Take Your Stitches in New Directions with this Knit Sweater

When I first saw the New Directions Knit Pullover from Yarnspirations, I thought it was a cable knitting project.

But it turns out these shifting stitches are caused by strategic increases and decreases that form those lines that look like cables.

This is a super fun way to get a cable like look without needing to actually make cables, and it will give you lots of practice with difference increases and decreases (the pattern uses knit 2 together, purl 2 together, slip, slip knit and make 1).

The project is rated for intermediate knitters and uses worsted weight yarn. It comes in six sizes up to a finished chest measurement of 65 inches, though it is meant to have a lot of positive ease. The extra small/small size, for example, has a finished chest measurement of 42 inches and the pattern says it is to fit people with a chest measurement from 28 to 34 inches.

The pattern is worked flat in pieces from the bottom up on the body and the top down on the sleeves. It has raglan shaping and the back is longer than the front. In addition to the shifting cable like stitches, the pattern uses reverse rice stitch on the rest of the body and sleeves, giving it lots of fun texture. (It’s a combination of knitting one row and working ribbing on one row, so it’s actually really easy.)

This project looks super cozy and not too difficult to stitch. And if you have knitting friends they might be as surprised as I was that this one is worked without a cable needle since they aren’t really cables!

If you are ready to knit actual cables — or are a pro with them already — check out my collection of cable knitting patterns to help boost your skills. There’s a sampler blanket, a sweater, a cozy hat and more to choose from.

[Photo: Yarnspirations.]

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I don’t even know what to say about this amazing knitting pattern. The Bestiary Scarf from Monstra & Mirabilia is so full of details it’s a little intimidating to talk about.

It features, as the designer describes it, an “artistic encyclopaedia of Western mythical creatures.”

The pattern includes a dragon, harpy, Medusa, chimaera, centauress, phoneix, kraken, mermaid, sew serpent, cyclops, wyvern, Pegasus, amphiptere and amphibaena. (It’s a good thing there’s a photo of the proejct with everything labelled because I definitely didn’t know the names for everything.) It’s also designed like a landscape, with water and land creatures toward the bottom ends and sky creatures toward the top.

The dragon is at the center and is worked sideways so it will show as upright when you wear it.

The scarf is worked in double knitting, so the colorwork appears in the opposite colors on the other side.

It’s worked in light fingering weight yarn (on size 0 US or 2mm knitting needles) and the colorwork is shown in charts. The pattern also includes some video tutorials and written instructions to help you along. The designer says the pattern is for intermediate knitters, and “advanced beginners may succeed with patience and the help of the video tutorials.”

When I was an advanced beginner this kind of a pattern would have brought me to tears, but if you love a challenge, and a project that you’ll wear and get tons of astonished reactions every time, this is the project for you. And of course if you have a few double knitting projects under your belt and are comfortable reading charts, this project shouldn’t be hard, but that doesn’t mean it’s fast. But lots of great things take time, and that’s never stopped us before, right?

You can get a copy of this pattern from Monstra & Mirabilia on Ravelry.

[Photo: Monstra & Mirabilia ]

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