With the big bad steek behind you, all that’s left is the button placket, a piece of cake.
Picking up the button placket is pretty straightforward (detailed instructions on the original pattern).
You may notice that on the right side of the steek/left side of the sweater, some of the stitches you’re using for your pick-up are less distinct than on the other side. (I’m guessing the stitches get tugged more when you’re reinforcing from the hem up than from the collar down?) While it doesn’t distort the fabric or the steek, it can make picking up every other stitch troublesome in spots. If this is your experience, don’t sweat it. As long as you’re essentially picking up every other stitch, you’re fine (that is, if you pick up stitches 1, 3, 4, 7, and 9 instead of 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9, your sweater won’t explode).
The crocheted buttonholes are one of my favorite details of this sweater. I’m sure I’m not the first one to dream these up, but I un-vented them for my first steeked cardigan, when I just could not produce the buttonholes I wanted in a doubled placket. In frustration, I finally just knit the plackets plain and crocheted a row along the edge, and I loved the result.
The beauty of these buttonholes is that you don’t have to choose your buttons until you’re done with the sweater. You can make them any size and any spacing. And best of all, you can change your mind later, and the only adjustment you’d need to make would be to frog and rework one little old row of slip-stitch crochet. (For this reason, I recommend leaving a long tail at either end–you can just tack the end down once or twice and draw the length of it into the inside of the placket.)
Now to the fun stuff…
Pet Sally Cardigan
Last week, I worked a test superwash steek on a cat sweater and promised I’d give you the mods to make one.
This sweater used an entire ball of the MC and about 80-90% of the 97-yd ball of CC, but due to my poor planning, that included a button placket in the CC. If you reduce the ribbing at the neck and sleeves and leave off the last repeat (detailed in the notes below), you should have enough for the button placket. Otherwise, you’ll need 2 balls of MC to finish the button placket. Note: if you’re using Sheffield, you’ll be fine without conserving, the ball has more yardage.
These notes will cover a medium cat or a fairly wee dog, an 8 -10 pound animal, but you can extrapolate from there for a bigger animal. The basics: you’ll continue the increases just as you normally would, and use roughly the same proportions below when you divide for sleeves – note that the sleeves are bigger, back and front and not the same size, and you CO almost as many stitches under the arms as you transferred aside. Make sure you transfer sleeve stitches and CO in multiples of 4 so the pattern continues smoothly.
You’ll need to be familiar with the Sally Cardigan pattern for this to make sense. Reference it for details on the ribbing, pattern stitch, etc.
Needles
16-inch circulars in US 6 and 5 (or the same size you used in your human sweater)
US 5 (or one size smaller than regular needles ) for sleeve ribbing (or use longer circular for magic loop)
Yarn
2 50g balls of worsted yarn
Note: If your ball has around 100yds/50g (e.g. Valley Yarns Valley Superwash, shown), you’ll either need to follow the yarn-conserving notes or have an extra ball of MC. If you’ve got a 120yd/50g ball (e.g., Valley Yarns Sheffield, original Sally yarn) you’ll be able to get the front placket out of the MC without conserving.
CO 53 st (48 for 12 honeycombs + 1 for the opposite edge + 4 for the steek) with MC and smaller circulars.
Join in the rnds and work 5 rnds K1 P1 ribbing (or 3 rnds if you’re conserving MC yarn).
Switch to larger circulars and work rnds 1-9 of the Yoke Honeycomb Pattern and the first increase (the one for XS – M only, with a M1 every 4 sts) – 65 sts.
Work rnds 1 – 9 , and next increase (with 5 sts between M1) – 77 sts.
Work rnds 1 – 9.
Divide for sleeves
K 6 for front, transfer 20 to waste yarn, CO 16 for armpit, K 20 for back, transfer 20 to waste yarn for other sleeve, CO 16 for other armpit, K 7 for other side of front and 4 for steek panel – 69 sts.
Begin Body Honeycomb Pattern. Work 4 full repeats (3 if you’re conserving MC yarn).
Switch to smaller needles and work 8 rnds K1 P1 ribbing in MC (or 5 rnds to conserve yarn) and BO in pattern.
Transfer sleeve stitches to dpns and PU 14 sts along armpit CO sts (1 for each PU st + 1 in either side gap).
Work 5 rnds K1 P1 ribbing (3 if you’re conserving MC yarn) and BO in pattern.
Steek, pick up the button placket, and work buttonholes as directed, adjusting spacing and hole size to the number and size of buttons you’ve chosen.
Put it on your unwilling victim, who will initially be very displeased:
But who will, hopefully, eventually come around:
Thanks to everyone who joined us for this knit-along! Feel free to post any questions to the Sally KAL group on ravelry.
I’m going to put together a smashing prize basket and hold a drawing from everyone who finishes by the end of June (thought we could all use some wiggle room). To enter the drawing, post your FO to this thread in the ravelry Sally KAL forum.
And I’ve leave you with a link to a beautiful assortment of WIP and FO from the KAL group! (Check out donasofia’s short-sleeved Sally: love it!)
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