Stitch a Cardigan with Mini Colorwork

I love a pattern with a good back story. Maxine the Mini is inspired by the designer, Jimenez Joseph’s Mini Cooper car, whose name happens to be Maxine. You can see her in the background of this picture, because I knew you’d want to. Different shapes and features of the car inspired the designs of the colorwork on the sleeves and patch pockets of this cardigan.

The pattern is worked in superfine yarn from the top down. The body is worked in a solid color, as are part of the sleeves. That part of the sleeve is finished with ribbing so it looks like the colorwork part of the sleeve is another shirt layered under the first. So cute.

The colorwork is also found on the patch pockets, which visually breaks up all that solid color stockinette. It’s also a great way to practice doing colorwork both flat and in the round.

The pattern has seven sizes ranging in chest measurement from 30 inches to 54 inches. It’s a crew neck design with set in sleeves and a button band with kind of a lot of buttons.

This is one of those sweaters that you can wear even when it’s warmer out because it uses such light weight yarn. In all you will need five or six colors (the main body color can be used in the colorwork portion to make it a little more harmonious, or go wild and use all different colors).

You can get this pattern from Ravelry.

It has admittedly been a long time since I’ve collected patterns for warm weather cardigans, but if you’re looking for more, check out this roundup of cardigans to knit for summer from a few years ago. Maybe I’ll update it this summer!

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

[Photo: Jimenez Joseph.]

Fall will be here before we know it, and that means there are holidays coming right behind where we might be entertaining at home. It’s always fun to have a hand knit touch in your home for other people to see, and if you’re going to be in the kitchen all day you might as well have some nice knit dish cloths to use.

I love this little plaid hand towel from Darling Jadore. Use a little bit of leftover cotton yarn from another project for the plaid portion. It looks like the horizontal stripes are worked as you knit and the vertical stripes are done with duplicate stitch, making this a quick and easy project even newer knitters can make.

Combine garter stitch and an easy eyelet pattern worked sideways to make the Annette Dish Towel from Cluck Cluck Boots, which is meant to be reminiscent of flour sack towels. It calls for DK weight yarn and you can work it in one color or two (or even three!).

Add a little more texture with this set of kitchen towels from Whileberry Creative. They’re mostly worked in garter stitch with borders in easy knit/purl patterns, and you can work them in sport or worsted weight yarn.

Two of Wands Shop has another cute allover knit and purl pattern they call the Seersucker Textured Tea Towel. It’s an easy repeating pattern worked in worsted weight yarn, and there’s a chart in the pattern you can use, but don’t have to, if you want to practice knitting from a chart.

The Classic Cloth dish towel from Handmade Home by Connie is another one that can use a little leftover yarn in a contrasting color, or you could color block it our use stripes throughout the pattern. This one uses worsted weight yarn and another easy repeating knit purl stitch pattern.

If you like to hang your towel on the oven handle or elsewhere but it’s always falling off, try the Stay Put kitchen towel from Fancy Step Knits. This project is worked in garter stitch and includes a hole partway through so you can pull the towel through itself over a rod or handle. Stripes are optional but a nice addition.

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