Cardiff Coat by Jennifer Wood

Cardiff Coat

Knitting
Super Bulky (5-6 wpi) ?
9 stitches and 12 rows = 4 inches
in stockinette with smaller needles
US 15 - 10.0 mm
810 - 1485 yards (741 - 1358 m)
29 (32 3/4, 35 1/4, 49 3/4, 55, 59 1/2)
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This pattern is available from interweave.com for $7.99.

Finished Size: 29 (32¾, 35¼, 49¾, 55, 59½)“ bust circumference, buttoned. Cardigan shown measures 32¾”. 


Yarn: Blue Sky Alpacas Bulky (50% alpaca, 50% wool; 45 yd 41 m/3½ oz 100 g): #1002 silver mink, 18 (20, 21, 28, 31, 33) skeins. 


Needles: Body and sleeves—size 15 (10_mm): 40” circular (cir) and set of double-pointed (dpn). I-cord edging—size 17 (12.75 mm): Two dpn. Adjust needle size if necessary to obtain the correct gauge. 


Notions: Markers (m); stitch holders; cable needle (cn); waste yarn for provisional CO; tapestry needle; five 1” buttons. 


Gauge: 9 sts and 12 rows = 4” in St st on smaller needle; Yoke C cable plus 5 rev St sts = 4¼“ wide.

I love the idea of reversible cables and thought it would be interesting to create a sweater that used both reversible cables and the more traditional one sided cables. This sweater coat starts with reversible cables in the collar which transition to one sided cables in the yoke of the sweater. It is worked flat from the top down in rounded yoke style. This means no seams to sew and you can try it on as you knit, making it easy to fit you perfectly. Also the length and button hole placement can easily be adjusted. Another way the fit can be adjusted is through the blocking. If you do a light blocking the coat will be more form fitted than if you do a more stretched blocking. Knitting this many cables can be tedious, but I have a tutorial on knitting cables without a cable needle on my blog here; this is the method I used and I found it easier and faster than working with a cable needle.

This pattern may seem a bit confusing and random. I wanted to design it in a way that the increases were not apparent and not one of the design elements. My desire was for the purl sections and cables to seamlessly increase along the length of the sweater. After trying many different ways I settled on the method and placement of increases I used in the pattern. There are extra increases placed in the raglan area to give a more flattering fit to the rounded yoke and a smoother transition to the division of the sleeves. This pattern is designed to have up to 2-3 inches of negative ease if desired.
The pattern is sized in two sections that correspond to each other, the first three sizes xs, s, m have 7 cables, the second 3 sizes l, xl ,xxl have 11 cables. The purl sections in between the cables have different numbers of stitches depending on the size. I have written modifications for more sizes on my blog, here.

I have also post modifications and answers to some of the most asked questions in the KAL thread:
http://www.ravelry.com/discuss/wood-house-knits-group/1811912/1-25