I think I’m addicted to knitting sweaters. I love knitting super simple and quick sweaters, using sumptuous yarns in sumptuous colours. And while I traditionally love top-down patterns, there are some aspects of them that don’t quite suit my tastes. Take the Knitting Pure and Simple 992 pattern, for example. I’d love to create a version in a fun chunky thread, but I need to make a few changes first.
- First, the sizes are a bit too big for me. The smallest chest measurement is a 38 and I really like that mine is about 34 (yes, I know everyone feels sorry for me).
- Second, the sleeve section just below the armhole is too loose. I prefer it tight.
- Third, I would like the waist to have a bit of shape…
This is how I can achieve those goals.
- making it smaller: The theory of making the chest smaller is simple: you need fewer stitches. For example, let’s say your gauge is 3 pts/inch. If the final chest size is 38 inches, you will be knitting 38×3=114 stitches for the body of the sweater. If you want the finished chest size to be a bit smaller (for example, 34 inches), you’ll need to remove 4 inches from the body, which is 12 stitches (4×3 = 12). So, subtract 12 from 114 and you get 102… That’s how many stitches you want to have on your needle while you’re knitting the body. When it comes to the KPS patterns, we can simplify the math even further. At first, it tells you to knit until there are 55 sts between the markers on the back, for the 38-inch chest. To reduce the chest size by 4 inches, we need to remove 12 stitches in total: 6 from the front and 6 from the back. So…subtract 6 from 55 (giving 49) and that is the number you will knit to. Basically you can write ’49’ before the 55, creating an even smaller size!
- squeeze sleeves: This change is simple. Instead of waiting to make the first sleeve decrease (remember, you’re starting at the top) for 6 rows, repeat the decrease every other row 3 times…and then follow the pattern as specified.
- add shape: To add shape to this sweater from the top down, you want to decrease about 2 inches of stitches (at each side seam) gradually to 1.5 inches above the waistband, knit 3 inches flat, then gradually increase them again. So, in the 4 sts/inch example, you’ll want to decrease 8 stitches total (1 on each side 4 times). Please note that the standard waist to shoulder measurement is 17 inches.
Using these techniques, I can knit a sweater that fits me just the way I want!
We hope you enjoy this article! This item and associated photos are for personal, non-commercial use only and not for resale. All rights reserved. Permission granted by Jimmy Beans Wool to copy and share this article for personal, non-commercial use. Users are not permitted to display on any retail or wholesale website without the express permission of Jimmy Beans Wool.