Stitch Up a Pair of Comfy Pants

When it comes to knit garments, I think pants are probably the most overlooked project out there. Pants are a big project, much bigger than a sweater, and they will take a long time to knit.

But knit pants are also super comfortable, and they can be made exactly to the fit you want. Add more ease in the legs, make them longer or shorter, whatever you want!

I’ve knit a pair of leggings in sock yarn, and I love them, but the Sierra Pants by Safiyyah Talley have a looser fit in the leg that would also be nice for lounge pants.

These are worked from the top down with a folded over elastic waistband. There are short rows to make the back longer than the front, as well as increases for hips and more short rows to fit the backside. The legs are worked straight and have a rolled edge, but you could easily work a folded over hem at the bottom of the leg if you wanted.

The pants are worked in fingering weight yarn held double, and they come in a whopping 17 sizes, to fit a waist from 24 to 56 inches, or 61 to 142 cm. There’s meant to be about 2 inches/5 cm of negative ease at the waist.

The pattern calls for a cotton/acrylic blend (Knit Picks Comfy Fingering), which comes in 19 different colors. This would be great for a summer pair of pants, but you could also use a wool blend if you want to make them warmer for the colder part of the year.

And of course you can add stripes or use up your whole stash of sock yarn on this project if you want.

You can grab the pattern on Ravelry or from Saifyyah’s website.

Can’t get enough knit pants? Check out this collection of pants and shorts knitting patterns.

[Photo: Safiyyah Talley]

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]

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