How to Put a Zipper into a Knit Sweater

Here’s another great finishing tip if you’ve ever wanted to knit a cardigan and finish it with a zipper instead of buttons.

As Jennifer Raymond explains on the Jordana Paige blog, setting a zipper into a knit garment takes a bit of time and patience, but the results are well worth it.

Basically you have to baste the zipper to the knitting first to make sure it fits appropriately, then sew it in by hand. It gives a great professional look to your project and you don’t have to fuss with button bands and buttonholes!

Have you ever sewn a zipper onto a knitting project? I’d love to hear about it. And if you want to practice sewing a zipper to knitting, try my striped pillow, which uses a zipper closure so you can take the pillow case off and wash it.

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The other day I saw a post from Pinterest about trends for summer and it said one of them was “cultivating whimsy.”

Well, I don’t know where Pinterest has been all this time, but we’ve been cultivating whimsy here at Craft Gossip for a long time. I love sharing projects that are a little different, things that make you smile when you see them, and will make you smile when you knit them and wear them or use them.

Such it is with the Tutti Frutti tee knitting pattern from Bea Creative Knits.

This cute little baby tee is worked top down in the round with contiguous shoulder construction to shape the sleeve caps. There are short rows for the neckline and folded hems with picot edging at the hemline, neckline and edges of the sleeves.

All of this would be great on its own, but then there’s the addition of a super cute fruit icon, which is added with duplicate stitch. There are a lot of options, including strawberry, banana, orange, cherries, watermelon, lemon, blueberries, kiwi, peach, dragon fruit, apple and pear, so it’s likely you can add on your favorite fruit.

It is offered in eight sizes, to fit a bust measurement ranging from 28-30 inches (71-76 cm) to 56-58 inches (142-147 cm). The design is meant to be worn with around 6.3 inches/16 cm of negative ease, but you can choose the fit you prefer. There’s also optional bust and waist shaping included in the pattern if you want to make it even curvier.

This is considered an advanced beginner or intermediate project because of all the skills involved, but it’s sure to be a lot of fun even if some of these techniques are new to you.

Grab a copy of the pattern for yourself form Bea Creative Knits on Etsy.

[Photo: Bea Creative Knits]

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