Cardigan - last SWAP piece

Yes, I have finally finished all of my pieces for the Timmel SWAP. My friend Maureen is helping me with all the photography (hopefully) this weekend. These pictures were taken at dusk, so they're a little dark, but you can still get the idea. I really like this cardigan and can see that I will wear it a lot.























What I don't like is the fabric. I don't remember it being said that it was dry clean only, and the first time I washed it, it pilled both inside and out. I didn't think it looked that bad at first - no, actually, I hated it the moment I saw it. I put it aside for a moment and later on I thought, I guess it's not that bad. But it is that bad. It looks old and worn to me.

Another thing I wish I would have done that the pattern did not call for, is to add interfacing to the front bands. They look a little limp and would have really benefited from some fusi-knit.'








I tried out the stretch buttonhole on my sewing machine and like the way it turned out. A couple of weeks ago, I was talking to the woman in the quilt shop. We were talking about twin needle stitching. I told her how my fabric always makes a ridge with twin needle, even though I adjust the tension. She suggested using water soluble stabilzer and to spray it first with spray adhesive to make it stick to the fabric. "It comes right off and doesn't leave any marks," she assured me. Well, I haven't done any twin needle yet, but decided to try it with these buttonholes. I LOVE the way this works. I have used stabilizer with buttonholes before, but it always seems to move out of place even when pinned. This was the perfect solution. The stabilzer tears right off and then I used a wet washcloth to remove the rest. The adhesive spray is called "505" and worth every penny of the $12.99 I paid for it.