I love a great topper... something I can just throw on over everything from activewear when I'm leaving the gym to a gorgeous sexy dress for date night. Last year, it was my velvet kimono. This year it's Style Sew Me Madison Cardigan.

When Eryn offered to send me her latest pattern, I jumped at the chance to add this to my wardrobe. I don't currently have any cute knit cardigans and I love the lines of this one.

I picked this amazing lightweight Italian Warm Gray Abstract Wool Sweater Knit from Mood Fabrics.

The print is so gorgeous that you can't see the beautiful seaming detail. This cardigan has princess seaming in the back. Which creates a beautiful slenderized waist and not boxy or sackish like a lot of cardigans.

It even has a lovely tailored two-piece sleeve. Y'all know how I feel about those!

The pattern is drafted with 1/2" seam allowances and finished with nice narrow hems.

I'm hoping I can find another lightweight sweater knit that I love, because I feel I need another one of these so that I won't wear this one to death. Because it's definitely leaning that way.

I am fully embracing spring.  I hope these amazing temps are here to stay and that Mother Nature isn't playing a joke on us because this weather has been glorious!

For this season, layering is a must.  It's chilly in the morning, warm during the day and chilly again when the sun goes down.  So this long, lightweight cardigan Simplicity 8059, fits the bill. 

I cut the size medium and I didn't have to do anything else.  It's really long, so petites should take notice.  My sweater knit is from Hancock Fabrics.

It's an open-knit, but it's not challenging to work with if handled with care.

I used a Ballpoint needle because a regular needle will catch the yarns while trying to penetrate.  You can use a zigzag stitch, but I found that a straight stitch worked fine with my knit.  And I reduced the pressure foot tension.  If your machine doesn't have that feature, I suggest using a walking foot to avoid stretching the fabric while sewing.

I took special care to match the stripes.  When I set sleeves in knits like this, I find it much easier to do it flat.  I finished my seams with my serger.  And for pressing, I barely touched those seams with the tip of the iron.  The goal is to just press the seams down enough so that they'll be flat.  You don't want to distort your fabric.  And I just hit it with steam while on the dress form to remove any other wrinkles.

I left off the gathering in the back by cutting the back pattern piece a little narrower than it is.  And I also omitted the ties.  I would never tie a garment like this.  I like the carefree look of "just throwing it on".