Knitting the Piece of Me Cardigan by Wool and the Gang

The instructions say the Piece of Me Cardigan is an easy pattern. I'm not so sure about it...

But it was truly worth the effort, I have been wearing this cozy cardigan 3 times a week since we (yes, we) finished this project.

Supplies

I chose to knit the cardigan in a size 3.
The package includes: the pattern, 2 balls of color A, 5 balls of color B, 2 balls of color C, 1 set of 3.5 mm (US 4) circular needles, 1 pair of 6.5 mm (US 10.5) knitting needles, 1 sewing needle.

You'll also need 6 size 20 mm buttons and 1 sharp sewing needle. I chose wooden buttons from my mom's stash.

I used my trusted knitting register to keep count of my rows and these cute stitch markers.

Colors

You have to choose 3 colors for this pattern.

Colors are referred to as A, B, and C, where color A is the top color of the thin stripe, color B is the bottom color of the thin stripe, and color C is the thick stripe/background color.

I chose Latte, Blue, and Green. #pieceofmecardigan on Insta was a great source of color inspiration!

Sizing

I'm very impatient, so I obviously did not knit a tension sample (don't be like me).

I decided to knit a size M after checking out #pieceofmecardigan on Insta and asking other knitters what size they chose.

Know that you'll be able to play around with the size when blocking your cardigan after knitting and piecing it together (I'm totally making excuses).

Techniques

• Yarn tail - I made my tail a little longer than my wingspan before casting on.
• Long Tail Cast On
• 1x1 Rib Stitch

With an even number of stitches, you will always knit the first stitch and purl the last one.

With an uneven number of stitches, you will have to alternate, starting with a stitch for even rows and with a purl for uneven ones. If you don't do this, you'll end up with stockinette.

• Long-tail cast-on technique
• Knitting flat with circular needles
• Change colors without cutting yarn
• 1x1 rib
• Stocking stitch
• How to increase 1 knitwise
• How to increase 1 purlwise
• How to cast off
• Left-leaning decrease
• Right-leaning decrease
• How to pick up stitches - I had a hard time picking up stitches and found that using a crochet hook to pick up the yarn through the stitch and then placing it on the knitting needle worked just as well.
• How to do a perpendicular, invisible seam
• How to do a horizontal invisible seam
• How to do a vertical invisible seam with moss stitch (seed stitch)
• How to block a sweater - This crucial step isn't mentioned in the pattern, but don't skip it!

Clarifications

• Colors: As I mentioned before, colors are referred to as A, B, and C, where color A is the top color of the thin stripe, color B is the bottom color of the thin stripe, and color C is the thick stripe/background color. I wrote a key at the top of every page of the pattern booklet so I wouldn't mix up the colors.
• Back cast-off: Place markers at 26 and 50, 26, knit 2, cast off 24 using the 1st of the last 26 to cast off the last of the 1st 26, 26 will be remaining.
• Picking up stitches to knit the button placket and collar was a nightmare. No information whatsoever about how stitch picking ratio. I almost gave up on the project. Thankfully, my mom is more bold and adventurous than I am and took care of this part, plus the final assembly. Thank you, Mom! I heard this video is life-changing.
• Blocking: This crucial step isn't mentioned in the pattern, but don't skip it!

Troubleshooting

• How to unravel knitting the right way - I've had to do this way too many times but got better at identifying mistakes earlier without having to unravel too many rows and consequently losing count of rows.
• How to join yarn seamlessly by felting it - You shouldn't need this technique (since the pattern calls for switching colors very frequently) unless your yarn breaks in the middle of a row.

Final thoughts

I'm so happy with the result, and I'm glad I still love the colors I chose over two years ago!

I want to thank my Mom for, once again, helping me finish a project. She's such an inspiration!

As always, I'm gonna need a break from knitting. In the meantime, you can check out my previous knitting projects.

Did you knit the Piece of Me Cardigan? How did it turn out? Do you have more tips and hacks to share?