Okay: I have the will, I bought the yarn and I made a tension square… nothing can stop me now and if you have no clue what I am talking about than read my last post 😀 No, just kidding, naturally I will tell you here and now what I am up to:
I want to design and knit a cardigan (and convince you to try it too)
Yes, Yes, I hear you groan and sigh ‘Simone why another cardigan, you already made so many and if you absolutely must knit another one, then why don’t you use a bought pattern, which is much easier, because someone who is much more technically skilled has constructed it?’
Thank you, dear reader, for asking this important question, which I already asked myself. (I hope dear readers, you notice how clever I instrumentalize you to further my own thought process….)
Magazines shown: Made by me spring/summer 2021, Lovewool spring/summer 2020 and Impelen, Helgrid van: Pullover & Jacken in großen Maschen.
Why I want to design my own pattern
- I am a creature of habit:
This means I want to have a pattern I can use over and over again. I knit for relaxation and so I do not want to have complicated stitches I first must decipher or a pattern which surprises me after weeks of knitting with a bad fit. My solution is to have a repertoire of standard patterns I can go to. For top-down knitted raglan cardigans I already have such a model pattern, but for a cardigan which is knitted flat and in pieces this is still missing. - I want the pattern to fit my taste and figure:
This translates for a cardigan which has a short and boxy fit (perhaps because I am short and boxy 🤣?) with a narrow neckline and wide armholes. Because nothing more annoying for me than a cardigan which invites me to sweat because the sleeves and armholes are too tight (and I know there are knitters out there who have a completely different taste, who love cardigans with tight armholes which are actually touching skin 😱)
- I want to use my (cheap) stash yarn:
Because I am intensely addicted to knitting and am not a billionaire (please readers vote on my post, make me rich 🤑😂) I must be frugal with the yarn I use. I very often use cheaper fibres like acrylic or buy strange yarns on eBay which are leftovers from industrial production. I can really recommend this, my last cardigan, the orange one is made from this kind of yarn. And the yarn is not only cheap, its also sustainable as it would go otherwise to waste (you can see examples of this kind of yarn above on the photo beside my orange cardigan). What I nearly never do is buy the yarn recommended by designers or magazines for special patterns. So, I thought, I need to make a pattern for my most used yarn and needles size (which is size 4mm by the way, either in crochet or in knitting)
- I want to personalise the design:
Although there are so many designs for knitted cardigans out there – may it be on Ravelry, in printed media or on websites – I nevertheless have this drive to make something special, something really me, which shows my taste and thought process. But so far I still feel like I am stuck with halfhearted design steps, as I seldom dare to be as free with pattern, fit and color in my knitting, crochet and sewing as I would be in my artworks (there I have no problem to use clashing colors and I have no fear to be “ugly”). So, designing could be a step to fulfil my dream of crazy clothes which are artworks themselves (writes the women who is planning to design the simplest of simple standard flat knit cardigans 😁 But beware readers, one day I will transform this simple cardigan in an explosion of colors and patterns.)
Questions for you
Now I am curious to hear how you are tackling your knitted, sewed or crocheted projects: are you following patterns to the t or are you an improviser or a mix between the two (@tali72 already told me she improvises her amazing creations)? Are you tempted to design your own pattern and even publish it?
Thank you @crosheille for iniciating and @muscara and @marblely for hosting the #needleworkmonday. If you want to see more beautiful projects with yarn, fabric and most of all needles, follow @needleworkmonday on hive blog. Or even better grab your needles and keyboard and join the #needleworkmonday community. You can read more comments on this post on my hive blog.
Read more about my art und upcoming exhibitions on neumannsalva.