Knitting

Free Patterns, Tutorials and Project Ideas

Twist Your Stitches for a Fun Vest Knitting Pattern

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In the past few years I’ve developed an appreciation for vests that I never had before. I had knit a few, and I liked them OK, but I guess I just didn’t fully embrace the layering possibilities that they can provide.

You can wear a vest over a long sleeved or short sleeved shirt, over a dress, even on top of a shirt but under a sweater (or over a lighter weight sweater).

Some vest can even double as tops on their own, like the Traveling Vines Vest from Amy Gunderson.

This twisty project is worked in a DK weight yarn and is available in five sizes. The chest measurement ranges from 34 to 70.5 inches, or 85 to 176 cm. It’s worked flat in pieces and, because of the somewhat high scoop neck and arm holes, it’s totally fine to wear by itself or as a vest.

The fun part of this pattern is all the little twisted stitches and cables, which make a very interesting texture that’s fun to knit and to wear. The pattern includes a chart and a written pattern. They look like pretty small cables, but there are a lot of them, so it might help to have a cable project or two under your belt before trying this one.

You can grab the free pattern when you create an account at Yarnalia.

If you want to boost your cable knitting skills, check out my collection of fun cable knitting patterns. And since a lot of these twists are small, you could also use this project as an opportunity to learn how to make cables without using a cable needle. And you can find more easy vest knitting patterns here, and get a little more of the story about how I learned to love vests here. Mostly it has to do with not wanting to knit sleeves, which I relate to a lot right now as I wonder if I could pull off a one-sleeved cardigan.

[Photo: Amy Gunderson]

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Classic Dishcloth Knitting Patterns

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.