Boho Crochet Hexi Cardigan

This is a hexi cardigan designed using a modified version of the stitch pattern from the Lazy Diamond Boho Pocket Shawl by Crystal White-Van Cleemput.

Toggles and twisted fringe added

I started out using a six-sided hexagon instead of a four-sided square, but other than that, the stitch sequence is identical to the pattern in the original design. I think this design lends itself well to the hexi cardi style, and I'm looking forward to being able to wear this because it's cozy and looks super cute in this Red Heart Super Saver Ombre yarn in the Anthracite colorway. 

Hexagon

The magic of the hexi cardi is what happens to the shape when you fold the hexagon in half: You instantly have the shape of half of a cardigan with a sleeve and half of the body.

Folded in half, plus extension rows on body edges

It's easy to crochet a hexi cardi shaped in a way that best fits your unique body. Begin by crocheting the two hexagons until they have enough rounds for the sleeves to easily fit around the widest part of your arms. If you still need additional rows to make the body of the cardi fit around your torso, you can add those rows later on the just center-back and center-front edges.

I suggest that you fold each hexagon in half and mark the edges that you intend to join across the top of the sleeve, then join those edges together before moving on to add any extra rows to the center-back and center-front edges. Sewing the sleeves closed first helps to make it easier to see which edges you should be adding to for extra width around the body.

Each hexagon is one-half of the cardigan, and the hexagons are joined at the center-back to create the cardigan.

Assembled, with extra length rows before adding pockets

If you want your cardigan to be longer, I suggest adding more rows to the bottom edge after joining the two halves together for a more polished finish. If you want to add pockets to your cardigan (and who doesn't love having pockets?!?!), wait to add those until you have finished adding any length to the bottom edge, to help ensure that you are able to position the pockets where they are most comfortable for you.

With pockets added

After completing those steps, you can then choose whether to add cuffs to the ends of the sleeves and/or whether to add a placket to the front edges. These cardigans can be worn without any fasteners, so you might not need to add a placket at all if you choose not to use buttons or a zipper on the front of your cardi.

I also added twisted fringe along the bottom edge using my handy Maple Quad End Fringe Twister from Etsy seller theknitstore. 

I debated whether I wanted to leave the front of my cardi open, but after my husband found a set of nice toggle closures (similar to these), I decided they would be a nice finishing touch.

I will be entering this project in our local fair this year.

Adult Crochet V-Neck Vest

I'm making this in size 48 men's, but because I'm using a lighter-weight fiber than the pattern calls for (and because I crochet tightly), my gauge is 101 stitches for 24 inches across (which aligns with the stitch count for the largest size on the pattern, so I'll basically follow the stitch count instructions for that size).

Working the panels from the bottom up, one skein of the Bernat Softee Baby yarn went for about 14 inches, measured from the bottom edge of the ribbing. 

This design mainly uses the crochet lemon-peel stitch for the body of the vest, which gives a nice, pebbly-textured, reversible fabric that doesn't scream "I was crocheted." And although the fabric doesn't look holey, it does have quite a lot of small holes that lend breathability to it. (See my photo below with the sunshine showing through the vest panel.) This is a nice stitch for a masculine/unisex garment because it is comfortably ventilated while not looking "lacey."

I originally had wanted to knit a textured top-down V-neck pullover vest in a 3-weight yarn as an alternative to the cardigan-style vest that I knitted for my husband as a gift at Christmas 2021. After looking through a lot of patterns, I finally settled on the Ink (paid) pattern by Fiona Hamilton-MacLaren, which, as its description says, is a "cosy fitted vest with an all over texture pattern. The ribbed stitch pattern pulls the fabric in, but gives loads of stretch."

It's a beautiful design, and I really, really wanted to be able to make it. But the problem I was encountering is that it's not a pattern that I could put down and then easily pick back up again a few days later, even when I used a row counter and kept careful notes about where I left off. I was imploding my brain trying to keep track of where in the stitch pattern I needed to start each row, and spent a lot of time tinking (unknitting) rows where I started out wrong but it took me a full row or two to realize that my stitches had gone amiss. I was frustrated but also really sad at how difficult it was for me. I'm not saying Ink is a difficult design; the stitches are easy, mostly just knits and purls, and it's the way those basic stitches fit together that creates the beautiful, ribbed texture. I believe the problem rests with me and my inability to wrap my head around how it all fits together after putting the project down for a few days. I think I just need to attempt Ink again at a time when I can devote more uninterrupted concentration to it.

So after admitting defeat (albeit temporarily) with Ink, I started looking to see if I could find a top-down crocheted men's vest pattern with nice texture and a traditional fit. It wasn't until I altered my search criteria to accept bottom-up patterns that I found this Adult Crochet V-Neck Vest free pattern by Yarnspirations Design Studio. I usually prefer to make top-down garments, but the overall look of this vest fits with what I wanted to make, so I decided to give the bottom-up design a go. 

The downside of the lemon-peel stitch, compared to other, taller crochet stitches, is that it grows slowly, which can feel tedious (particularly when you're working from the bottom up). But if you just keep plugging along, the vest eventually will come together.

This is going to be a gift for my husband, as I said (probably for Christmas 2023), and if you've been reading my blog for a while, you already know that he strongly discourages me from making anything for him. He grumped vociferously when I asked him to stand up so I could measure the bottom ribbing at his waist when I started working the first piece for this vest. But sometimes my creative impulses just compel me to make him something. And I do believe that this has turned out to be a very nice vest for him that will fit comfortably and be nice and cozy. After Christmas, I'll add a photo of him wearing it to this post.

Edited to add: Here's the photo of him wearing it! It fits him perfectly. 😊

Instead of following the pattern instructions for the neck edging, I decided to try working 1 round in DC (including the decrease at the bottom front) followed by 2 rounds of alternating FPDC/BPDC to give the appearance of ribbing. That technique often works well for that effect, but I didn't like how it ended up looking here. So I ripped out that neck edging and redid it using the same technique that was used for the armhole edging.

I worked the armhole edging almost as described in the pattern, except instead of making the ribbing and then sewing it on, I worked the ribbing joining it to the armhole as I went using the join-as-you-go technique similar to what is shown in this video. 

To do that for the neck opening means the ribbing will begin/end at the bottom front. The ends will be "square" (not tapered) and will be sewn together overlapping, which is a common feature of knitted neck ribbing seen on some V-neck sweaters.