Use Your Stash on a Sweater That’s All Stripes

I was thinking this morning about a long-neglected ebook project I’ve started and stopped working on a multitude of times over the past 10 years or so that’s all about using your stash. It occurred to me that maybe more than specific projects that use leftovers (because who knows what kind of yarn or how much of it each person has, or what they might like to make with it) it might be better to provide stash-busting strategies.

And one of the best stash-busting strategies I know is adding stripes to a project.

The All Stripes Sweater from Sylvia Watts-Cherry takes “just add a stripe” to the extreme, making a sweater with stripes of varying widths broken up by a strip of garter stitch when the colors change. This drop shoulder sweater is worked from the bottom up in the round and has a crew neck and a relaxed fit. It looks like it might be reversible, too.

The pattern is available in nine sizes, with chest measurements ranging from 37.5 inches to 70.5 inches, with a suggested positive ease of 5.5 to 9 inches.

While the pattern has a stripe structure for you to follow and calls for six colors of yarn, of course you can add in more and not repeat colors, or make up your own sequence. I like that this picture shows several different color schemes so you can get an idea of how the sweater might look using yarn from your stash.

In addition to having striping options, you also have different options for the weight of yarn you use. The pattern is available (all links ahead are from Ravelry) using super bulky, worsted weight or DK yarn specifications, so you can either buy yarn or use your stash you already have to make a sweater of the weight you prefer.

[Photo: Sylvia Watts-Cherry]

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Many times when I write these posts I will say something like “you can use any yarn you want” or “this would be a great stash-busting project.” That’s just how my mind works. And my stash, too, since I probably have sweater quantity of two or three yarns at most, but tons of singles and odd balls and leftovers.

Blankets are generally a really good way to use up those bits, but in this case, I think you’re going to want to plan it out a bit better.

Looking at photos of the Color Study Blanket from Purl Soho, it looks like it’s made with two yarns held together, and that block in the center is worked with one of each color from the adjoining sides to make a mixed up color.

But that’s not actually how it’s done. This is three separate colors (four, really, with the neutrals in the corners) chosen form a yarn with an expansive palette so they play off each other. The project calls for a worsted weight superwash wool, which is a great choice for a blanket that’s both warm and washable.

This pattern was originally designed by Laura Ferguson and was updated by Hiromi Glover. It is worked in one piece in garter stitch intarsia, which is a great way to learn the intarsia technique if you don’t already know it. It comes in crib or throw sizes.

Despite the introduction to this post, I am going to go ahead and say that, yes, of course you could do this blanket with scraps or odd balls or even just choose five colors that don’t blend together so easily. But I really do love the look of the color play, and I think it would be worth your time to find colors that play well together to get a similar effect.

This pattern is available for free from Purl Soho.

[Photo: Purl Soho]

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