Knitting

Free Patterns, Tutorials and Project Ideas

Mix and Match Sweater Patterns for Kids

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pick the pieces by lorna miserPick the Pieces by Lorna Miser is a fun book for those who want to learn how to customize sweaters on a small scale.

The book includes 12 complete sweater patterns (some of them are on Ravelry) in sizes from six month to six years, along with 48 components you can mix and match to make your own designs without the work.

So, for instance, you can make the short-sleeved sweater as shown, with allover Seed Stitch patterning, picot edging, a V neck and ties at the front, or you could make it long sleeved, turn it into a crewneck, add pockets and a hood and more.

This is a fun way to kind of dip your toe into designing, because you can choose the components and knit a totally custom sweater without having to do the math. And your kiddos will love having projects made just the way they want them (my daughter, for instance, wants every sweater to be a hooded cardigan).

If you’d like a chance to win this book, leave a comment on this post before the end of the day Sunday, November 5. I’d love to know a little about the little ones you knit for. My daughter is 8 so she’s aged out of this book, but she does still love me to knit for her, which is great. Because last year’s sweater still fits, this year I’m making her a big, squishy lap blanket instead.

Thanks for visiting, commenting and sharing, and good luck!

Looking for more knitting patterns for knitted Cardigans? Check out these Knitting patterns we found on Etsy.

Specific to knitters, you can join our Knitting Patterns Only group to get, well, knitting patterns, ask questions and gain inspiration for what to knit next.

Looking for Yarn online? Check out Lionbrand our preferred source for purchasing yarn online.

Comments

  1. What a great book! Thank you for the chance to win a copy. I have two grandsons (3 & 1) and love to knit them things. I know the day is likely to come when they won’t want handmade things so I’d better have my fun now!!

  2. I love the concept of this book! The tiny kids I knit for are my nieces/nephews who are 6 mo -10 yrs old and new babies of friends!! Thank you

  4. Perfect-many sweaters with one book! I have one grandchild, a boy almost a year old, and now is the perfect time to knit him up a few sweaters. I have a vest in progress right now but I’ll finish it up in case I win 😉

  5. Love to mix and match…four DGDs would love to help pick out:)

    from chilly autumnal VT,
    the Vermonster

  8. With 2 grandsons I need sweater patterns for kids, especially if they can be work as boys sweaters that are hard to find. I need to go check out this book. Winning it would be even better

  9. I knit for grandchildren of friends and for charity. This book would help with variety. Thank you for the chance to own it.

  10. My not-so-little-one will be turning 7 soon. She really needs some new sweaters! All the ones I find in the store are so thin they don’t seem like sweaters!

Have you read?

Knit a Classic Aran Cardigan with this Free Knitting Pattern

Not too long ago I did a test knit for another designer that was for a cabled cardigan. It’s really cozy and nice but it just about broke me in a ton of different ways. I couldn’t get gauge, which I suppose is my own problem, but mainly I was somehow both bored and forced to pay attention at the same time. 

Because it used the same cable all over, I always had to know what row I was on, but nine out of ten of those rows, nothing in particular was going on. So I couldn’t stop paying attention, but what I needed to attend to was boring. 

It may have ruined me for knitting cabled sweaters, but maybe I just need something that’s more engaging. Like this Modern Aran Cardigan pattern from Lion Brand Yarn. 

This is a reworking of an old pattern from their archives, and you can tell that form the classic look of the cables and the oversized feel (nothing cropped about this one!). It has allover cables, but like a classic Aran sweater it’s not the same cable, so you’ll have to pay attention to what row you’re on and what cable turns happen for which cables on that row. 

Because of this, it’s considered an intermediate knitting pattern, but if you’re comfortable working from multiple charts at once it shouldn’t be a problem for you. There are three different charts and seven different cable moves. 

Also because the pattern is so big and boxy there are only two sizes available, with a finished chest measurement of either 49 or 63 inches (that’s 124.5 or 160 cm). It’s up to you to decide how much ease you would like and whether that will work for your body. 

The pattern uses worsted weight yarn (and calls for another classic, Lion Brand Fisherman’s Wool). It calls for six buttons and includes pockets to make it extra cozy. 

This one looks like a great winter project to make and to wear if you’re up for a bit of a challenge. You can grab the free pattern or buy a kit with the yarn needed direct from Lion Brand Yarn. 

[Photo: Lion Brand Yarn]