What’s Your Favorite Thing You’ve Ever Knit?

I’m not sure this is a question I could answer, but what’s your favorite thing you’ve ever knit?

One of my favorites is definitely the Color Belt Sweater (Ravelry link) from my Colorwork Knitting book, because I’d had that design in my head for years and it came out just the way I wanted. It always makes me smile when I wear it.

Or maybe it’s the first pair of toe-up socks I knit, which fit perfectly and made me think I should always knit socks toe up (I don’t, but I do love that style). Or it could be the hat I knit my daughter while she was in the NICU, or the Harry Potter robe I knit for her birthday one year, or the blanket that’s on her bed that she loves so much. Or any number of sweaters I’ve knit and loved to wear through the years. Or the giant wool blanket I snuggle under on the couch every winter.

Point is: don’t make me chooose!

The Guardian, for reasons I’m unsure of, recently asked some people about their favorite knitting projects, or the ones that bring them the most pride, and their answers are way better than mine. They’re all sweaters, which I love, and they have very different stories. There’s an amazing sweater with a colorwork parrot on it, a couple of sweaters the knitters designed themselves, and a sweater that inspired a matching garment for a dog.

These stories are worth your time because they’ll make you feel good about being a knitter. And if you’ve never knit a sweater before they just might inspire you to make that your next project.

I would love to know what your favorite project is, or what you’ve made that you’re most proud of. Or if you’re like me and can’t name just one! Let’s talk about it.

[Photo from Kirsty Nottle via The Guardian.]

Next Pattern:

Just about anything you can make in fabric you can make in knitting, but there are some styles that you just don’t see that often translated into knitting.

For example, a button down collared shirt. This is a classic design, of course, and it looks great in a knit version, but it’s just not something you see much of.

Noma Ndlovu’s Guglethu shirt is the pattern to try if you want to knit your own button down shirt. This one is inspired by cashmere tops (though the sample was made out of yak yarn, not cashmere, and uses two strands of lace weight yarn held together) and includes lots of high-fashion details like double-knit cuffs, collar and shoulder seams.

It has a patch pocket on the front and 10 buttons including the button band and the cuffs.

The designer says you can also use a DK weight yarn held singly if you’d rather, and that the shirt looks good in a variety of yarns. There is another version on Ravelry that uses Berroco Remix Light, which is a mix of nylon, cotton, acrylic, silk and cellulose fibers. It has a more relaxed look but it still really pretty.

The pattern has 12 sizes, with a full bust measurement ranging from 32.35 to 72.25 inches, or 82 to 183.5 cm. The designer suggests 2 to 6 inches, or 5 to 15 cm, of positive ease when you pick your size. I could totally see knitting one that’s even bigger to wear more like a jacket, because I do that a lot with button down shirts I already own.

I love all the details on this shirt, which isn’t necessarily difficult to knit, but might introduce you to some things you’ve never knit before (like those cuffs with the plackets, or a shirt collar like this).

To learn more about this shirt and grab a copy of the pattern for yourself, head to Ravelry.

[Photo: Noma Ndlovu]

Add Some Texture to Your Summer Knitting

Book Review – Knit a Dozen Plus Slippers

Next Pattern:

Have you read?