Who doesn’t like cardigans? I wish I could knit and make all the dreamy cozy cardigans available to humans who know how to knit, but as I don’t I am settling for the ones I can sew. Thankfully, Helen designed the Blackwood cardigan to make a life for someone like me easier so I can still make my little heart happy and make what I imagine in my head a reality.

Blackwood Cardigan by Helen’s Closet comes in two variations but you can always play beyond limits and make it longer, shorter, wider, prettier, unique.  I made two very different cardigans from the same pattern and in the same type of fabric. One is long, dark, shielding. The other is short, bright, entertaining.

I love both black and color at the same time. Black feels safe and powerful in its own way. I wanted to sew a long cardigan for a while and I finally made one. Went to a local store and got 2 meters of black Ponte di Roma fabric. Came home, pre-washed it, cut it, sewed it, and voila!

I cut it out in a size M. I sized up from previous versions and that was a good decision. The first two I made in a lighter stretchier fabrics so it was fine to cut size S for them. Now I wanted a somewhat fitted but at the same time loose cardigan. Not sure if I pooled it off but I like it. I made the front band double the width, lengthened the whole thing by as far as I could to use up all the fabric I had. Shortened the sleeves by 3 or 4 cm as they are extra long, at least for my arms. I added pockets from version A, because – pockets!

Then I instantly felt I needed some color on me, asap. So I went back to the cutting table and cut out a short version (variation A) in yellow Ponte di Roma fabric. Cut the front band double the width, shortened the sleeves by 2 cm, and cut the sides of front and back straight (not curved as in the pattern). I wanted to see if this would give a looser (oversized?) feel. There is another precious fabric I want to sew into a cardigan and I was testing this option for it. If I decide I don’t like it I can easily take it in.

I like this shade of yellow. It really is a happy color. I actually bought these fabrics on the same day in the same shop with the idea to make them into the same pattern. Funny how different pattern variations and colors give a different feel to the whole outfit.

For those interested, you can see my first two versions here and here.

Thanks for reading and happy sewing!

Ana