Alexa's jumper

Has winter left yet? The blue skies and bright sunshine says yes, the biting cold wind and imminent snow, ice and sleet says no. Anyway, I'm totally over winter. I need some better light than this low winter sun, though I like the long shadows on days like this. I'm not terrifically keen on the illness though. We have been struck with norovirus this week, paint a big red cross on the door. Yesterday was spent in pyjamas, under blankets and enjoying DVDs, though my big one hated being absent from school. And neither of us were keen on waking in the night for, well, you know...

On Sunday, however, we were in fine health and attended the third birthday of my friend's lovely daughter, Alexa. I decided to make her this...

Isn't it cute? I love the neon trim (even if I do say so myself!) and the colours against the navy body and sleeves. The pattern is based on a Nicki Trench pattern from Cute and Easy Baby Clothes. It's actually a cardigan pattern, but to join it I simply slip stitched at the end of the row, turned and then went back the other way. It was inspired by the Alicia Paulson Mina Dress, which I've made a couple of times. But I wanted something more practical for Alexa, and something warm. I used a 4mm hook to size it up a little, as the sizes in the book only go up to a 24-36 months. However, Alexa is petite like her mama so this is a perfect fit for her.

The colours look better here

I used Stylecraft Special DK in the following shades:
Parchment
Walnut
Gold
Old Rose
Lime
Sherbet
Silver
Fiesta
And Midnight for the deep navy body and sleeves.

As you can see, I worked back and forth as per the cardigan pattern for the first seven rows, the started slip stitching the rows together before turning and working in the opposite direction. I added a ch10 loop for the button at the end of row 1, slip stitching to the row and securely tying it up with the tail ends of yarn. I sewed on a mother-of-pearl button, and just love it. I also added the double crochet rows in contrasting neon pink for extra pops of colour.

Now if only I could find a basic cardigan/sweater pattern for adults so I could make one for me...

xxx