Mirror Colors for a Fun Cardigan Knitting Pattern

I do love basic knitting patterns that don’t take a lot of thought to knit, things that are useful and wearable and get the job done without a lot of fuss, effort or knitting time.

But there are some relatively easy ways to make even a simple pattern a little more interesting. You can throw in a stripe or a little bit of colorwork, or try some color blocking to make the project more visually appealing (not to mention more fun to knit).

This intarsia sweater from Bigger than Life Knits (the real name of the sweater is Phakama) uses color blocking with two colors on the body that are inverted on the sleeves.

This is done, as the description explains, with intarisa, but this is as easy as intarsia gets. All you have to do is remember to lock the strands of yarn together when you change colors, otherwise you’ll be knitting two separate pieces.

If you’ve never done intarsia before this is a great way to start because you don’t have to follow a chart or deal with multiple balls of yarn. It’s not any more difficult than knitting regular stripes, but gives a much more interesting effect.

I’ve actually been working on a blanket style cardigan using the same technique but with three color blocks, and it is almost as mindless as straight stockinette in a single color.

This pattern has drop shoulders and a V-neck and is worked from the top down. It calls for worsted weight wool yarn and come sin 11 sizes. The bust measurement ranges from 32.5 to 72.5 inches or 82.5 to 184 cm when the sweater is buttoned. The button bands are worked in double knitting to make them extra smooth.

You can grab the pattern from Bigger than Life Knits on Etsy.

[Photo: Bigger than Life Knits]

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Blankets are a great blank slate project that you can change up in a million different ways. From color to stitch pattern to size, the possibilities are almost endless.

Jared Flood, the designer behind Brooklyn Tweed, was inspired by a log cabin quilt his mother made in 1995 to re-create that design in knitting, which led to more blankets and ultimate Brooklyn Tweed’s Knit and Crochet Blankets, which includes 25 patterns from an array of designers using different skills and techniques to make cozy, pretty blankets.

The patterns are divided into three aesthetic themes: traditions, minimalism and colorplay. The patterns are rated on a scale of one to five, with one being the easiest, and there aren’t any pieces rated five. Two blankets are rated one, 14 are two, eight are three and one is four.

In addition, three of the 25 patterns are crocheted, but they either use single crochet or granny stitch, so they are pretty easy even if you don’t do a lot of crochet. You can see all the patterns on Ravelry.

Some of my favorites include Rattan by Rastus Hsu, a chunky blanket worked in knits and purls with simple crossing stitches to make a raised woven look; Homewood by Seth Richardson, covers in dramatic, loopy cables; Ainur Berkimbayeva’s Tessellate, one of the beginner projects that doesn’t really look beginner but is totally worked in knit and purl stitches; Warp + Weft by Aist? Butkevi?ien?, which is mostly knits and purls but makes a fun woven look fabric that blew my mind a little bit; and the same designer’s Canyonland, a multicolored blanket with wavy stripes.

The patterns tell you how to resize them for different dimensions and include information on pattern repeats where it is possible to make a totally custom size.

Many different techniques are included here such as cables, lace, shadow knitting, intarsia and other colorwork techniques, as well as modular knitting and lots of sewing pieces together. The patterns are all presented with charts, but there are line by line written instructions available on the Brooklyn Tweed website if you need them.

The book ends with a deep dive into log cabin knitting, telling the story of the quilt Jared’s mom made and how he made it in knitting, as well as the multitude of variations you can make if you want your own log cabin style design.

The back of the book includes a little written information about some of the special techniques needed, but there are no photos.

This is a lovely book full of inspiration for knitting and crochet blankets for any skill level. If you like to make blankets as gifts or aspire to have a handmade blanket in every room of the house, these designs would be a great place to start.

About the book: 192 pages, paperback, 25 patterns. Published 2024 by Abrams Books, suggested retail price $24.99.

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