Buttons!

Why does it always seem like such a chore to sew on a few buttons?  I can spend several weeks knitting, sewing together, and then blocking a sweater, but then its that last little step of sewing on buttons that seems to take all the effort.  This weekend I decided I'd force myself to catch up on all the button-sewing on projects that I've had lying about for a while.  On Friday I took the requisite trip to Dressew and ButtonButton, and then this afternoon I started sewing.

The first button project was my new black cardigan, which just came off my needles last week - and then took THREE DAYS to dry after blocking!  Its made from Noro Cash Iroha, a cashmere, silk, wool, and nylon blend yarn that knits up super soft and drapey.

I think this is one of the best sweaters I've knit for myself , and I'm hoping to get a lot of wear out of it.  Its a little loose and cozy, and I expect it will be pretty warm.  The little brown wooden buttons are from ButtonButton - I think they give it a fun, relaxed look, which is exactly what I was going for.

The next project was this one:

A wee little sweater that only needed three itty-bitty buttons.  I had hoped to just use some from my button stash, but it turns out that buttons made with a (yo, k2tog) in 4-ply yarn are actually pretty tiny.

Had it not been white, I could've used these little shanked buttons that you see on the right of this card.

I love these buttons.  So much so, that I've actually taken them off of a cardigan I bought about 6 years ago... I haven't worn it in ages, but I've been reluctant to part with it because of the buttons.  During a recent closet clear-out, I finally decided to replace the super cool buttons with this very basic grey ones (on the left) and then pass it on to its next owner.

Now to find myself a pattern for a 10-button cardigan that's knit in 4-ply yarn!