Inspiration
Dana’s Edit: For the Love of Cardigans
The other day I saw an article criticizing Gwen Walz’s style because she was wearing a cardigan.
If you don’t know, Gwen Walz is the wife of the Vice Presidential nominee Tim Walz, and putting politics aside, criticizing what women wear always rubs me the wrong way. I get that clothes say something, but whose standards are we judging women by?
But what really rubbed me the wrong way was describing her cardigan as frumpy. A cardigan? Frumpy? The nerve!
When I choose knitting projects, I often have a theme. Sometimes I have projects that I have just been queuing up and waiting for the right time. Sometimes I have gaps in my wardrobe I want to fill. Sometimes I am on a kick and only want a certain color. This year has been my year of cardigans, coincidentally.
I live in Maryland, where winters are not severe and I just need a lighter layer sometimes. I also teach and find that my classrooms are usually big spaces filled with big windows to let in all the light but always leave me sweating.
I need layers when I’m dressing for work. Why not share some of the cardigans I’ve made this year (and still have in my queue) because none of these are frumpy to me.
Baseline Cardigan by Susanne Sommer
I love clever construction of a cardigan and the Baseline Cardigan is knit sideways!
Knitting sideways is one of my favorite things. Few patterns use that design technique so whenever I see a pattern knit sideways, I add it to my library.
What I like about this pattern (and Susanne’s patterns in general) is how many options you have for the finished cardigan. There are three different necklines, options for body length, and even a fun way to colorblock!
For my version I decided I would do one half of the body in stripes and the other solid and then alternate the sleeves. I wore this as the year moved into spring.
Rosemary Cardigan by Amy Christoffers
I loved the deep collar on the Rosemary Cardigan as soon as I saw it. The construction was also unique. You knit the collar first, then the button bands as you go.
I knit this cardigan in March. I used a recycled fiber that didn’t have lot of wool in it so it was truly a transitional sweater I can wear all year. But I also think this would be incredibly lovely knit up in MDK’s Atlas yarn in Citron or Pear to help brighten up the winter days.
Corran Cardigan by Rebecca Clow
This is another pattern with lots of options (I like a choose-your-own-adventure style knit). You can choose between a v-neck or a crew neck cardigan and long sleeves or short sleeves.
I opted for the v-neck with long sleeves and can’t wait to pull this one back out in the fall. The lace pattern is easy to memorize and works up quickly in a worsted weight yarn.
And what’s next on my list?
Image from shinysuperhero
The Last Cardigan by Shiny Superhero
I don’t intend to knit it with as much positive ease because I like my cardigans to be closer fitting. But this is an intarsia project I’ve been wanting to knit for a long time so I can practice my newly learned intarsia skills.
So here’s to knitting more cardigans in 2024, even if journalists think it’s frumpy. Who’s with me?
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I am. Thank you for the fabulous cardigan suggestions. I’m test knitting a fun intarsia one now In Philadelphia I find cardigans great for seasonal layering
I am also on a cardigan kick! I prefer a v neck and am thrilled that the weather is changing so I can wear the first one I’ve knit with specially dyed yarn I bought in Maine last autumn in a rustic orangie bronze. First words out of my young hip daughter in law was – I want one! Classic, functional, and flattering – all hail the cardigan! Dana – You have expanded my list of patterns to try – thank you!
Cardigans are Classic!! They never go out of style. Love knitting them.
Wow Dana, these are as “not frump” as can be… Stylish, classy and inspiring, just like their maker! Time for this knitter to move back to cardigans!
And the crowd cheers “ cardigan! Cardigan!”
Seriously though, I have one every day with me. As I have hit a temperature sensitive point in my life (ye old menopause) the cardigan is my best friend at work. I also have wool and pines Voyage cardigan set to knit once my current sweater is off the needles. So frumpy is the new black for me apparently.
Thank you, Dana! Another cardigan fan- great for my post- menopausal temperature swings! I love the patterns you pick and the versatility in choosing different necklines! You had me on you London -themed sweater that you wrote about a few months ago! Keep knitting because you keep inspiring!
I live in a very cold climate and that means a very cold outdoor but very heated indoor spaces, so a cardigan paired with my scrubs is always welcomed. Love your choice of colours!!!!
Dana! The dress under your baseline cardigan has little yellow blocks that look like knitting! Your wardrobe supports your knitting so beautifully! Also, I’ve been knocking around for the next cardigan. Thanks for this!! Now to choose!
I agree with you completely. Nothing frumpy at all! Classic dressing. It can easily be worn instead of a blazer, in fact, and keeps you warmer. (I’m from the Northern US)
I’m with you, always! Always so inspiring!!
Not frumpy! Definitely not! Between Maryland weather, hot flashes, and air conditioning, cardigans are a life saver. They are also dressier and more flattering than a pullover. Let me find that reporter!
Cardigans are the way to go….easy on, easy off! I have worn them for decades and always have one on my knitting needles. My ideal cardigan is an oversized mohair from the 60s and I rate movies on the number of good cardigans in them. Thanks for a great start to the day.
Love your movie rating scheme!
I love cardigans too. I am knitting my first sideways: Letho and am loving the experience. New skills and a beautiful syle! Thanks for standing up for cardigans!
Brooklyn Tweed has some beautiful cardigan patterns! I live in the Tamarack I knit at the start of the pandemic (and there’s a shaped version if you like a closer fit). It’s the most “boyfriend sweater” looking sweater I have knit, and definitely doable knit up in chunky yarn. Also: the patch pockets are your gauge swatches!
I love your suggestions that were not on my radar screen at all until I read your post!
Not frumpy at all! Smart, stylish and fun. You and your cardigans.
I’m with you 110%, Dana! Living in Wisconsin, I love the versatility of the cardigan. Always get compliments on my Daft Days cardigan and my 8+ year old Hiro.
The yellow cardigan (and your outfit, Dana) is SO happy!! Beautiful cardigans – thank you for sharing them.
Sweaters… FRUMPY???
LOLOLOLOLOL…
All of Hollywood’s sweater girls including Lana Turner, Jayne Mansfield and of course, Marilyn Monroe, laughed all the way to the bank in their not-so-frumpy sweaters.
I laugh too, but maybe not to the bank… at least, not so far.
I love seeing how you style your cardigans—what you wear with them. The combinations are beautiful!
i’ve always loved cardis for all the reasons you cite. plus, if you wear makeup, it won’t get on your sweater when you take it off/put it on 🙂 .
thx for some new additions to my rav faves!
I absolutely LOVE cardigans—fingering weight to bulky, you can always express your personal style in ways that are much more than frump (ex, interesting button bands, motifs tucked into the back hem, etc). As so many have pointed out, they are super versatile and adaptable. One day, that reporter will see how wrong he/she/they were. I’ll be there with a cool cardigan.
Gwen Walz is a public school teacher and cardigans are the perfect knit for that job as temperatures in a classroom fluctuate like crazy. Shame on anyone who judges her wardrobe choice!
Absolutely! But I’m so bad at picking up stitches!!
Great article; so beautiful are your knitting outcomes! I wear my cardigans as pullovers with the design and buttons serving as part of the decoration, if you will.
Thank you
Dana, I love your cardigan choices…but what I love most is your contagious SMILE in all of the pictures.
I love your style! Not only in clothes but in home decor! Want to see ALL of your rooms!
Here in FL cardigans are a must going in and out of heat and Air Conditioning all day long. Pulling a sweater on and off over my head just wouldn’t cut it. I have been on a cardigan kick every since I moved back here 3 years ago and I haven’t stopped.
I’m soooo with you! Cardigans are the best. And the Corran Cardigan is now in my queue–thanks!
Thanks for these lovely suggestions. Cardigans are the perfect choice for my Virginia climate and I love knitting them in linen.
Frumpy? Do we even need that word?
You and your cardigans are beautiful and happy-making. Although, I imagine that cardigans don’t work so well on cats or dogs.
You are so right, the word frumpy should disappear.
Hurrah for all these beautiful cardigans – thanks Dana! (And thank you for having done a brilliant job as a moderator!)
Dana, I always really enjoy reading about your knitting life. Plus, your smarts and smile are a pleasure to behold. I am wowed by the color of your Rosemary Cardigan! I would love an article about your button choices and perhaps see some of them up close.
I absolutely love cardigans! Here in South Carolina we never wear coats so a cardigan is perfect for cooler days. I have several in my queue. My next one may be an allover cable. But I do it like the Rosemary, I think that one is in my favorites, along with the Pressed Flowers cardigan. I love all of Amy’s designs. As far as the press making judgments on women’s dressing, you never hear them comment on how a man dresses. I think it’s such a double standard. Let’s just stick to what in their heads not what on their bodies!
I love cardigans! I am also from Maryland, on the Bay side, so I hear you about heavy wool. (If I lived in Garrett County maybe I would want the Aran weight sweaters!) The cardigans you have knitted are beautiful, and makes me want to knit them all.
Thanks for a great column.
Cardigans, frumpy? Not in the least! Thank you for sharing those you’ve knit this year.
Hi Dana! I must be with you because half of these cardi patterns are in my Ravelry library. I love your baseline!
Also, journalists have no place saying stuff like this unless they are literally covering a fashion related event. Sheesh!
Three cheers for cardigans!!! I am so with you – I love a great cardigan. They serve as jackets, pseudo-blazers, layered pieces, with or without something underneath. They dress up or down. They warm you up and allow to cool down by removing them. They are all purpose – and that doesn’t even touch on the myriad of choices of colors, patterns, collar styles, and fabulous buttons. Cardigans are the best!
Your sweaters are always so colorful and your smile so bright. Thanks for your insight on the various cardigans. I like the last one too and have added it to my “one day” list. I really like the shorter version and I am with you in regards to positive ease.
I so enjoy your essays. All the best. Priscilla
As usual you wrote another great article with fabulous patterns. I am a dog lover but this political agenda has me wanting to wear a cardigan and love on a cat. . I love cardigans.
When I worked in an office i had to have a cardigan, winter or summer. Those are gorgeous Dana and you NEVER look frumpy! I made my Chore Jacket Cardigan in model size, but now I want one for ME!
Ugh to the Cut article, and hooray for Gwen Walz. I think she will make an exemplary Second Lady.
If you like sideways knit cardigans, Dana, have a look at Ambah O’Brien’s Radvent. https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/radvent-cardigan
She has another sideways pattern in testing, though that one is a pullover.
Always good to see your posts!
Don’t forget to check out the stunning patterns by Carol Sunday in https://sundayknits.com/cardigans.html. Really gorgeous and a wide variety of styles.
Thanks for this. Beautiful cardigans.
I am knitting Lithia Cardi right now. The method through me at first but it is genious!!
Thanks for the link which I checked out. Beautiful stuff! Most look complicated but love looking at them.
Love love love your cardigans. They are beautiful and functional! A perfect midwest answer to dressing appropriately. (I’m from Wisconsin )
I love cardigans for all the reasons others have mentioned. The news feeds on itself. I rarely watch it but when I do, even if the weather channel, there seems to be some dress code for women that mostly consists of very tight dresses & spike heals so maybe they think the rest of world should dress like that. No thanks.
Ha! Darn autocorrect: Heels not heals
Fit makes the difference between fabulous and frumpy. Your writing indicates that you always pay attention to how your sweaters fit. And you chose yarns that create the right structure. Beyond that, your personal style always shines through in your color and design choices. These thoughtful and deliberate choices make a sweater uniquely yours.
The article from The Cut is actually quite favorable and informative. It actually celebrates the cardigan as part of a larger discussion around how women in politics cultivate a pubic image.
I’m with you. I love cardigans. Especially as a woman of a certain age. Easy to peel off when needed and can be tossed over shoulders. Even great in hot weather states where inside AC is freezing . My 2nd grade teacher wore simple Banlon cardigans and had a collection of the decorative “chains” with clips to hold her cardigan together. Still love that look! So Fifties!
What, we revere Mister Rogers in his cardigan but Mrs. Waltz is frumpy!?
Same ol’ double standard. 😉
Cardigans are a staple in my closet too, including linen ones for the summer.
Thanks for more ideas here–love the innovation on the Baseline! Dana, you can’t do frumpy no matter how hard you might try.
Dana, your sweaters are always so cute and bright. I am amazed at the quantity you achieve in a year. can’t wait to see the intarsia sweater too.
I’m with you! I LOVE cardigans. When I lived in the Atlanta area, they were a must, for regulating body temperatures. They will always be my favorite, although a pullover is great for really cold weather, under a down jacket. Frumpy? No frumpier than a blazer or a jacket!
Field Guide 28 is currently within easy reach. Buttons due to arrive Saturday to audition and determine “which one first?” Thanks for ongoing inspirations.
Love You! Love your style! You wear cardigans so well that it inspires me to knit one for myself. Thank you 😉
Love your comments and love cardigans! They work so well for layering and easy to put on or take off as needed. I say very classy
I am looking for my next cardigan. You have given me great ideas to choose from
I’m with you!!! Cardigans are awesome – and nobody needs to be commenting on the style choices of women in politics or anywhere else. you inspired me in an earlier column to try the Corran cardigan, and i am loving it!! I used a bright Spincycle yarn, and i am really enjoying seeing the color changes as i speed along with the easy-to-follow lace pattern. I learned steeking on the Dissent cardigan last year, and am seriously considering converting several pullover projects in my stash into cardigans with steeking.
I love all three of your cardigans!
I’m a retired librarian and everyone knows: librarians love cardigans! I brought two cardigans home with me when I retired, a light one for typical drafty days and a big bulky Aran for those cold-to-the-bone days. Now, with winter approaching and time on my hands, I’m contemplating my next knitting project. I think I hear Rosemary calling my name…
Dana, I love all your articles! I’m glad you mentioned fit because I know I should aim for the kind of fit you attain on your cardigans, but I’m always erring on the side of too much ease. The green shawl-neck cardigan, for instance–how much ease does that have, do you remember? It looks great on you. (They all do.)
Thanks for all of the pattern recommendations! I too seem to be on a trend of cardigan knitting right now.
My 86 year old former public school teacher mother made a crack about Gwen Walz’s cardigan to me, and I nearly lost it! “It looked like something a teacher would wear,” and I replied “SO WHAT!” I thought she looked great. Long live cardigans, I say. I’m always cold from too little heat or too much air conditioning, so I rarely go anywhere without one.
Love your cardigans!! I always love your smile. It’s makes me feel so joyful to read and see your cardigans. Not Frumpy!! You are so right about who’s judging what women wear. I’m in my 70s, so I wear what feels good and hopefully looks good also. I love the Baseline Cardigan and the orange one also!!
Keep writing about your knitting projects!!
Thanks, Dana, for showing all these ideas. Cardigans here in Baltimore, that’s for sure, close fitting or oversized. Love the way the citron one came out, very classy. My own favorite–Norwegian Roses–is so old that I need to make a new one. I like putting a big cardi over a turtleneck and not wearing a coat. Cheers!
Yay! Love cardigans. Not frumpy at all! Thank you for some new-to -me patterns to look into knitting.
Dana is the best!
Love your cardigans!!! And mine ❤️
The cardigan is my favorite sweater and I’ll be looking into the Rosemary cardigan today! Thanks for sharing.
I’m so with you, Dana! Both for those who judge what people wear (frumpy????? WHAAAAAT!?!) (With the extra added affront at the swing at Gwen Walz) and my own love of cardigans. I live in the more wintery Northeast but often find myself bubbling with estrogen-depletion and need to strip. The cardigan just protects the general public — no one wants to see that.
I Love a good cardigan.
I have always loved cardigans, maybe even more so in recent years as winters here in Southern Maine are no longer way-below-zero frigid. Last winter I could go out with just a long-sleeve tee and a comfy wool cardigan instead of a jacket (and never mind parkas!) on many days.
Greetings to Jellybean, I think that’s her in the next room (with that spiffy red sweater) in the photo of you in your Rosemary Cardigan… which may have to go on my lengthening queue.
Cardigans are a necessity for where I live, especially in the spring and fall and in the summer when you’re in an over-air-conditioned office as I often am. Yours are lovely and I will be knitting one.
Love it!
I’m with you, Dana! I looovve a Cardigan! They are not frumpy, they are CLASSIC and CLASSY!
Cardigans ARE the best. And you have made GORGEOUS ones! They look great on you and I love the styling! Well done and thanks for setting the record straight.!
All lovely, all winners!
Thanks DWJ! I love cardigans and these are gems. I was especially struck by Amy Christoffer’s; I’m wearing her Pressed Flowers now. I also loved the Corran and gasped when I saw the pattern for ShinySuperHero’s. So lovely.
Thanks also for the wonderful Makers for Kamala Zoom meeting. It was wonderful to be in the company of so many like-minded people and friends.
I meant to mention that I admired how you did a very hard job (moderating) so gracefully, keeping things to time but letting people have their say. Bravo.
Some great ideas here. Cardigans are extremely useful when the weather is changeable. It is much easier to take on or off and their are options for everyone!
Yes! Hooray for the cardigan! (Whoever criticized cardigans has obviously never lived through hot flashes…) Loving that first one especially!
I love cardigans! I have the Corran Cardigan pattern and your lovely version has inspired me to cast on.
Yeah, I’m with you! I don’t wear any jackets, give me cardigans any time. I love the comfort, the style, the colors and the myriad of possibilities they offer. There are definitely more cardigans in my knitting future.
Yes! Both to loving cardigans, my favourite knitting, and refusing to criticize women’s clothing choices, especially women in politics.
You’ve shown us amazing variety.
Loved your Cardigan article! I can relate ’cause I am a cardigan gal vs. shawls. Fabulous work and wonderful suggestions.
I’m in! I have been eyeing the Granny cardigan by Joji Locatelli and checking the colors of a favorite yarn that is *so* soft.
Speaking of colors: your color game is EXCEPTIONAL. I get vibes of fun, joyousness, and sophistication. Something to keep in mind as I plan!
I think it’s amazing that media still feel the need to continually comment on women’s clothing. Rarely men’s. So weird. Like I care what they think. One of the more humorous things happening these days is that actresses are beginning to respond to those sort of questions in a manner that reveals the inanity of the questioner. Go women power!
I love cardigans and Gwen Walz, so I am with you! I am adding all of these to my queue.
Dana, your color sense and your productivity inspire me! Thank you!
Dana, your cardigans are all wonderful! Not a “frump” in the bunch. I have to wonder just who thinks cardigans are frumpy. That can be anything from simple workaday garments to glamorous and sparkly accessories. I’m looking forward to making one from the new Field Guide. Thanks for your comments! ❤️
Great knitting! And thanks for the article link — I also hate it that women in politics are judged by their clothes and hair choices. This part stood out: “sandals, which are still prohibited, along with sleeveless dresses, in the hallowed halls of the United States Congress” — Really? Why?
Yeah…no sandals or sleeveless dresses? Are the men in Congress afraid of bare arms and toes? Hmmm…
Oh I am a long time reader of your blog and your MDK articles, but may I just say, that Valerie Monroe’s column was NOT a criticism of Gwen Walz, but a love letter? Ms. Monroe writes a very popular column How To Not Fuck Up Your Face on Substack, and she is 100 percent an on the level straight shooter. I think, what she was trying (perhaps inelegantly at first) to point out–is so is Gwen Walz! I bet you dollars to donuts Valerie MOnroe wears a lot of cardigans.
I just read the entire CUT article and, while the writer does call the cardigan frumpy and the dress shapeless, she winds up saying she admires Gwen Walz’s more natural look. And she talks about how a woman’s competence is often judged by her looks. So, it’s an interesting combination of the writer being both critical and supportive of Walz’s choices. Worth reading all of her comments, in spite of the “frumpy” dig. GO TEAM CARDIGAN!!
I love a cardigan too. I live in Southern California and a cardigan is the perfect layer to wear as the evenings get cool. I have so many in my queue at the moment, it is kind of crazy. I love all the ones you made and are going to make, especially the baseline cardigan and the last cardigan. You’ll have to include a picture of it on you when you finish it.
Oh thank you Ms. Dana great
Comments about each cardigan.
I love cardigans. NOW I will CERTAINLY be wearing one to my polling station when I cast my Ballot in November!
Your cardigans are anything but frumpy. Thanks for the pattern ideas. I hesitate to knit cardigans because of that bottom of the button band mismatch that I often get. And thanks for teaching Dana. It’s not the easiest profession these days.
I love cardigans! They are my favorite sweater style! I have a store bought thin grey cashmere cardigan that I’ve mended the sleeves on so I can keep wearing it. It’s a dream to find some nice fingering weight yarn in a good grey so I can knit a replacement for it. Would also mean I’d learn how to knit a cardigan so…. and I love a v-neck cardigan. Best for showing off my jewelry and also layering in a scarf! Or a shawl.
I will say, I think a more closely fitted cardigan looks nice – if you have too many flowy, loose fitting clothes, one could, possibly, look frumpy. I have not seen the photo of Mrs. Walz though so I am not passing judgement.