Yarn Along - Garter Yoke Cardigan

One of the projects that's been on my list for far too long is the Garter Yoke Cardi from Knit1. It seems like an age since I first spotted this pattern and decided to knit it. 

Well, about a week ago I decided that since I had finally finished Tea Leaves it was finally time to give this a go. I even started a KAL for it - if you're planning on knitting this in the next few months, join us!

And that's how far I have got.

I've been swatching all week but I cannot seem to get the right gauge. I've tried different needle sizes (even down to 3.5 mm when the pattern suggests 4.5 mm) and I've tried different yarns. My first choice was the purple yarn on the right but the gauge is so off for that there really is no chance. Even with 3.5 mm needles I only get the gauge down to 11 cm rather than the required 10 cm and the resulting fabric is really far too dense and stiff for my liking. This yarn has been in my stash for ages for that very reason - it's not a true aran but rather a sort of thin bulky yarn. 

Next on the list, the dark olive coloured yarn on the left. No such luck. The gauge was nearly as far off as with the purple yarn.

I then toyed with the idea of using Rowan Calmer but I didn't like the colour for this project. In my mind that light green wants to be a jumper rather than a cardigan. Why? No idea, but the conviction will not budge so I'm going with it.

I'm currently trying the light beige yarn. Not my ideal choice but I'm determined to make this from stash. The 4.5 mm needles yield a 11 cm swatch, so if I'm going down to 4 mm then perhaps, perhaps... 

I'll keep you updated. 

PS: I'll miss out on {this moment} this week I think, but I'll substitute for {Simple Things Sunday}. :)