Stella

Tags

baby sweater, cardigan, estelle, pattern, stella

Meet Stella, a baby Estelle! For a while now I’ve thought that, or course, Estelle would be pretty cute as a baby sweater and when I came up with calling the baby sweater Stella . . . well, it had to be done!

Stella has a slightly different shape than Estelle, with a more pulled in neckline (although the neck is still wide, mostly because I assume babies don’t like tight collars). The sweater is worked from the top down with a round yoke. The pattern is designed to be worn with two to three inches of positive ease. Stella comes in five sizes: 3, 6, 12, 18 and 24 months with finished chest measurements of 20 (21, 22, 23, 24)”/ 51 (53.5, 56, 58.5, 61) cm.

I’ve knit Stella in a wonderful fingering weight yarn from Sweet Fiber Yarns called Super Sweet Sock. The yarn is an 80% superwash merino, 20% nylon blend and comes in some lovely colors (I went with Bloom for the sample). The gauge for Stella is 7 sts/ 9 rows per inch in stockinette stitch. You would need approximately 305 (370, 450, 490, 545) yds fingering weight yarn, so 1 (1, 2, 2, 2) skein(s) if you’re going with Super Sweet Sock.

Stella is available for 6.50 (USD) as a download in my Ravelry Store or through Paypal.  Just click below!

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Baby & Child Sophisticate!

Tags

baby sophisticate, baby sweater, child sophisticate, pattern

It’s finally ready! Here is the updated, improved and expanded version of Baby Sophisticate I’ve had in the works for a while. I’m so excited to have this pattern finally available in expanded sizes!

The new pattern includes an updated construction, corrected sizing (since the original pattern ran small) and many more sizes. Baby & Child Sophisticate includes baby sizes of 3 (6, 12, 18, 24) months with finished chest measurements of 20 1⁄4 (21, 22, 22 3⁄4, 24 1⁄4)”/ 51.5 (53.5, 56, 58, 61.5) cm and child sizes 2 (4, 6, 8, 10) with finished chest measurements of 25 (26 3⁄4, 29, 30 1⁄2, 32 1⁄4)”/ 63.5 (68, 73.5, 77.5, 82) cm.

I’ve knit this new version of the pattern in Knit Picks Swish Worsted (the samples are Squirrel Heather) which is 100% Merino wool and superwash (so, perfect for babies and kiddos). The gauge for the updated pattern is 4.5 sts/ 6 rows per inch in stockinette stitch.

The free version of Baby Sophisticate will always remain available so that everyone will have access to the extensive notes of those who have knitted the pattern before and the wonderful translations made by fellow Ravelers. This pattern is simply an extension of the original for those interested in more sizes, improved sizing for the 3 and 6 month sizes and construction updates.

Both the baby and child sizes are included in the new pattern. The new pattern follows the same general logic as the original, with a few improvements such as more accurate sizing, as I said, a better fitting underarm, more detailed instructions on the construction of the collar and improved instructions for the buttonholes.

Baby & Child Sophisticate is available for 6.50 (USD) as a download in my Ravelry Store or through Paypal.  Just click below!

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Jacqueline

Tags

buttons, cardigan, pattern, retro

I am so excited to be releasing my newest pattern, a retro double-breasted cardigan called Jacqueline! I think the inspiration for the name is pretty obvious – I was definitely going for a vintage Jackie O look.

The body and sleeves of Jacqueline are knitted from the bottom up and joined at the underarms to work a traditional raglan yoke. A turned hem is worked at the bottom of the sleeves and body to create a clean edge. Twisted ribbing travels up the front of the sweater and six buttons make the closure. A fold-over collar (worked seamlessly from the body) gives a sweet and cozy finish to the sweater. Three-quarter length sleeves make this a fall appropriate garment, but could easily be lengthened for colder weather.

The pattern is offered in nine sizes, ranging from a finished bust measurement of 32 to 64 inches. The sweater was designed to be worn with 2″ of positive ease at the bust. Jacqueline calls for a worsted or aran weight yarn and I used Lorna’s Laces Worsted Solid in Pine for mine. The required gauge is 18 sts/24 rows per 4″ in Stockinette stitch and 24 sts/24 rows per 4″ in twisted 1×1 rib. At such a large gauge, this sweater knits up very quickly!

The pattern is available for 6.50 (USD) as a download in my Ravelry Store or through Paypal.  Just click below!

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Winter 2012 Twist Collective – Zenith

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designing, pattern, twist collective, zenith

Photo copyright Carrie Bostick Hoge and Twist Collective

My very first pattern published in twist collective! I’m still pretty giddy from the whole thing, even though the pattern was accepted months ago and I’ve had to keep my quiet about it for, like, ever. When I sent in my submission, I had actually already worked up the pattern and knitted a sweater for myself, but I also sent in a picture of my swatch and my sketch.
You can see that as the pattern evolved from the sketch I decided not to make the collar quite as deep and I shortened the ribbing on the sleeves a bit.  After the pattern was accepted, a few more changes were made in the next version and now we have Zenith! My main inspiration for the sweater was the super-trendy chevron thing that is going on right now and I wanted to repeat that pattern for a subtle texture all over the cardigan. I was also going through a vertical twisted ribbing phase when I designed this sweater and you know I can never resist a shawl collar.

I started with figuring out how I wanted to work the chevrons, and I settled on a simple purl bump pattern. It took me a while to decide exactly how to do the ribbed collar because I needed the edge to look nice on both sides since it would be folded over. I finally decided to go with an i-cord edge that is worked simultaneously with the body.

As for the construction of the sweater, it is knit in 5 pieces (6 if you count the belt) and seamed. The sleeves are set in, and the shoulder seams are finished using a three-needle bind off. The ribbing for the collar is worked past the shoulder (imagine you place the shoulder stitches on a holder and then continue to knit only the ribbing so that you will have a strip of ribbing that extends past the shoulders) on both sides, then the collar pieces are joined at the center back neck with kitchener’s stitch and finally the whole collar is sewn to the back neck. I know that’s a long explanation, but I promise it makes sense as you’re doing it!

I’m so excited about this pattern and I really hope people like it and enjoy knitting it! The pattern is written for nine sizes, ranging from 34 3/4″ to 67 3/4″ bust. The yarn I used for the twist sample was the lovely elann.com Peruvian Sierra Aran in Plum Heather (be sure to check out the yarn website where Zenith is the featured pattern for this yarn and there is another picture of the sweater!) If you’d like to take a look at even more pictures, head on over to the pattern page on twist collective. And don’t forget to look at the other amazing patterns in this issue!

Photo copyright Carrie Bostick Hoge and Twist Collective

Sophisticate

Tags

baby sophisticate, pattern, shawl-collar, sophisticate, top down

Also known as Mr. Sophisticate or Daddy Sophisticate to those who have been requesting it! It’s been a long time coming (like, 2 and a half years), but I’ve finally been able to write, knit, have test knitted, have tech edited, take pictures of and create the patten layout for the adult version of my baby pattern, Baby Sophisticate.  I’m not sure if people are still waiting for it after all this time, but I hope some of you are still excited to see this pattern hit the market!

I’ve designed this pattern so that it can be made for a man or a woman, with optional waist shaping for the women’s pattern and different lengths for certain parts of the sweater depending on whether it’s being knit for a guy or a girl.

The pattern includes sizing for chest measurements of 30, 34, 38, 42, 46, 50, 54, 58, and 62 inches and calls for Knit Picks City Tweed Heavy Weight (mine in Brocade and the men’s sweater in Tabby).  You will need 5, 6, 7, 8, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 11 skeins for the above sizes.

The gauge for the sweater is 15 sts/20 rows to 4 inches in Stockinette on size 8 US needles.  Just like Baby Sophisticate, the sweater is knit from the top down, with a raglan yoke, and the button band and collar are picked up and knit after the body is finished.

That’s Sophie helping me out with my photo shoot.

The pattern is available for 6.50 (USD) as a download in my Ravelry Store or through Paypal.  Just click below!  If you do decide to knit Sophisticate, I always welcome feedback and questions, so please let me know how you like it!

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Estelle Pullover-ized!

Tags

estelle, pattern, pullover

Haha! It sort of sounds like “Estelle pulverized”! That’s not at all what I mean, though, so don’t worry! : )

As soon as I published the Estelle cardigan, I realized that she would also make a lovely pullover – and had to start knitting immediately!  So, in case there were any like minded knitters out there, I wrote up the pattern for the pullover, combined it with the cardigan pattern and am now offering them both as a set.  Anyone who purchased the original Estelle cardigan pattern will receive an update including the pullover and anyone who wants to purchase the pullover pattern will get the cardigan pattern to boot!  Whew!  I just said “cardigan” and “pullover” about 138492395 times, so I’ll stop.  Here are some lovely pictures of the . . . um . . . ok, the thesaurus is telling me I can also call it a slipover . . .

This version of Estelle is worked in Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Worsted Solid (mine is in Pine, a color that I am in love with).  I’m currently obsessed with this yarn and may use it for every single project in the future.  The gauge is still 17 sts and 24 rows per 4 inches in Stockinette stitch.  Lorna’s Laces is a bit plumper than the Araucania called for in the original pattern, and gives a nice thick and soft fabric.

The pattern offers sizes XS, S, M, L, 1X, 2X, and 3X – which corresponds to final sweater bust measurements of 32, 36, 40, 44, 48, 52, and 56 inches.  The lace pattern is charted and written out, so take your pick!

Both patterns are available as a set for 6.50 (USD) as a download in my Ravlery Store or through Paypal.  Just click below!

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Estelle

Tags

cardigan, estelle, pattern

My grandmother, Estelle, has always loved flowers. Her favorite color has always been red. I have to admit that when I first conceived of Estelle, I didn’t have my grandmother in mind – but once all the pieces of the design came together for me, I knew that Estelle was the perfect name.

Estelle, or as I sometimes like to call her – flower yoke cardi, is a top-down round-yoke cardigan.  The sweater is knit in an aran weight yarn, so the knitting goes very fast.  A large lace flower motif around the yoke and the slightly bloused sleeves make this a feminine cardigan with a little bit of whimsy.

The neck of the sweater is wide, and you increase almost immediately to the stitches for the flower motif.  Once you’re past the yoke, the knitting of the body and sleeves is quite simple – just a little bit of waist shaping and some decreases at the sleeve cuffs.

The gauge for the pattern is 17 sts/ 4 inches in Stockinette stitch.  Although the pattern is written at an aran gauge, I think that it would also look nice in a smaller gauge with more repeats of the petals.  The flower motif instructions are charted as well as written out line-by-line.

The pattern is available for 6.50 (USD) as a download in my Ravlery Store or through Paypal.  Just click below!  And if you do decide to knit Estelle, I always appreciate feedback!

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