You (Probably) Already Know All You Need to Knit a Sweater

October 2, 2014 by Sarah White 3 Comments

Welcome back to Sweater Month! I wanted to get started with a little pep talk and a reminder that you probably already know everything you need to know in order to successfully knit a sweater.

Yes, an adult-sized sweater is a big project, and it can, indeed, be quite complex. But if you’re looking at a stockinette sweater with minimal shaping, you’ve probably got all the skills you need to get it done right.

Don’t believe me? Let’s look at the skills you are likely to need to knit a basic, pieced sweater.

Casting on
Knitting
Purling
Basic increasing or decreasing, depending on the direction of the sweater
The ability to measure a piece of knitting
Binding off
Making pieces the same length (front and back and sleeves)
Seaming

Nothing too difficult there. The one I have the most trouble with is making pieces that are supposed to be the same length actually the same length (and that’s not a problem so long as you can count rows).

I know seaming can be scary, but again, if you’re just working with stockinette, mattress stitch is actually really easy to learn.

Check out my article from About on How to Knit a Sweater to get another look at the skills needed for sweater knitting, as well as links to some easy patterns you might want to try.

Next Pattern:

Comments

Becky PS says
October 3, 2014 at 11:35 am
I so far behind with the knit along scarf it may be ready for winter 2016!!! But I do so want to knit a sweater. One day…
Sarah E. White says
October 3, 2014 at 12:16 pm
Me, too, as it happens. I did the first clue, tried to do the second, remembered I hate bobbles and abandoned it. Someday! 🙂
Becky PS says
October 4, 2014 at 1:43 pm
Those bobbles are killing me but I am determined. I’m just almost 3 weeks behind!
🙂

Have you read?

Knit a Cozy Sweater with Lots of Options

If you’re looking for a sweater knitting pattern that uses up some of your stash and allows you to make just the sweater you want, the Marlina Rib by Shay Johson might be just the thing.

It’s worked with two strands of fingering weight yarn held together to make a DK weight gauge, so you can use the same two yarns throughout or change one or both regularly for an even more colorful look.

The pattern has options to make it either a crewneck or a henley style with buttons, tapered or relaxed sleeves, and a straight hemline or a split hem with buttons (which sounds so cute if you do the henley with split hem and match the buttons on both parts).

It’s also knit from the top down so you can make the body and the sleeves as long as you want. There are 10 sizes available in the pattern, with a chest circumference ranging from 32 to 68 inches, or 81.5 to 172.5 cm. It’s meant to be worn with 4-6 inches/10-15 cm of positive ease at the chest.

The pattern page on Ravelry includes tons of measurements and yardage estimates so you can make sure you’ll get a good fit for your body before you even buy the pattern. Shay also shows a few variations of the sweater so you can see how different options look before you decide how you want to put them together.

The stitch pattern is 1×2 ribbing, which is really easy to do and gives a look almost like fisherman’s rib that’s relaxed and easy to wear.

This sweater looks like a great option for people who are somewhat new to sweater knitting or those who love to have lots of customization options (because it’s like getting multiple sweater patterns in one!).

Check out all the details and grab a copy of the pattern for yourself at Ravelry.

[Photo: Shay Johnson]

Next Pattern:

Comments

Have you read?

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