Taos Cardigan

2009 Taos Wool Festival

When we were at the Wool Festival in Taos, New Mexico last October, I bought a lot of the most beautiful sport-weight yarn called Plain and Fancy. The Plain and Fancy Sheep and Wool Company is located in Henderson, Texas. They really don't have an online presence, it seems that they only sell at festivals around the country. Their yarn is beautiful and comes in the most exquisite colors. I picked up some blues, blacks, greens, grays and a few skeins of variegated.

I must have started at least three different cardigans with this blue yarn until I finally found the "9 to 5 Shrug" online. It's a simple, top-down construction. I do not wear shrugs, but it was simple to lengthen the sleeves and body from this pattern. I used a size "H" crochet hook. When I bought the darker blue yarn (3 skeins was all they had in stock), I knew I would need a fourth skein for a full-size cardigan, so I bought one skein of lighter blue. I striped the yoke of the cardigan to make the dark yarn go a bit further. After finishing the body and the sleeves, I added a border in the light blue. I switched to a lacy shell pattern for the body and the sleeves. Next time I crochet this pattern, I'll add in a few more stitches to the top-down construction so I don't have to add such a wide border.

I did not soak this sweater. I merely blocked it a bit with my steam iron. I love the lightness and comfort of this sweater. It's all about the yarn! I wish I was in Taos right now!