Named Esme Maxi Cardigan from the 'New Black' Collection

 

This scrummy-soft and super cosy cardi is the Esme Maxi Cardigan from Named Clothing's new pattern collection 'New Black'.

I was lucky enough to test two patterns from this collection, the Olivia Jersey Wrap Dress was the other pattern. I'm wearing the Olivia dress under the Esme cardigan in these pictures and it is blogged here.

Named Esme Maxi Cardigan

This is a stylishly slouchy cardigan with front pockets set down into a horizontal hip-height seam. The pockets are very similar to those in the Vogue 1247 skirt, except that they drape open a bit when not in use, ready for cold hands or chocolates. I chose to highlight them with a black pocket interior. 

My main fabric was from Knitwit. I spent ages deciding on which one to buy as there were so many lovely wool fabrics in there. In the end I chose this loopy boucle knit, which is a wool blend and machine washable. It is lovely to wear and was easy to work with. It was also a good weight for this project, not too thick for sewing the neckline and button band.

However, at $22.95/m it felt like a bit of a splurge to buy the 2.6m recommended for my size. I got out my pattern and consulted with the lady in the shop. We could see on the pattern layout diagram that there was some surplus fabric in the layout. The Knitwit lady said that the button stand could be placed across, rather than along, the grainline (depending on print direction) which would save fabric and allow this to be cut from 2m. I bought 2m, which turned out to be enough fabric. Phew! In the end I cut the button stand on grain in two pieces due to the direction of the weave. The looped fabric hides the join completely.

I love the oversized feel of this cardi. I made my usual size 40. There is plenty of scope to size down for a closer fit if someone wanted to do so.

Back to back!

Here is the cardigan buttoned up. I'm not sure why, but there seems to be some excess fabric on either side of the lower part of the button band causing it to fall in folds. I mentioned this in my feedback so it may have been fixed in the final version of the pattern. However, it could also have been my fault if the fronts stretched during construction compared to the interfaced button band. Something to keep in mind.

The only other thing I noted during construction was that the sleeves were too short for me. This was easily fixed as I just kept the cuffs turned down instead of folded back as intended. This may also have changed in the final version of the pattern.

Despite those minor issues, I am really pleased with this cardi. It is so lovely to wear. I wore it recently for a trip to the theatre and I felt like I was snuggled in a blanket for the whole performance! I think it looks good dressed up, as in these pictures, as well as flung over some skinny jeans for a more casual look. It's a winner!