MY HOOKY TREASURE
Mon Petit Violon designer Vita Apala spills the beans about a comfy cardigan that’s close to her heart.
My favourite crocheted make is a broomstick lace cardigan that I made for myself some time ago. I love it because, first of all, I don’t often make things for myself. Usually I make things for my kids, for friends’ kids, for babies, but not for me. In the past few years, I’ve made only two cardigans for myself and this is one of them. I love it also because of the texture! It‘s so wonderful.
I think many crocheters think broomstick lace is very complicated when actually it’s not. It looks very smart, very chic, but it’s pretty easy once you learn it. The stitches work up really fast and you can create unique garments that people will envy.
The cardigan was made with Ophelia Italy Emma yarn. It’s a bulky, acrylic, alpaca and wool blend yarn. It is very soft but warm. As I live in Italy and usually we have quite mild winters, I can wear it even in the winter with a wool sweater underneath. And it’s perfect for autumn and spring, to wear with jeans and a T-shirt.
Generally, I crochet really fast. When people see me crocheting they often ask how I can crochet so fast! Especially as I am basically quite a slow person – I speak slowly, I think slowly, I do things slowly, but when I crochet – I am fast! So it didn’t take much time for me to make this cardigan. Maybe a week. I often work on several projects at the same time too, so it becomes really difficult to calculate exactly how much time I spent on one particular item.
Whenever I wear the cardigan I get a lot of compliments! People ask me where I got it and when I say I made it, usually people are very surprised and dubious. I love that whenever someone is doubtful and asks “Really? You made it?”, my daughter proudly answers: “Yes, my mum can crochet anything!”, which is actually not true, but it’s nice that she thinks so.
The pattern is available in Vita Apala’s online shops on Etsy and Ravelry, and includes sizes S, M, L, and XL. You can nd crochet patterns, tips and more from Vita online at www.monpetitviolon.com