Thoughts on Sweater Ease

Since this is a perfect time to knit sweaters (and I’m trying to finish up about five of them this month!) I thought it would be good to share this article from Knitting Daily discussing the issue of ease in sweaters and how you decide which of the sizes given in a pattern is the one you want to knit.

This issue came up specifically because people were asking about the amount of ease in a particularly lovely sweater from the current issue on Knitscene. Editor Amy Palmer notes that the magazine does not indicate how much ease these is in any given pattern, but you can find the right size for you based on the measurements in the schematic.

There are a lot of things that go into how much ease you want in a sweater, and how the model looks in the garment probably shouldn’t be a consideration. It depends on how you like a sweater to look and feel, if you tend to wear shirts under your sweaters, your gauge and the stitch pattern involved.

It’s a lot to think about but it’s an essential first step to sweater success!

[Photo via Knitscene.]

Next Pattern:

The other day I saw a post from Pinterest about trends for summer and it said one of them was “cultivating whimsy.”

Well, I don’t know where Pinterest has been all this time, but we’ve been cultivating whimsy here at Craft Gossip for a long time. I love sharing projects that are a little different, things that make you smile when you see them, and will make you smile when you knit them and wear them or use them.

Such it is with the Tutti Frutti tee knitting pattern from Bea Creative Knits.

This cute little baby tee is worked top down in the round with contiguous shoulder construction to shape the sleeve caps. There are short rows for the neckline and folded hems with picot edging at the hemline, neckline and edges of the sleeves.

All of this would be great on its own, but then there’s the addition of a super cute fruit icon, which is added with duplicate stitch. There are a lot of options, including strawberry, banana, orange, cherries, watermelon, lemon, blueberries, kiwi, peach, dragon fruit, apple and pear, so it’s likely you can add on your favorite fruit.

It is offered in eight sizes, to fit a bust measurement ranging from 28-30 inches (71-76 cm) to 56-58 inches (142-147 cm). The design is meant to be worn with around 6.3 inches/16 cm of negative ease, but you can choose the fit you prefer. There’s also optional bust and waist shaping included in the pattern if you want to make it even curvier.

This is considered an advanced beginner or intermediate project because of all the skills involved, but it’s sure to be a lot of fun even if some of these techniques are new to you.

Grab a copy of the pattern for yourself form Bea Creative Knits on Etsy.

[Photo: Bea Creative Knits]

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