Cocoon Cardigan

I can never have too many cardigans. I wear one almost every single day to work so I’m always on the lookout for a new pattern to try. I decided to give the Patterns for Pirates Cocoon Cardigan a try this weekend and I think I found another pattern to add to my rotation!

The Pattern

The Cocoon Cardigan is a dolman style cardigan with a curved neckband and hem line. It comes with a variety of options including 2 lengths – cropped or tunic length, 2 sleeve lengths – long or short, and optional patch pockets, inseam pockets, elbow patches, tall or short collars, and hemmed or cuffed sleeves (with two cuff lengths). So, you can really make this cardigan with any look you prefer!

I wear a cardigan like this almost every day. In the past, I’ve been a big fan of the Julia Cardigan from Mouse House Creations – which I still love – but this uses a lot less fabric and comes together a little bit quicker. I also like that the tunic length on the Cocoon Sweater is longer than the Julia Cardigan. The Cocoon Cardigan uses about 2 yards of fabric in the version I made while the Julia Cardigans I’ve made in the past use about 3 yards of fabric beacuse of the double fold-over band.

The Cocoon Cardigan also features a dolman sleeve which is becoming one of my favorite sleeves to sew. It’s just so easy! I also think it adds a relaxed visual detail.

With all that being said, I had two things I really didn’t love about the pattern. I didn’t love that for all the band pieces there weren’t pattern pieces for them. Included in the instructions is a chart of the dimensions of the rectangle to cut and how many to cut. Obviously, that’s a lazy sewist in me, but it’s not my favorite way for patterns to be formatted. Also, the instructions were pictures instead of illustrations, which I find really hard to follow. Fortunately, the construction on this is very simple so it wasn’t a big deal!

The Cardigan

I should just start and end this section by saying – I love it. And, I’m going to make many more – in solids, in patterns, in everything. So….that’s all?

Just kidding – I’ll add more! I really love how easy this cardigan is to wear and it’s a nice layering piece as we cross into the Fall season. The curved bands and hem are probably my favorite part.

Next time, I’ll make the sleeves 3/4 length (I somehow missed that option in this version) because the kong sleeves are too long on me!

I sewed the entire cardigan on the serger with the exception of top stitching down the neckband. I’ve skipped that step in the past and I think taking the time to do that helps make the garment feel finished.

When I sew knits with the serger I love to use Wonder Clips instead of pins. They’re a lot easier to use than pins with knits and they prevent me from accidentally serging through a pin….

The Fabric

I used this rayon spandex knit from Sly Fox Fabrics. This fabric is so soft and comfy! I actually put this sweater on to take photos on Sunday and ended up wearing it the rest of the evening because it was so soft. The pattern calls for knit with at least 20% stretch and knits with a softer drape like sweater knits or knits with rayon in the blend – so I would say this fit the bill! Because the fabric was so drapey, the bands are very drapey, which I don’t mind, but a more stable knit would keep their shape a little more on the bands. This was my first order form Sly Fox Fabrics and it definitely won’t be my last!

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COCOON CARDIGAN SUMMARY:

Size Made: Small

View:  Tunic Length, Full Length Sleeves, Short Cuffs and Small Band

Fabric Used: Rayon Spandex Knit from Sly Fox Fabrics

Notions Used: Schmetz Jersey Needles, Wonder Clips

Ease of Construction: It’s a simple to sew sweater, although the instructions weren’t my favorite.

Fit: Perfect fit!

Repeatable? Yes! So many more planned for the fall and winter.

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