Cabernet Cardigan: Round #3

Here we are! My third (but probably not final) stab at the SBCC Cabernet cardigan pattern. As my #MMMay16 challenge documentation pictures will confirm, I have rarely taken it off since its completion. 

(image source: SBCC Patterns)

Pattern: 

As you can see from the image above, my #3 Cabernet cardi doesn't really resemble the original pattern. To recap: for my second version of this pattern, I started with a size smaller than my measurements would suggest, lengthened the sleeves, straightened the side seams and made the neckband/button stand narrower. On top of those changes, for this version I also made the neckband narrower still, shortened the length of the cardi by 4cm and reshaped the front edges slightly, which included making them 2cm narrower on each side. I'm suuuuuper happy with the look of this cardi now! It's got the proportions of my beloved secondhand fine knit mustard cardi which will soon be too ratty and misshaped to wear. 

Fabric:

I 'bought' this mustard double knit from Fabric Godmother in exchange for helping out at their recent open day. It's not from their range of deliciously soft Ponte de Roma's (one of which I used for the navy version), it's not quite as soft as those and is more like the turquoise double knit I made my first version from but a bit thicker. It was still fantastic to work with and great to wear. The colour is the precise shade of mustard/old gold that I adore. 

Thoughts:

Ah! I'm so happy to have made this garment. As an almost-exact replica of something already in my wardrobe, I knew that it would fit in, and as I mentioned above, hardly a day has gone by that I haven't worn it since it was finished. 

When I first finished it, however, I was being a bit critical and felt that I still had some work to do with the shape and/or width of the front sections. But the more I wear it and the more images of it I see, the less I feel that there is an issue there that needs to be addressed. 

I think my current cardi selection is perfectly sufficient for now, but I can see one or two more versions of this pattern in my future. Possibly a black one using some of the super soft Fabric Godmother ponte if it's the same stuff as the navy. And I'm sorely tempted by a crazy trompe l'oeil effect one using this crochet print double knit from Ditto fabrics. That fabric is totally not my style, but I think it'd be so funny to make a cardi from it. What I would really like is to make it from a really warm cut-and-sew knit fabric, if I ever find some. Many moons ago I found some wooly (albeit synthetic) knit fabric that I used to make this jumper that I wore to death. It was a really warm garment, and I'd love to find something with good heat-trapping abilities to make a cardigan from. Has anyone seen anything that they think might fit the bill?

Cost:

Pattern: PDF $12 (£8.37) from here. I've used it three times now so I'm counting my pattern cost as £2.80 for this project
Fabric: £14 per metre from here. I used 1.5m for this project so my fabric cost is £21
Buttons: £0. Given to me by Textile Garden, which are these that can be found here.
Total: £23.80

I often think of garments I've made or footwear I've bought in terms of 'pounds per wear'; how does the price spent on the item (or materials for the item) relate to the amount of use that item gets. To me, it doesn't matter if it cost a lot initially if it gets many more wears than the amount it cost. I think it'll take a very short amount of time for this cardi to have justified that cost!