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Big Sweaters are, Well, Big for Fall

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Giant sweaters are in fashion for fall.“Yarn for years” is how Wall Street Journal reporter Megan Hayes described the sweaters seen in collections for this fall (which were shown back in the spring). She notes that giant cowls and roomy sweaters were everywhere to be seen, as well as layers of knits — sweaters and skirts with a scarf and legwarmers, for example.

While knitters certainly would love to dress like that, most of the time you shouldn’t wear all knits all the time, the style experts say. They recommend pairing your knits with sleeker fabrics like leather or lace, and to tone down the volume of a giant sweater with skinny jeans.

Or try what fashion consultant Yasmin Sewell suggests: pair two sweaters of similar or matching colors. Wear one normally and tie the other around the neck. Will that work off the runway? There’s only one way to find out.

What do you think of the trend (back) toward giant knits? Would you knit an enormous sweater for yourself? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

[Photo by Danny Kim for the Wall Street Journal.]

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Comments

  2. Well, this trend does make it a lot faster to knit for tweens and teens! I already have one request for a big fuzzy sweater. I may knit myself some chunky leg warmers, though. That’s one of the few things I miss about the 80s. 😉

  3. Hmmmmm, knitting an enormous sweater for myself – usually done with bulky yarns? Would probably be fast and easy. But I already look like a blog so with a big sweater I’d look like a warm fuzzy blob. 😉 Sure would be comfy though!

Have you read?

Add a Little Lace to Your Knitting Patterns

If you’re new to lace knitting or just aren’t sure how to incorporate the technique into garments, check out these tops and sweaters that use lace as a decorative element.

The easiest lace out there is eyelets, and you can practice them plenty with this eyelet covered sweater from Knitcro Addict. It uses light/DK weight yarn and is worked in four pieces knit flat. It’s intended to be a little cropped and a little oversized, and includes sizes XS to XXL in the pattern.

If you’re in parts of the world where it’s getting colder as you read this, the Nora sweater from Bummbul might be a good choice. This is actually a great one for learning lace because it’s worked in super bulky yarn, which makes it easier to see what you’re doing and makes the lace super graphic. This one just comes in one size, with a 42 inch (106) cm bust, but that could fit a variety of people depending on how much ease you like.

Minimi Knit Design has a cute allover lace cardigan worked in one piece from the bottom up. It’s worked in lace weight mohair held double, which maybe isn’t the best for those new to lace (because it can be hard to rip out) but it sure is pretty. Sizes range to fit from 30 to 66 inches/76 to 168 cm bust measurements.

If you’d rather not have lace all over your sweater, you can knit the Lumi sweater from Originally Lovely, which has a chevron lace pattern on the yoke and is otherwise worked in reverse stockinette stitch. (It’s worked inside out so you don’t have to purl every stitch.) The pattern has 9 sizes from XS to 5XL and uses worsted weight yarn.

Or try the super romantic sookie blouse from Trust the mojo (available on Ravelry). This sweet top is started working flat from the bottom up and has a V-neck and I-cord edgings. The sleeves are worked separately in the round, and the pieces are all joined together to work in one piece to finish off the top. It comes in eight sizes and is available in English and French.

You can also pair lacy sleeves with an otherwise plain top, like on the Starflower Wrap from Annelise Driscoll Gingrow. This intermediate pattern makes a wrap sweater with generous lacy sleeves and a double wrap belt. The pattern has nine sizes, from XS to 5XL, and is available for free from Hobbi.