28 December 2015
24 December 2015
23 December 2015
21 December 2015
Pattern: Solstice Cardi
You need one of those little cardigans that you throw on over everything. But wouldn’t you like it to have a v-neck, flatter your figure, and be fun to knit with little finishing?
Solstice Cardi is the one for you! Stockinette with shaping where you need it keeps things smooth and simple. Garter stitch edges and integrated button bands give a crisp finish and are easy to work. Join us on The Sweater with Kathleen Dames podcast to knit this pattern with me!
What you'll love about knitting Solstice Cardi
- You can knit along with me over the 12-week podcast season beginning 8 January 2016!
- Both pattern and podcast are filled with tips and techniques that you'll use on all your knitting projects
- Integrated button bands cut down on finishing work, so you'll get to wear your sweater more quickly
What you'll love about wearing Solstice Cardi
- You'll look fabulous!
- Fingering-weight yarn makes this the cardigan you'll grab all year long
- Figure-flattering shaping is built into the pattern
Size/Finished Measurements
28 (32, 36, 40, 44, 48, 52) inches circumference, closed. Shown in size 36-inch with two inches negative ease.
Materials
Julie Asselin Stella (84% Merino, 16% Metallic; 400 yds [366 m]/4.06 oz [115 g]): color, 2 (2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 4) skeins; {approx. 600 (700, 800, 950, 1100, 1250, 1450) yds fingering weight yarn}
US6 (4.0 mm) 24-inch (or longer) circular needle
Markers
Removable stitch markers
Stitch holders or waste yarn
Tapestry needle
6 (6, 6, 6, 7, 7, 7) 1/2" buttons
Gauge
24 sts and 32 rows = 4 inches in St st
Skills Needed
Casting on
Binding off
Knitting
Purling
Increasing
Decreasing
Thanks!
Photography: Nicholas Dames
Technical Editing: Corrina Ferguson/Picnic Knits
Everything you need to create your own beautiful Solstice Cardi is provided in the professionally designed (by me!) pattern.
Don't forget to tag your project with hashtag #kdsweater on social media.
Sign up for The Sweater with Kathleen Dames newsletter to get your free copy of the Solstice Cardi pattern.
Thanks for stopping by, and happy knitting!
xoxo,
The Sweater with Kathleen Dames | Episode Zero: The Basics
Meet the Solstice Cardi!
Learn the basics of what you'll need to get started knitting your very own.Click here to sign up for the newsletter and get your free Solstice Cardi pattern*
Share your project on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter with hashtag #kdsweater
*Free pattern available until 25 March 2016. After that date Solstice Cardi will be available for purchase from my Ravelry shop.
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periscope | instagram | twitter | ravelry | facebook
music: Cafe Parisien with accordion iStock.com/frobisher
In the video Kathleen is wearing Sotherton, originally published in Jane Austen Knits, Summer 2012. Pattern available here.
18 December 2015
The Sweater with Kathleen Dames trailer
The trailer is up now, my friends! Be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel, so you won't miss an episode of The Sweater with Kathleen Dames. Newsletter sign-up and Episode Zero go live on 21 December 2015 - the Winter Solstice.
xoxo,
17 December 2015
16 December 2015
15 December 2015
14 December 2015
Planning The Sweater
If you watch me on Periscope (see the previous post for more) or follow me on Instagram/Twitter, you may have seen some stuff recently about my plans for a podcast (and sweater-knitting evangelism). I am busy wrestling technology into submission right now, awaiting feedback from my technical editor, and trying to decide which microphone will work best on camera (and with my camera). So many exciting things to do to get ready...
So, yes! I am planning on producing a podcast called The Sweater with Kathleen Dames. Eeeeee! It will be a video podcast on YouTube (you can subscribe to my channel from that link) with an iTunes audio version a little down the line (when I wrestle that technology to the ground).
Pretty soon you will see a link to it in the top navigation on the site (actually, it's there now but will be wrestled/prettified and occupied with more info soon). There will be a newsletter that will not only deliver a free copy of the pattern (available during the season), but that will also deliver direct YouTube links to you once episodes go live. (More technology to wrestle!) After the season is finished, the pattern will be available to purchase in my Ravelry shop (and subscribers will receive a coupon for a substantial discount off that version of the pattern should you wish to store it in your Ravelry library). And if you enjoy the first season, I'll produce more seasons going forward with more patterns (pullovers! cables! lace!).
There will be 12 episodes that will cover all aspects of knitting my Solstice Cardi pattern (coming soon!) from measuring your bodacious self to binding off the neck stitches and everything in-between. Even if you choose not to knit the Solstice Cardi, you will find lots of helpful tips and tricks to apply to all your knitting projects (especially largely-seamless bottom-up sweaters).
The episodes will include:
So, yes! I am planning on producing a podcast called The Sweater with Kathleen Dames. Eeeeee! It will be a video podcast on YouTube (you can subscribe to my channel from that link) with an iTunes audio version a little down the line (when I wrestle that technology to the ground).
Pretty soon you will see a link to it in the top navigation on the site (actually, it's there now but will be wrestled/prettified and occupied with more info soon). There will be a newsletter that will not only deliver a free copy of the pattern (available during the season), but that will also deliver direct YouTube links to you once episodes go live. (More technology to wrestle!) After the season is finished, the pattern will be available to purchase in my Ravelry shop (and subscribers will receive a coupon for a substantial discount off that version of the pattern should you wish to store it in your Ravelry library). And if you enjoy the first season, I'll produce more seasons going forward with more patterns (pullovers! cables! lace!).
There will be 12 episodes that will cover all aspects of knitting my Solstice Cardi pattern (coming soon!) from measuring your bodacious self to binding off the neck stitches and everything in-between. Even if you choose not to knit the Solstice Cardi, you will find lots of helpful tips and tricks to apply to all your knitting projects (especially largely-seamless bottom-up sweaters).
The episodes will include:
- the pattern
- the swatch (yarn and needles)
- the cast on (first sleeve)
- the body
- the shaping
- the body (again)
- the second sleeve
- the yoke
- the bind off
- the finishing
- the blocking
- the sweater
I will knit a new version of the pattern along with you, and I'm getting the yarn sorted for that as I type. I'm also thinking of including one or two live chat sessions on YouTube if you are interested in that. And I will broadcast my recording the episodes on Periscope (but not all the editing), so if you want to watch in advance, you'll be able to do that. I hope to bring episodes in around 25 minutes each, though I expect recording sessions to go longer than that.
Next Monday I will release Episode Zero, which will give you a little intro to what we are going to do and give you time to finish your obligation knitting and get through the holidays before we begin. The first actual episode will go live (tentatively) on January 8th, which will have us wrapping up just in time for the Vernal Equinox.
So, what do you think? Let me know in the comments below.
Thanks for stopping by, and happy knitting!
xoxo,
So, what do you think? Let me know in the comments below.
Thanks for stopping by, and happy knitting!
xoxo,
11 December 2015
10 December 2015
09 December 2015
08 December 2015
04 December 2015
Knit JOY (50% off coupon)
I plan to knit a long garland as a sort of Advent project for our tree in sock yarn, but you can easily follow the pattern to knit yours with worsted weight yarn for a quick holiday door decoration.
Thanks for stopping by, and happy knitting!
xoxo,
P.S. I shared this with my newsletter yesterday, so sign up here to get the good stuff first!
03 December 2015
Designer resources
In yesterday morning's Periscope broadcast I mentioned some resources I turn to when writing and grading patterns. As I mentioned, I usually follow Knitty standards, as I like how wide-ranging they are (seven sizes from XS to 3X in 4-inch increments). Most magazines I've worked with publish patterns in five sizes, but I do prefer seven -- it's not too much more work while giving more knitters the opportunity to knit a pattern from the instructions.
When grading my patterns I often refer to:
- Ysolda's sizing chart (couldn't find it where I used to find it, but here it is on Pinterest)
- CYCA's guidelines (this is the PDF download -- I don't see the point of just getting the chart of measurements without the schematic)
- Ann Budd's The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns (non-affiliate Amazon link, but you can certainly find it elsewhere)
- Elizabeth Zimmermann's books, particularly Knitting Workshop (non-affiliate Schoolhouse Press link, but you can find this title elsewhere, too)
I love all the measurements included in Ysolda's chart -- it's very thorough, although it does not contain a key number for my pattern writing: sleeve length from wrist to underarm. Since I write patterns from cuff and hem upwards to join body and sleeves together and work yokes seamlessly, this number is of more use to me than the given sleeve length measurement (from wrist to shoulder). Happily I can find that number in the CYCA standards.
As for the books I mention above, Ann Budd's book is a great starting point, even if I find the amount of ease included to be much larger than I generally design for. The proportions are helpful, though, as are the impressive spectrum of pattern grading from baby to large adult man. And EZ's books are so helpful in thinking about the body in a three-dimensional way, as well as the interconnectedness of our parts thanks to her EPS (Elizabeth's Percentage System). I couldn't do without Knitting Workshop and re-read Knitter's Almanac on a regular basis.
I hope you find these helpful/interesting. Let me know in the comments if you have any other knitting design resources you turn to regularly.
Thanks for stopping by, and happy knitting!
xoxo,
As for the books I mention above, Ann Budd's book is a great starting point, even if I find the amount of ease included to be much larger than I generally design for. The proportions are helpful, though, as are the impressive spectrum of pattern grading from baby to large adult man. And EZ's books are so helpful in thinking about the body in a three-dimensional way, as well as the interconnectedness of our parts thanks to her EPS (Elizabeth's Percentage System). I couldn't do without Knitting Workshop and re-read Knitter's Almanac on a regular basis.
I hope you find these helpful/interesting. Let me know in the comments if you have any other knitting design resources you turn to regularly.
Thanks for stopping by, and happy knitting!
xoxo,
02 December 2015
01 December 2015
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