So now we have everything we need, including the special little extra knitting tools to make knitting a pleasant experience. And here we are at last! It’s the reveal of my Wool-Ease Thick & Quick Lion Brand Cabled Poncho. It all started with an online search for an oversized poncho to keep me warm, which ended when I found the Cabled Poncho pattern. I loved the look of the oversized, but understated poncho. I kept to the pattern’s recommended yarn, Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick & Quick, and chose the color ‘Kale’. Trying to expand the colors in my wardrobe, which tend towards blue and black, I chose this earthy green color for a change. When I got the yarn, I was really happy with how soft and squishy it was, but I was worried it would be too dark to show the cables. I shouldn’t have been concerned, because they look beautiful!!

Once I had the yarn, I printed up the pattern, put it in my holder, and started gathering all the tools I needed to make my poncho. I was eyeing the KNITTER’S PRIDE Mindful Collection for a while, because I loved the color and I’m always in need of more knitting accessories. I have startitis, which is a condition where one pathologically starts new projects without finishing the current one. Starting a new project is one of my greatest joys, so I do…frequently. This means I have a lot of unfinished projects. With most of my tools in different knitting bags, I needed a few new ones to fill my project bag for this poncho. I got the entire collection except the measuring tape which I already had on hand. The tools in the Mindful collection included stitch markers (with a free accessory bag), measuring tape, row counter, and knit blockers. The rest of the knitting tools I found around my studio, and I was ready to start.

Next, I chose my needles and cable needles, checked my gauge, and cast on! As I said, the cast on is always my favorite part. It’s so exciting; the possibility of a perfect cabled poncho before me. The rest of this poncho was mostly easy and quick, but there was one small hiccup at the beginning. As I began to knit through the rows of the cable repeat, I noticed a few small errors, and I corrected them on my printed pattern. If you haven’t already, you can skip back to Monday’s post to find the errata for the Cabled Poncho to correct it on your copy.

After I corrected those few little mistakes in the pattern, I breezed through the project. With big needles and big yarn, it knit up very fast. I’ll admit that I made a few small mistakes especially when I knit tired or with too many distractions around, but I was happy they were all simple fixes. It was just the occasional purl when I was supposed to knit or knit stitch instead of a purl. All I had to do was mark them with a stitch marker, then drop down when I got back to the right spot and change the mistake. Surprisingly, this was the very first cabled knit project in which I didn’t at all make a booboo in the cable. Having my row counter close at hand helped, but it was the pattern holder with a large print copy of the cable repeat instructions that really kept me on track. I could just glance up, and double check the stitches of any row. I was thrilled to get to the end of my project without having to fix a single cabling mistake. YAY!

Once I was done knitting, I was very happy to have the extra set of knit blockers from my Mindful collection, because it took that and my other two sets of blockers to pin down this huge poncho. The blocking really brought the cables to life! The poncho did take an annoyingly long time to dry, but I really soaked it good so I could block it right. I really wanted the cables to pop! After it dried, the only thing I had left to do was sew up the shoulder seam to create my poncho which was made simple with the graphic in the pattern showing where to do it. I made sure to make a strong seam, because the poncho has a heavy fabric that will pull on it. I like to knit things that last, don’t you? After seaming the shoulder, my poncho was complete. I was so excited, that I threw it on and went for a walk in my neighborhood to show it off. Unfortunately, I didn’t see another person on my walk, so no compliments, but I was blissfully cozy and warm in my beautiful new Cabled Poncho. And here it is for you to see! What do you think?

I had a lot of fun sharing with you the knitting accessories that made knitting this poncho with Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick & Quick yarn so much easier. I hope you found some new tools of the trade to put to work in your next knitting project. If you’re working on your own Cabled Poncho, share your photos with me in the comment section below or tag me, fiona.knits, in your Instagram posts. I’ll be back in February to talk about one of the coolest trends – super chunky hats. Happy, easier, quicker, and better knitting!

This is part 5 of 5 in this series

Go back to part 4: 3 special little tools for smooth knitting and a professional look

The post Get that warm feeling with this knitted cable poncho [free pattern] appeared first on KNITmuch.