I made my very first sweater a year ago. Unfortunately I wasn’t aware of how different fibers breathed (or didn’t!) and I made it out of bulky wt 100% acrylic. I like the sweater but it’s too hot! I want to convert it into a cardigan but I don’t want to totally frog it. What can I do? I also have about 150-200 yds left of the yarn I used. (LB Jiffy)
You might want to look into steeking, though I’m not sure how well it’d work with acrylic. There’s a sticky for it on the forum, as well as an extensive series of articles on it that starts here.
Thanks for all the info! Can a steek be done after a sweater is finished? From reading the articles it seems that you have to plan for the steek as you knit. :shrug:
Having never done steeks before, I think that you could cut right down the middle after having reinforced the edges. You could then pick up and knit a button band on either side of the opening. You might want to take a look at this to get the idea of how to use steeking to make a cardigan, though I think you’d want to use a sewing machine rather than a crochet needle since acrylic isn’t as “sticky” as wool and would undoubtedly require more reinforcement to keep from unraveling.
P.S. You probably want to practice with swatches before even touching the sweater.
As long as the stitches are very secure before you cut, you can cut and add a button band. The type of yarn doesn’t make all that much difference–the Shetland wool supposedly can be cut without sewing, but you’d have to sew secure the edge with crochet to secure acrylic.
I think I remember one of Glampyre’s free patterns is a cardigan knit top down in the round and there was nothing different done to prepare for cutting. Check it out and see her instructions.
sue