Pin of the Week: Tips for Finishing Knitting

If you’ve ever knit a sweater or another big project you know that it’s not always done just because the knitting is finished. There are some little things that you can do that make the finished knit look so much better, so that people will be impressed when you tell them you knit it yourself.

Back in 2011 Kristen from Kristen Makes was doing a knitalong of her Cadence sweater and spent a post talking about the little details that could be prettied up after the knitting was done.

There was that weird unevenness where the slip knot is, the gaping underarm hole, a bit of lace and stockinette that could be smoother.

One by one she tackles each of those problems, showing that it doesn’t take a whole lot of effort to take your knitting project from OK to great.

These tips are great reminders to look back on whenever you finish a knitting project.

Don’t forget to check out more goodies on my Knitting Pinterest board!

[Photo via Kristen Makes.]

Next Pattern:

Just about anything you can make in fabric you can make in knitting, but there are some styles that you just don’t see that often translated into knitting.

For example, a button down collared shirt. This is a classic design, of course, and it looks great in a knit version, but it’s just not something you see much of.

Noma Ndlovu’s Guglethu shirt is the pattern to try if you want to knit your own button down shirt. This one is inspired by cashmere tops (though the sample was made out of yak yarn, not cashmere, and uses two strands of lace weight yarn held together) and includes lots of high-fashion details like double-knit cuffs, collar and shoulder seams.

It has a patch pocket on the front and 10 buttons including the button band and the cuffs.

The designer says you can also use a DK weight yarn held singly if you’d rather, and that the shirt looks good in a variety of yarns. There is another version on Ravelry that uses Berroco Remix Light, which is a mix of nylon, cotton, acrylic, silk and cellulose fibers. It has a more relaxed look but it still really pretty.

The pattern has 12 sizes, with a full bust measurement ranging from 32.35 to 72.25 inches, or 82 to 183.5 cm. The designer suggests 2 to 6 inches, or 5 to 15 cm, of positive ease when you pick your size. I could totally see knitting one that’s even bigger to wear more like a jacket, because I do that a lot with button down shirts I already own.

I love all the details on this shirt, which isn’t necessarily difficult to knit, but might introduce you to some things you’ve never knit before (like those cuffs with the plackets, or a shirt collar like this).

To learn more about this shirt and grab a copy of the pattern for yourself, head to Ravelry.

[Photo: Noma Ndlovu]

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