it's all about the buttons

this next chickadee knit was totally driven by the need to match buttons to yarn. they sat apart for quite a while...buttons displayed on the wall not far from where the skeins of yarn sat in wait for someone to take them home. and day after work day at fibre space i'd pass them and think about what a pretty pair they would be. until one day...

if no one else was going to find a way to get these two together, then the task would fall to this chickadee. after spying the hay cardigan pattern (from a favorite designer, veera välimäki) the vision of neon green buttons placed playfully atop purple yarn became perfectly clear. and throwing caution to the wind, the sweater was cast-on in no time.

pity though, about the time...because usually that time is utilized quite well. there's research in picking patterns, and thanks to ravelry there are lessons to be learned from those that went before. with no errata posted for the pattern, it seemed from the outset to be smooth sailing. but then it took a turn for the wicked and things did like david byrne said and stopped making sense.

there were times when it seemed like this sweater's destiny lie in the scrap bin. but thanks to the helpful hints from other knitters on ravelry, some perseverance and waaaaay to many ends woven in (hooray for hand-dyes and alternating skeins!) somehow it all came together. fingers crossed that it doesn't now fall apart....

for more information on this project, errata and corrections made please see the ravelry post.

(and for those of you out there who notice these things: a. you know who you are, b. i know too ,and c. yes, it is a wee bit snug)