Completed: Lemon Cabernet Cardigan

See? I told you I made a cardigan with that lemon fabric:

Coming off the tail end of a season of greys and blacks (whatever, I love looking like a wannabe-goth in the winter, but eventually we all start craving some color), this lemon fabric was like a happy little breath of fresh spring air. As I mentioned in my last post, I love this fabric but the thickness and weight is a little heavier than what I like for my tshirts. I felt like a cardigan would be a good match for the fabric, plus, I’d be able to wear it through the duration of the spring and summer. I personally cannot stand how cold most people keep their a/c’s here in the heat, so it’s always good to have a cardigan on hand that you can throw on to protect against summer frostbite.

I decided to use the Cabernet Cardigan from Skinny Bitch Curvy Chick patterns. This is a great staple pattern because it’s a true ladies-who-lunch classic – fitted, cropped (well, one version is anyway), with set-in sleeves, patch pockets, and a lovely v-neckline. I reckon you can make it a little less Betty Draper depending on the fabric you use, but I love looking like a Kate Spade advertisement whenever I can, so lemon fabric + Cabernet cardigan was exactly the combination I was looking for.

I’ve made this pattern a couple of times before (see: leopard print + navy cotton stripes), so I don’t have too much to add to what I’ve already said. I made the size XXS, in the cropped and fitted version. I had to cut 3/4 sleeves due to fabric restrictions (I cut this before I even thought about lemon underwear, so you can imagine how small my leftover pieces were!), which does make the cardi a little less overwhelmingly lemon.

I assembled the whole thing on my serger, and used my sewing machine to do all the straight topstitching with a contrast green thread. Since the cardigan doesn’t really need to stretch – except maybe slightly around the cuffs, where I didn’t topstitch anyway – it’s fine to use a straight stitch for this. I also think the single line of straight stitching looks a little more RTW than using a zigzag or a twin needle. I just use a ballpoint needle (and the built-in walking foot that’s on my Pfaff) and it’s all good! Really, this is a quick and satisfying sew. Even when you end up stopping in the middle of it to make undergarments 😛

My favorite part about this fabric are those big splashes of turquoise! It really arts up the lemon print and adds some super gorgeous unexpected color.

Also super happy with this button match – they are pretty much perfect! Funny story about these buttons – they are vintage glass, and I’d had them on an Etsy wishlist for ages. I actually bought this set at the Nashville Flea Market (for something crazy cheap, like $1 for the whole set) and it wasn’t until months later that I saw the original wish listing on Etsy. It always surprises (and delights) me when I find vintage duplicates, but this time it was actually beneficial haha. Anyway, I am happy I finally found a use for these – they look great with this fabric!

Anyway, that’s all for this post – I was going to also talk about my pants (which I also made), but I’m going to save that for another post because I feel like there are enough photos of me here at it is haha. Before you ask: they are Morgan Boyfriend jeans. I also made my top ages ago, it’s a Briar tshirt with a straight hem. More on the pants later, though! Today is CARDIGAN DAY.

Also – say hello to my new summer ‘do! I just had this done a few days ago (the photos you see here is when it was like day-after-salon-fresh, so still pretty fresh) and I cannot even express how much I love it! I told my stylist I wanted something brighter for summer, so she did put in this amazing orange with yellow highlights. I feel like I have superhero hair – in the sunlight, it’s practically neon in some spots (I wish the color showed up better in these photos!). It is awesome and I’m going to be so sad when it eventually washes out haha.

Tags: cabernet cardigan, cardigan, completed, kate spade, lemon, sbcc