The Zenia Cardigan

Yay! It's finished, it's finished, it's finished! I had to tweak the design for the sleeves a little but, on the whole, it actually came out the way I wanted it to. And, best of all, it fits Zenia perfectly; she seems quite pleased with the end result, which makes me feel much, much better. So, without further ado, 'ere eez zee pattern.

Gauge 6 sts/inch
Materials - Knit Picks Swish DK in Cornflower (MC)- 12 balls
Knit Picks Swish DK in White (CC)- 1 ball
Size 6 circular needles -36" and 70"
Size 3 DPNs (for the I-cords)
Tapestry needle, stitch markers, safety pins

Back: CO 120 sts. Work 5 rows of garter stitch; work 2 rows of stst, then begin working Fair Isle pattern (see chart below). Continue working in stst with MC until piece measures 12" from CO edge, then place markers to indicate the beginning of the armhole; continue working until piece measures 19" from CO edge--the armhole edge will measure 7" from marker. BO all stitches, placing markers to indicate first and last 40 sts.

Left Front: CO 60 sts. Work 5 rows of garter stitch; work 2 rows of stst, then work Fair Isle pattern. Resume working with MC until piece measures 12" from CO edge, ending with a WS row. Place marker. Begin decreasing 1 st at neck edge on every RS row 16 times-there will be 44 sts left; decrease 1 st at neck edge every 4 rows 4 times-there will be 40 sts left. Work evenly until piece measures 19" from CO edge. BO all sts.

Right Front: Work as for Left Front, but decrease at neck edge on WS rows.

Sleeves: Make 2. CO 110 sts. Work 2 rows of garter sts, then 2 rows of stst; on the next row, dec 1 st at each end of the needle (108 sts remain). Dec 1 st at each end of needle every 6 (work the decreases on RS row) rows 9 times more (90 sts remain). Continue working evenly until piece measures 19". BO all sts.

Finishing: Block pieces if you feel it's necessary. Sew shoulder seams; sew side seams to the markers. Sew sleeve seams and attach sleeves to the body of the sweater. Pick up stitches around the neck and front edges of the sweater using the longer circular needles and knit 4 rows of garter stitch. BO all sts. With DPNs, make 2 I-cords about 12" long; sew these to the bottom corner of the neckline, one on the front and one on the left.
Weave in ends.