How To: a reversible cardigan

I don't know what came over me that made me want to try this...although I'm pretty sure it was the adorable fabric I found at JoAnn's.

It's a two-sided knit, with polk-a-dots on one side, and stripes on the other. I'm sure there's a name for this kind of fabric, anyone know what it is? I just know that it's in my oldest daughter's favorite color (PINK) and is seriously soft. So soft that when she's wearing it I just want to hug her. ;) It's also lightweight which made it perfect for my Spring collection.

For the pattern, I used the Greenpoint Cardigan from Hey June. (And while you're in the Hey June shop, check out the Edelweiss Dress pattern. Isn't it adorable? I think I'll have to add that one to my summer project list.)

Since the fabric itself is reversible, there were no magic tricks here. Just a little creative seaming and pattern arranging to get the look I wanted.

I laid out the pattern and decided to use the polk-a-dots along the bottom (it's folded so both sides have dots), same with the sleeve cuffs, and then I used the striped side along the neckline so there are stripes on both sides. For the bodice, I used the stripes on one side, and dots on the other. Here is the layout of the main pattern piece on the fabric.

Then I used flat felled seams to keep them neat looking on both sides. For a good tutorial on how to do flat felled seams, visit here.

Below you can see how the seams look on each side. The striped side is nice and finished looking with a top stitch, and the dot side is slightly raised and not 'perfect' but to me it looks like a decorative seam and looks really adorable on.

My girls seem to normally wear the striped side of the cardigan, so I made a little tank using some leftover fabric and left the polk-a-dot side out. I added a little lace to the front and they love wearing the two pieces together.

I'm keeping my eyes open for some more of this double-sided fabric. I'd like to try this again with some other patterns too. Happy sewing!