Hurray for Baby Knits

It’s been a while since our circle of friends has welcomed a baby into the mix, but there’s another on the way, so I was delighted to delve into my list of favorite baby knits to find the right one to cast on for.

I settled on the Little Coffee Bean Cardigan by Elizabeth Smith. It is a classic raglan cardigan, and I feel that any baby deserves such a staple knit in their wardrobe. Yes he’ll grow out of it quickly, yes, it’ll be drooled on, but let’s be honest, is there anything cuter than a baby dressed in hand-knits?

My choice of color was dictated by the mom’s preference and once again, it’s a classic, a beautiful blue for a long awaited baby boy. I’ve been looking forward to this knit, as it should whip up quickly, and I need a satisfying knit at the moment. I’ve been working away on a design of my own for a bit, and it’s proven to be quite the exercise in patience, so a straight-forward, uncomplicated knitting experience is just what I need right now.

I have made a slight modification to the pattern in that instead of making it in plain stockinette I chose to add a bit of texture to the cardigan. I am using the twisted purl stitch to accomplish that. Easy enough I thought to myself, right? Well, as it turns out any "little" change can have a big impact. Yes, it looks lovely, however it turns out that this stitch pattern does not exactly work in the round. That stumped me for a moment, but then to my relief I remembered this genius post by Karen Templer , which saved my project for a reason not even mentioned in her list of benefits!

I am well on my way to finish this cardigan, just one time for the baby's imminent arrival! 

via Instagram