Knitting

Patterns, projects and techniques

Knit a Simple Looking Sweater Full of Fun Techniques

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At first glance, the Doppio Sweater by Seunghee Hong  looks like a pretty classic, straightforward, mostly stockinette stitch sweater. But as you div e into it, you’ll see there’s more going on that makes it more interesting to knit.

For example, it’s a top down raglan sweater, but the raglan lines are curved rather then being straight diagonals. That means you’re adding stitches at a different rate on the sleeves versus the body, which should give you a better fit.

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The neckline is shaped with German short rows (though there are also instructions for using wrap and turn) and stitches are picked up from the neckline or a crochet chain worked in for that purpose. The neckband is folded over and seamed, and there are purl stitches at the sides of the body and back of the sleeves to serve as faux seams.

In addition to all that, the original sweater was worked with a couple of super fine and a sport weight yarn held together to make more of a bulky weight, but you can also use a DK or worsted weight yarn held with a lace weight, or even a bulky weight yarn on its own if you want.

There are lots of tutorials and videos in the pattern to help you with the techniques, but this probably isn’t a great first sweater pattern. If you’re worked regular raglans before, and you’re familiar with short rows, you’ll probably be fine with all the techniques used here. If you’re feeling up for a knit adventure that will get you a classic sweater, this one is a great choice.

The pattern includes nine sizes, with a finished bust measurement ranging from 35 to 67.5 inches, or 89 to 171 cm. It’s meant to be worn with 2 to 5 inches, or 5 to 13 centimeters of positive ease.

You can find more information about the pattern and get your own copy on Ravelry.

[Photo: Seunghee Hong]

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Yarn Cozy Knitting Patterns

I’ve been toying with the idea of making a yarn cozy or yarn ball holder on the circular knitting machine, but I haven’t gotten to it yet. In the meantime, here are some yarn cozy knitting patterns you can make with knitting needles. Use yarn to hold you yarn!

In its simplest form, a yarn cozy is just a sleeve or a little basket that holds your yarn when you’re working with a center-pull ball so it doesn’t fall apart when you knit. The easiest ones I could find are from Love in Stitches KN, which has a regular size and a mini size. They’re worked with sock yarn and there are options for making them with ribbing, faux cables and with self-striping yarn.

For bigger cakes there’s a project called We call it the “bail holder” from Nicole LeBlanc. This pattern is available on Ravelry and you can use any yarn and make it any size you like. It features an I-cord edging that has a loop in it so you can thread they yarn through the loop to keep it extra contained as you knit.

Another large one that has a slightly fancier pattern is this one by Mareike Meye. You can use any yarn and any gauge, and slip stitch pattern worked in different colors on the sides makes it a little more fun and uses a bit more stash. A strap buttons across the top to hold the ball in place and you can add a buttonhole to the middle of the strap to thread the yarn through. Check this one out on Ravelry.

Adding lace to a yarn cozy makes it fit a wider variety of balls and expand or shrink a bit as needed. Jennifer Sugarman’s Ball Sack uses sock yarn and is made to hold sock yarn. It has the option of making I-cord or using ribbon or cord you already have to make a drawstring at the top. You can find this pattern on Ravelry.

Another lacy option is the yarn ball holder from Frugal Knitting Haus. This one uses worsted weight yarn and has an easy mesh lace pattern and an I-cord drawstring that’s sewn together at the ends so you could loop it over your wrist while you knit if you like. This pattern is also on Ravelry.

Speaking of wrist yarn holders, I also found this one form Knituition. This one uses sport weight yarn and has a spiral rib pattern on the body. The strap is attached to the bag with D-rings, or you could make it a little longer and just sew it into the bag.