Knit Your New Favorite Everyday Sweater

I have knit a lot of sweaters through the years, and there are some that are decidedly in heavier rotation than others. You’d think it might be the fancy ones, the ones that were a lot of work, maybe even ones I designed that I’m really proud of.

I do have and wear all of those sorts of sweaters, of course, but my favorite sweaters for everyday are simple. They’re usually solid colors or a single colorway if it’s a multicolored yarn. They are mostly sweaters I would describe as being like the knit version of a sweatshirt. They’re easy to wear and generally were pretty easy to knit as well.

I feel like the Phumeza sweater from Noma Ndlovu at Bigger than Life Knits would definitely fit into both the easy to knit and easy to wear category. It’s a top down, drop sleeve sweater that’s mostly stockinette with garter ridges for added interest in the knitting and texture in the wearing. There are two different neckline options so you can decide if you want it higher or lower. The sleeves are wide and comfortable for layering. I would say it’s just slightly cropped, but that could just be because I like longer sweaters and this is a fine normal length for the average person.

The pattern comes in 11 sizes, and there’s a schematic in the pattern notes for the pattern on Ravelry but I’m having trouble reading it. It looks like it goes up to 72 inches/183 cm for the finished chest circumference, and I actually can’t read the smallest so if you can read it better than I can or if you get the pattern and can see the schematic in it, let me know and I’ll update this post.

You can grab the free pattern on Ravelry.

[Photo: Bigger than Life Knits]

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I’m trying to include more knits for kids in my posts because I know a lot of people do a lot of their knitting for the little ones in their lives.

This child’s striped vest from Lion Brand Yarn is not only cute and great for kids who might find a full sweater too hot, it’s also an easy project if you’ve never knit a garment before.

Lion Brand rates it as level 2 easy/beginner +, probably just because there’s a little shaping and seaming invovled, but it’s nothing you can’t handle.

The pattern comes in three sizes that are meant to be for ages 6, 8 and 10. The finished chest measurement is 30, 31.5 or 33 inches, which is 76, 80 and 84 cm respectively. This makes the vest a little roomy and makes it easy to slip on over a T-shirt or other top.

It’s worked in two pieces from the bottom up, with the neckband and armhole bands worked in the round after the body pieces are sewn together. One benefit of knitting stripes on a project like this is that it’s easier to make sure your pieces are the same length because you can just count the stripes (it’s also a little easier to seam because you’re always lining up the stripes).

If you’re knitting the smallest size, you only need one skein each of the two colors you choose, and for the larger sizes you will only need two, making this project a pretty good value. The suggested yarn is Color Theory, a worsted weight acrylic yarn that comes in 18 relatively muted colors. Of course you can use any worsted weight yarn you like. Keep it acrylic for easy washing or use wool to make this a warmer garment for kids who live in cooler climates.

You can grab the pattern for free from the Lion Brand website, or get a kit that includes the yarn you need (and needles if you don’t have them already). I think this would be a great basic to knit a kid for back to school in their school colors, or make it holiday with red and green, or whatever colors the child likes.

[Photo: Lion Brand Yarn]

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