Knitting

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Giveaway: Simple Color Knitting

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simple color knitting

Patrice is the winner!

I’m a big fan of color knitting — I’ve written a book on it! — and I love books that help encourage knitters not the be afraid of using colors in their projects.

Erika Knight’s Simple Color Knitting does just that. It’s a pretty gentle approach to working with color that starts with things like stripes and working with two different colors held together to make an ombre effect.

It also covers stranded knitting, intarsia, slipping stitches and add color with duplicate stitch and embroidery.

In all there are 20 patterns (including one that’s actually a solid color), and these are pretty nice, entry-level, introduction to color knitting technique kind of patterns. It’s maybe not a book for people who are already comfortable with many of these methods for adding color to knitting, but if you want to stitch more colorful projects and don’t know where to start, this book is a good place.

One winner this week will get a copy of this book.

If you’d like it to be you, leave a comment on this post before the end of the day Sunday, Feb. 28. I’d love to know where you are in terms of color knitting experience. Have you only worked with multicolored or self-striping yarn, or maybe knit stripes or tried some other techniques? Or maybe you’re a pro and want to gift this book to someone else? Either way I’d love to know.

Thanks for visiting, commenting and sharing, and good luck!

Comments

  2. I tend to knit in solid colors because I love to knit cables and other intricate designs.

  4. I just started knitting last month. I love self striping yarn. I have knitted socks in a solid color and would love to see what this book has to offer. I will have to check it out if I don’t win it, I will buy it!

  5. I am currently working on my first color project. As usually I challenge myself instead of starting out easy. I am knitting a sports team logo on a sweater for my husband and have to figure it out as I go.

  6. I have only knit with solid colors and variegated yarn but I am looking forward to trying to knit with colors.

  7. I’ve only worked with self striping yarn, but would like to learn to add color where I want it instead.

  9. I I bought the book in French… It is gorgeous. I love self striping yarn but would like to do more. If I win the book I will give my French copy to a friend.

  10. I usually stick to solids, but I love the visual effect of stripes and ombres. I’d love to read your beautiful book!

  11. I pretty new to color knitting. I have tried Fair Isle and Mosaic hats before. I’m not very good with stripes and the color changes at the end of a row. I would love to knit with color more, but am timid when it comes to picking out colors to go together.

  12. Erica Knight is one of my favorite designers and I have made several of her sweaters. Now, I am halfway through my first fair isle sweater.

  13. I have mostly worked in solid colours, although I have begun to change colours a little bit recently.

  14. I’ve done a lot of stranded colorwork, but only minimal intarsia and no entrelac. I’d love to master intarsia in particular.

  19. I have always loved colors, which began with a box of 100 crayons. That is why I love yarn and knitting with all the variables of color and texture. I’ve always been attracted to fair isle knitting for the designs. When we traveled the Netherlands, I was so excited to see the wools and creativity.
    Jane spence

Have you read?

Sandok Cable Sweater Review: Sizing, Yarn and What to Know Before Knitting

Some sweater patterns quietly join the knitting queue. Others make you mentally rearrange your entire winter wardrobe before you’ve even checked the yarn requirements.

The Sandok Cable Sweater by Tuva Sandok falls firmly into the second category. With bold cables, a generous silhouette and a high neckline finished with decorative buttons, this is a statement knit with plenty of cosy appeal.

What draws me to this design is the balance between traditional texture and a relaxed shape. It has that lovely, substantial cable-sweater look, but I’d style it simply: jeans, boots and perhaps a promise to stop buying yarn until the sleeves are finished.

This review looks at the published pattern information and the practical considerations I’d weigh before casting on.

What Makes the Sandok Cable Sweater Stand Out?

The combination of chunky texture and button detailing gives this sweater its personality. I particularly like designs where the knitting provides enough interest that you don’t need much else going on.

For my taste, a solid or gently heathered colour would let those cables do their best work. Cream would feel classic, while moss green or chocolate brown would be tempting alternatives.

If you enjoy comparing different silhouettes before committing to a project, our collection of free cable knit sweater patterns offers more wardrobe inspiration.

How Is the Sandok Cable Sweater Knitted?

The sweater is worked from the top down, beginning with flat sections before the body is joined in the round. Sleeve stitches are picked up and worked in the round.

That construction would appeal to knitters who enjoy working through a garment in stages. However, top-down does not automatically mean beginner-friendly. Following shaping while keeping a cable pattern organised requires attention.

I would approach this as a project for someone already comfortable with garment knitting, picking up stitches and following cable instructions. That is my assessment of the construction, rather than an official difficulty rating.

If cables are still unfamiliar territory, start with one of these cable knitting projects to build your skills. A smaller project is a useful place to discover whether you enjoy crossing stitches while the television is on.

Sandok Cable Sweater Sizing: Understand the Oversized Fit

The revised pattern offers seven sizes, with finished chest circumferences from 120 to 180 cm. The designer recommends approximately 40–60 cm of positive ease.

That is a deliberately generous fit. Positive ease is the difference between your body measurement and the finished garment measurement.

For example, a 140 cm sweater on a 95 cm bust gives 45 cm of positive ease. Measuring a favourite oversized jumper can help you picture that amount of fabric more clearly than a size label.

The listing also describes optional extra front bust width and three sleeve variations.

Those choices are appealing, but I’d still study the measurements before buying yarn. Adding room at the bust and increasing the whole sweater size are different decisions.

What Yarn Does the Sandok Cable Sweater Use?

The recommended combination is Sandnes Garn Peer Gynt held together with Ballerina Chunky Mohair, with 7 mm needles suggested for the main fabric.

If you’re considering Sandok Cable Sweater yarn substitutes, look beyond the weight printed on a ball band. The finished fabric needs the right combination of thickness, drape and stitch definition.

My approach would be to:

  • Swatch the proposed yarn combination before purchasing the full quantity.
  • Include cable stitches in the swatch.
  • Wash and dry it as you intend to care for the sweater.
  • Check whether the fabric feels comfortable against your neck.
  • Consider its weight as well as its softness.

A substitute can match stitch gauge and still produce a fabric you don’t enjoy wearing. A little swatching is cheaper than discovering that halfway through the body.

Check the Pattern Version Before Starting

The designer’s website states that a revised version with seven sizes and new charts was published on October 6.

Use the latest download, and follow its gauge instructions carefully. The detailed listing distinguishes between stockinette and cable gauge, which matters when planning the fit.

Also check yarn requirements for your chosen sleeve option and any added length. Personalising a sweater is lovely; running short with half a cuff remaining is considerably less charming.

Is the Sandok Cable Sweater Pattern Worth Considering?

For a knitter who enjoys substantial cables and a roomy silhouette, this is an appealing design. My main considerations would be the oversized fit, the yarn investment and whether I’d enjoy wearing the suggested fabric at the neckline.

It is a paid pattern, available in English and Norwegian. You can find the Sandok Cable Sweater knitting pattern on Ravelry, including the current purchase information and project gallery.

I’d spend a little time looking at finished projects before choosing a size or colour. Seeing a sweater on different bodies can be far more useful than imagining it from a single photograph.

This is the sort of knit I’d choose for the pleasure of making something substantial: an interesting texture to settle into, a shape worth planning carefully, and a finished sweater intended to earn its space in the wardrobe.