Stylearc Harper in Marc Jacobs Merino Knit

I was in The Fabric Store a few weeks back and spotted a piece of Marc Jacobs merino knit in this lovely plaid knit.  It came in two colour ways, the second being pink and orange.  I chose the red and navy blue.   I new immediately what I would be making with it.  I just didn't know quite how I would go about it.  

I bought my fabric home and immediately threw it in the washing machine on a warm wash.  Shock horror!  I washed the fabric!  Everything I wear needs to be washed.  I don't do dry cleaning if I can help it.  By washing it first, I was guaranteed to be able to always wash it.  It shrank a lot but I have been rewarded with a lovely thick finished product.

This particular fabric is not very stretchy so for this version  of Stylearc Harper, I stuck with the seam allowances as drafted.  I also added darts in the back to counteract my sway back, something I wouldn't normally do with a knit, especially a cardigan.  Once again I added 9cm to the length of the jacket both in the front and back.

The edges on the jacket are not supposed to be finished.  They are mean't to be left raw.  I just can't deal with that so for this cardigan because of the thickness of the fabric and practicalities of turning and topstitching, I finished my edges with a 3 thread overlocking stitch.  This gives the edges a nice finish without being overly visible.

I love the resulting cardigan and wear it a lot.  It is particularly handy for work where 2 walls of glass in my office mean mornings can be quite cold.

As tempting as it is to make another jacket/cardigan in black, I have now retired this pattern for this season for fear of too much of a good thing.