Knit an Easy Lacy Top for Summer

I love the look of mesh tops for summer, but I don’t know that I would ever actually wear one that’s full of giant holes, even though I admit they look cool (in both senses of the word) on other people.

What I would wear, though, is something that’s still lacy but maybe a little bit more subdued, like this chevron lace knit top from Yarnspirations.

This easy to knit T-shirt style top is worked flat in two pieces from the bottom up, using and easy lace pattern that’s a repeat of 10 stitches and four rows (though the wrong side rows are just purled, so there’s only two rows you need to learn the pattern on).

It has little cap sleeves that are worked as part of the top by casting on stitches where you need them.

If you’re new to lace knitting this is a good one to try because the pattern includes both written and charted instructions, and the only skills you need are yarn over, knit two together, slip slip knit and slip 1 knit 2 together pass the slipped stitch over (which makes a centered decrease).

There are four size options available (which they claim is enough to cover XS to 5XL), with finished chest measurements ranging from 38.5 inches (that’s 98 cm) to 59 inches, or 150 cm. The amount of ease would vary widely depending on your size and the size garment you choose. For example the largest size is said to fit a chest measurement from 5258 inches/132-147.4 cm, which gives you a range of ease from 1-7 inches, or 2.5 to 17.78 cm, depending on your size. Just something to be aware of when you think about how you want it to fit.

The project calls for Red Heart Cotton Breeze yarn, which isn’t a yarn I’ve tried yet, but it’s a DK weight acrylic and cotton blend, which should make a lightweight top that’s great for summer.

Grab the free pattern from Yarnspirations.

[Photo: Yarnspirations]

If you’re new to knitting and you know other knitters, you’ll probably hear about the magical nature of sock knitting. It’s a genre of knitting that intimidates a lot of beginners, but more seasoned sock knitters will tell you there’s nothing like knitting and wearing socks.

The trouble with sock knitting, though, is that there are a lot of places you can go awry, and a lot of things you might not know until you learn them the hard way. Lisa K. Ross seeks to dispel some of the trouble spots of sock stitchers of all skill levels with her book Sock Knitting Success.

The book attempts to lay out all the options that are before you as a person who wants to knit socks, including different materials and dye styles of yarn, types of needles, toe up or top down and different kinds of heels and toes.

She emphasizes the importance of getting gauge, but also notes that once you know what needles you can get correct gauge with, you might not ever have to swatch again because sock patterns tend to be built on the same gauge (8 stitches per inch/2.5 cm, which is what she uses for the 11 patterns in the book). The book also goes into a lot of detail about how to measure a foot and determine the right size sock to knit for the person who will be wearing it.

While she has preferred methods for making her socks (using a 9 inch circular, afterthought heel, round toe, using Tillybuddy’s very stretchy cast on, a tutorial for which is included) she provides a lot of options and of course the patterns use a variety of methods so new sock knitters can try different techniques and learn their favorites. There’s also a quick overview of using cables, lace and colorwork on socks and blocking.

A chapter on modifying patterns gives knitters guidance if they aren’t getting gauge, have a high instep or a wider leg than foot. There’s also a troubleshooting section to help deal with fit issues, tight cuffs and other problems.

Patterns are arranged by skill level on a scale of one to three. Four patterns are for newbie sock knitters, three for inquisitive knitters looking to build skills and four for experienced sock knitters who might want to try something new.

The beginner pattern, Thick and Quick, is a vanilla sock worked with DK weight yarn for quick progression. Anywhere Anytime is the basic sock in sock yarn, and Easygoing is a simple sock worked from the toe up.

There’s a ribbed sock, one with an afterthought heel, one with an easy textured stitch pattern and columns of mini cables, an easy diamond lace pattern, a textured sock with twisted stitches and a diamond motif, a more complex lace design in a toe up sock, a toe up sock with cables and lace and an allover colorwork design.

The cables, lace and colorwork are all charted, so having familiarity with reading charts is helpful for those projects. The book offers solid basics and some more interesting socks so that knitters of all sock skill levels should see something they like and maybe learn something new, too.

About the book: 144 pages, Flexibound, published 2026 by Quarry Books. Suggested retail price $26.99.

Have you read?