, but i didn’t think it would be as huge as it is! i could easily take out two inches, and probably will at some point. i am a sleeve pusher upper, and these are way too loose to stay up.

the sizing seems pretty spot on, and overall i’m very pleased with this pattern. i mean, i wear it practically every day, so there ya have it. it has served exactly the purpose i intended, and i love the unique shape. far more interesting that just a regular ol’ sweater.

have a great weekend guys!

—lisa g.