Bound Off: Twigs and Willows Cardigan

I spent a lot of time waiting to post this project, my completed Twigs and Willows cardigan, because I wanted to

a) find the right buttons

and

b) finish losing 15 pounds.

I finally came to terms with the fact that those 15 pounds weren't going anywhere fast, so I sewed the buttons on and thought skinny thoughts for the photos.

Pattern: Twigs and Willows, by Alana Dakos, from Botanical Knits
Size: 38
Yarn: Quince and Co. Owl , a 50/50 wool/alpaca blend, in Chamomile, 8 skeins
Needles: US 5 and7
Mods: none

This is the sweater I bought Botanical Knits for. I love everything about it: the slightly puffed sleeves, the drapey waist, the decorative yoke, and the rustic yarn. I even loved the color, as evidenced by my decision to use a very similar shade in my own sweater.

The sweater is designed to be worn with a few inches of positive ease--I don't so much have those few extra inches now, but it still looks ok, and will hopefully look even better as my new "stop eating things" plan takes hold.

And while I love the look of the yarn used in Alana's sample, I did not enjoy my previous experience working with Brooklyn Tweed Shelter, as I found it too weak, so I chose something a bit different and sturdier: Quince and Co. Owl. It's a 50/50 wool/alpaca blend with a slightly heathered look, and much softer to the touch than Shelter. I loved working with it for this project, and hope to use it again in the future.

And you're also getting a look at my new hair. As a child, my hair was white blond, but as the years passed, it slowly grew darker and darker--until I had JJ, at which point it just turned brown. Some people seemed to think this was intentional, as I've received a number of compliments on my "ombre" hair, but it actually wasn't--it was annoying. I tried dyeing it myself--twice since JJ was born--and absolutely NOTHING happened. So I finally broke down and had a professional do it.
Sort of.
I went to a Paul Mitchell school nearby, where my haircut and color cost a total of $45. That's a STEAL. On the downside, it took nearly FOUR hours. So much for my day off. But now my hair is blond both top and bottom, and I'm quite pleased with it. It took 2 and a half bowls of color--after she chopped half my hair off--so I guess that's why my at-home dyeing efforts didn't pan out--apparently I have a lot of hair.

(It's not at all reddish, as it appears in these photos, CP is just a lousy photographer. I need to get him trained.)