This all started over on my TikTok... Once I started posting "how to" videos on my brand new TikTok account, I started getting questions about how to make a sweater. With both crochet and knit tutorials, that means my audience might not like it if I choose just one when I make my videos. This forced me to get creative.
The 8 steps below will allow you to use knit OR crochet. You can use any stitch, yarn, hook/needle size, colors, and sizing! This is such a fun way for you to make an open front cardigan that is exactly what you want it to be! You choose the yarn. You choose knit or crochet. You choose the size at every step. This way, you know this sweater was made exactly as you want it.
If you want to watch the whole process, visit me over on TikTok and search for @gingerknots. Some of the links below might be affiliate links and I'll receive a small payment if you choose to purchase through those links. That will not change the price you pay and helps me to keep some of my content free! All underlined text is a link!
Find a shirt or sweater you already have in your closet. Ideally, it will be something that you already like the way it fits. We'll be taking two measurements from it so you'll want it to fit around your waist the way you want. I chose a shirt that is loose and has about 3 inches of positive ease on each side (that means the extra fabric is 3 inches when I pinch it at my sides. It also has the length I'd like my sweater to be! (TikTok video for reference)
Mine measured 20 inches wide and 28 inches long! That is how big I will make my back panel.
Next, I had a bunch of Lion Brand Wool Ease Thick and Quick in my stash. That's a size 6 yarn so my sweater is really bulky. You can choose any size of yarn. I also chose to knit mine with 10mm needles. Again, you can choose either knit or crochet. You'll want to make sure you choose a size that compliments the yarn you choose.
When in doubt, I always go up a hook/needle size because I think it makes a sweater drape better. I have lots of thoughts on this so check out this post if you're not sure!
Remember, we're using ANY stitch/hook/yarn so we need to figure out how that translates to our measurements. This is a great time to test out your hook/needle size! Whichever you choose, you'll want to make a square that is bigger than 4 inches wide and 4 inches tall (not much bigger). Using that square, we'll figure out how many stitches wide and how many rows tall fit within 4 inches.
For example, mine was 8 stitches wide and 11 rows tall in an 4 x 4 inch square
That info allows us to figure out how many stitches per inch: 8 stitches divided by 4 inches gives us 2 stitches per inch. 11 rows divided by 4 inches gives us 2.75 rows per inch.
If I need my back panel to be 20 inches wide and I have 2 stitches per inch, that means I need to start with 40 stitches! Using that same math, I would need about 77 rows to get my length.
This step does involve a bunch of math, but it doesn't have to be perfect! My sweater is over-sized and I love it! (TikTok video)
Now we've reached the fun part: Cast on or begin chaining! We'll be basing the rest of the garment off the back panel so let's start there. I ended up casting on an extra 5 stitches because I changed my mind when I started casting on and wanted it to be a bit wider. So my back panel started by casting on 45 (in case you're basing yours off mine). Work whichever stitch you choose until you have the right length. Mine was 77 rows of alternating knit and purl stitches.
Here is what the pattern for my back panel would look like:
CO 45
Row 1: Purl all sts
Row 2: Knit all sts
Row 3 - 77: repeat rows 1 and 2
Bind off
Once you've made your back panel, we can figure out how big of a neck opening we need to leave. You could gauge that by measuring your own neck or the neck opening of your favorite shirt. I wanted my neck to sit close to mine so it wouldn't be slouchy and slip off my shoulder. That means about 4 inches so I chose 9 stitches to leave out in the middle. You can mark those with stitch markers if you want to help you count the stitches for your two front panels.
With an odd number of stitches (45) cast on, that means I need to choose an odd number for the neck opening for my sides to be even.
Count from the outside corner towards your neck opening to figure out how many stitches to make. You can make the panel separately or keep stitching from the edge of your back panel (less sewing this way!). Your front panels will be the same length as the back panel!
Taking out the middle 9 stitches leaves me with 36 total or 18 stitches for each side. I want my front panels to be the same length as the back so each one will be 18 stitches wide and 77 rows long.
Here is what the pattern for my front panels looks like:
CO 18
Row 1: Purl all sts
Row 2: Knit all sts
Row 3 - 77: repeat rows 1 and 2
Bind off
Make 2! At the end of your front panels, I like to leave a long tail and use that to sew my panels together. This will cut down on the number of ends to weave in at the end! YAY!! (TikTok reference)
Before we make the sleeves, we'll sew our front panel to the back panel. (If you didn't stitch them right to the back panel) I used mattress stitch for mine. Here is how to do mattress stitch! We'll leave the sides open for now and "put on" our sweater for the first time. Always so fun!
Now we can see how wide our shoulders are so we know how low they will sit on our arms. Time for some more measurements!
With your sweater draped over your shoulders, you can see where the shoulders will "sit". This is how you know how long to make your sleeve panels! Measure from the shoulder seam down your arm. Stop where you want your sleeve to start. You can calculate your number of rows with that number.
Now figure out how many stitches to cast on or chain. Make a circle with your tape measure and put that around the widest part of your arm. If you want a tight sleeve, measure close to your arm. If you want it loose, you can give it an inch or two of "positive ease". I went with one extra inch for mine. Calculate your stitches using the same math as the back panel.
Make two panels! You can reduce your number of stitches as you go down your sleeve or just make straight panels. This would mean your wrist measurement is the same as your upper arm and a slouchy sleeve. That's what I did! I added trim after to gather it around my wrist, but you don't have to! (TikTok)
Before I added the trim, I did Knit 1, K2tog repeated around. This reduced my number of stitches at the end so it would fit closer on my wrist.
Lay your sweater flat just like the sketch above. Find the middle point of your sleeve and clip that to your shoulder seam with a stitch marker. I also clipped each edge to the side to be sure the stitches were evenly spaced as I sewed it on. Here is a time lapsed video of me sewing my sleeve on! (It's a TikTok video).
Do that for both sides!
Gram the shoulder seams and lift your sweater up and fold it so it looks like a sweater. As with my shoulder and arm seams, I used Mattress Stitch to seam my sides and sleeves. Take care not to pull too tight while seaming! (You get the drill)
I added trim to mine! I used alternating knit and purl stitches along the bottom, up along the collar, and the wrists of my garment. It isn't necessary, but mine felt like it needed it. There are lots of ways to add trim with wonderful videos for both knit and crochet. My own "how-to" videos for adding trim are coming soon, but in the mean time, here's a great one for knitting and one for crochet!
Knitting: How to pick up stitches and how to K1 and P1 for trim
Crochet: Adding a single crochet ribbing border
Please tag me in your new design! That's what you just did... you designed your own sweater! You chose the stitch, texture, sizing, details, etc. to be what you wanted it to be. That means you're a designer now and I would LOVE to see what you created. Use #gksweaterdesign so we can see what everyone has done!
Here are the videos I posted to my TikTok all in one place!
Measure sample:
https://vm.tiktok.com/
That escalated... quickly. I recorded a really short video about how to knit a jumbo blanket. Welp... It went viral. It currently sits just under 6 millions views and 1 million likes. Guys.. It makes me soooooo happy that so many people might try knitting because they saw that video.. Here it is!
With that being said, there have also been some pretty un-fun comments. There's the occasional "this is crochet", but the ones that bum me out are the other makers who are trying to convince people not to make it. Their comments tend to describe the drawbacks to jumbo knitting (definitely real concerns) but not in a constructive way. It's a fair amount of "don't ever make these blankets". This easy blanket is like a gateway project! I want people to feel inspired by their success and end up hoarding yarn like the rest of us.
So, let's talk about it!
But first, please know the links below are affiliate links. If you click on any of the pictures or links, I would get a small payment from the store if you buy there. That doesn't impact the price you pay!
Let's start with the yarn seen all over Pinterest: roving wool. This gorgeous fiber, in all its un-spun glory, will make the most luscious and incredible blanket. A blanket that will only last for about a week..
Roving wool is what the yarn looks like before it is spun into yarn. It is really fluffy and extra thick! Since it isn't spun, it doesn't last. Spinning is what makes the yarn more durable. Without being spun, it is far more likely to result in pilling, splitting, and looking fuzzy with limited use. For that reason, making this into a blanket that you want to wear around your house (am I the only one wearing blankets??) will mean you're disappointed in all that time and money invested in such a big project.
Roving wool also tends to be REALLY expensive. A blanket could cost hundreds of $$ in material. That's a tough pill to swallow if the blanket will fall apart quickly.
"Ok so what can I actually use?"
I'm not one to say no without giving an alternative so let's consider some options!
Many yarn companies refer to it as blanket yarn so that makes it easy! This yarn is a really fluffy alternative to roving. It has a microfiber feel to it that is often used as baby yarn as well. Generally made of polyester or acrylic, it is not a natural fiber. Some don't like it much for that reason. I think it makes it really durable and easy to care for. Who doesn't love machine washable? This affordable alternative will not have the same stitch definition as roving or others, but you can wear it and use it as much as you'd like! The down side with some is they can have the dreaded "string" running through the middle. It makes it more durable so I'm ok with it!
Getting yarn to be that bulky has to be challenging. One solution is to make a "tube" of a durable material like cotton and stuff it. The options for size are really endless here. Making it yourself is a possibility if you've got the time to both make the yarn and then knit with it. That isn't my ideal scenario so I've done so looking around.
Similar to tube yarn, chainette constructed yarn is when thin yarn is looped on itself many times in a "tube" shape. That is the type of yarn I used when making my full sized blanket. Because this is made with thinner yarn, it can be made out of different fibers. Cotton, wool, acrylic, etc. could all be made into chainette constructed yarn.
It's hard to tell with the velvet yarn linked below, but it is built out of a series of chains. It is a velvet thread and looks really soft and also machine washable AND dryable. Imaging pulling that out of your dryer all warm and cozy!
Big Twist Tape - This is the exact yarn I used for mine! I ordered 8 balls and made a large lap blanket. Less than $50!
Ok so I haven't tried this yet and it is a HUGE miss on my part. I've made a Christmas Tree Skirt and Christmas Stocking with this yarn and it is unbelievably soft. I am not sure how easy it is to work with in terms of arm knitting. It should be thick enough, but I'll put my money where my mouth is and get some. I'll edit this post when I do!
There are lots of other options and I linked about 15 in my Amazon page. It might seem like I'm a bit of a Lion Brand fan-girl. I am, but it's also the yarn I know best and have used the most. It's also really accessible. Yarn doesn't have to cost a lot for it to make beautiful things. There are times I can be snobby with my yarn choices, but you don't have to be a "yarn snob" to get luxurious feeling out of the things you make!
If you follow me on TikTok and you see anyone asking questions, feel free to encourage them. I know what yarn has brought to my life and I hope we can work together to teach people how great this community of makers is. Every community has a few gatekeepers who say things like "real knitters know the difference". I'll keep deleting those!
Happy knitting my friends!
]]>With so many options, how do you choose which one is the best fit for each project? I have fallen victim to choosing the wrong hook size for a sweater and wasting HOURS on something I can never wear. If I'm following a pattern and using the recommended hook size, how did that happen??
If you're a pattern designer, there are a few more things to consider when choosing which size to roll with for a project. Depending on the type of pattern, it may need to be able to hold its shape really well. Or maybe you want it to have movement when you walk around. Choosing the right stitch is highly important in this decision making process, but so is hook size!
For me, I almost always go with a hook size that is larger than the label calls for. I have my reasons and here they are! These are the 5 things I am sure to keep in mind when I am making my choice.
This post may contain affiliate links! Visit my Amazon page to see my favorite yarn tools! Check it out!
Nearly every crochet pattern under the sun has a gauge swatch. I'll be the first to admit I haven't always been the best about starting here. Becoming a pattern tester really pushed me to check my gauge and I frequently found I needed to go up a hook size. That's because my tension is tighter than most. This will SIGNIFICANTLY impact the size of the finished project. If it's a garment, that's a really big deal. Tension and size are in bold because those nearly made the list on their own.
Pictured above are three squares. Each has the same number of stitches and rows. They are also pinned to line up on the right hand side of the square. You can see how much bigger each square gets as I moved up in size. Now imagine that in a whole sweater!
On every yarn label, there is a recommended hook size. For the smallest square, I used a hook smaller than recommended. The middle was the suggested size. The largest was much larger. For example, this is Lion Brand Color Made Easy (Size 5). It calls for K/6.50mm hook. The large square, I used P/11.50mm.
If I'm crocheting a sweater, for example, I struggle when it comes out being stiff. I can't stand the feeling and will never wear it.. Same goes for wearing a scarf up around my face. I want them to have a more "store bought" feel that has movement when I walk around. In the picture above, each of the three squares has a totally different squish to it. The smallest square would hardly bend if I held it up and moved it around. It is really rigid. The largest would be much more relaxed and "drape". Gravity would actually have an impact on the big square if I held it up. This factor makes a garment much more wearable.
My Bulky Beginner Raglan Cardi is made with the same yarn pictured and I used a P/11.50mm hook which is much bigger than recommended.
The Ballet Wrap sweater uses size 3 yarn and recommends a G hook... I used K. It sits in a relaxed way on the body rather than keeping it's structure when I move around.
This drape-y scarf (free pattern here!) was made with a larger hook and you can see it folds in on itself so it will hang nicely around your neck rather than keeping its triangle structure.
This goes hand-in-hand with drape. The opposite of having a flouncy garment that flows in the wind is having a project that will hold it's shape and you can rely on it. I'm talking about things like baskets, pillows, and amigurumi. If you're making a doll, you'll want to make sure the stuffing won't come out and it will maintain its original shape. This means I'd need hooks smaller than recommended.
This giraffe wouldn't look as cute if his ears didn't stand up!
So if you want your pattern design to hold it's shape, I would suggest sizing down a hook or two!
Ok so that's not the technical term. Do you want some more air to get through your project or do you want it to be a more dense fabric? My Super Scarf pattern is really hole-y and it means it has good drape, less structure, and it will also let some air through. The bigger the hook, the bigger the holes between your stitches. If you have a large hook size on a garment, you may want to wear something under it unless you're comfortable with some "show-through".
That is a trade-off with having a big hook for drape. You may end up with larger holes than you'd like and be able to see right through the garment. That's where you'd want to get creative with your stitch choice if you're hoping to prevent that!
Choosing a stitch is the number one influencer of texture. Hook size will also have a say here.
From left to right, these swatches increase in hook size
When working on my most recent sweater design (coming soon), I used two different types of stitches and was planning to use the same hook size throughout. The top section is v-stitch and I wanted the more "fabric-like" look of the left square. I was hoping for the texture of the v-stitch to be the standout and the rest of the garment to have a more uniform look and draw the eye upward. My hook size was chosen with that in mind. I was going for a certain texture...
Welp, that did not work out. If you follow my instagram reels, you can see me pulling out the single crochet stitches I wanted to use for the bottom part. While it gave me the texture I wanted with the smaller hook size, I had forgotten about drape. It did not have any.. At that point, I couldn't go up a hook size since I was too far along (frogging is the worst). I switched to alpine stitch to get the drape I was hoping for, but had to give up on my texture.
That, my yarn friends, is what inspired me to write this post! While I love the texture of the un-named sweater design I'm working on, the I/5.50mm hook I chose is too small for the Lion Brand Chainette yarn and didn't do what I was imagining. I should have started with a bigger size...
]]>Gifts for crochet and knit enthusiasts can seem like a scary thought… So many of us yarn artists are total weirdos about our tools. I am absolutely putting myself in that category! I wasn’t always this way…
This post contains affiliate links! If you click on them and purchase items, I will likely receive a small payment that does not impact the price of your items.
When I started crocheting, I would buy the least expensive hook and then wonder why my hand was cramping. I would buy skinny metal hooks with no grip to them. It took extra pressure from my hands to keep the hooks from sliding around. Cue the hand pain and frustration. Eventually, I put a rubber band around them and voila!! The pain was gone! I still do that with metal hooks and you can see it on my Instagram to this day because hooks don’t have to be expensive to work well.
Apart from the pain of using cheap materials, I’ve also evolved to want a certain aesthetic with the materials I use. If my house is going to be completely full of yarn and yarn related tools, I wanted them to be enjoyable to look at. I’m a gal who is obsessed with neutrals and I wanted to display my tools openly so greys, wood tones, and white are my top choices! There are tons of colorful options if your yarn lover likes those better.
For these reasons, I have curated a list of things I would have LOVED to get when I was starting my crochet and knitting life. I’d still love to get them now! (Someone should tell my husband…) There are a variety of gifts at many different price points you could give before we even start talking about yarn. Of course, you could always just give yarn.. lots and lots of yarn.
Click here to see the full list! See below for some examples and click on them to see that product!
Getting a set of crochet hooks or knitting needles is a good place to start. This will give your yarn lover all the sizes needed to make every single thing they pin on Pinterest. At least, I know I wanted to when I got started!
This next one might be obvious, but some gifters are intimidated by the choices in the craft store. I know I’ve always love experimenting with different brands, sizes, types, and colors, but you can’t go wrong with neutrals or wool… Of course, I’m talking about:
Scissors and a Yarn Needle
Once you’ve got the hooks or needles or both, your crafter is going to need some direction. It’s tough to know which size yarn goes with which hook or needle at first. YouTube is a great place to do some digging. I’ve got some beginner tutorials and patterns on my YouTube channel. Click here to go visit!
Apart from YouTube, there are tons of fantastic books out there. The one below is new and the tutorials look amazing! You can also find my beginner level patterns in my blog. Here’s one!
Pattern Books
This list hardly scratches the surface of all the things you could get, but it is the basics. You could get blocking mats, yarn needles, stitch markers, fancy scissors, etc… The list goes on and on and you can find it all on my Amazon page by clicking HERE!
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