Tips and Tricks
How to Pick the Right Circular Needle Length
Have you ever sat down to start a new project and wondered which length your circular needle should be? Sure, sometimes the pattern gives you this information… but what if it doesn’t?It’s super easy to determine which length circular needle will give…
What Color is Your Cardigan?
Oh, the thrill of selecting the yarn for your next project! The joy! The rapture! But wait… which color should you choose?Choosing the perfect color for your cardigan can feel a bit daunting. The more options you have, the more intimidating it can get…
Fix a Sweater That Slides Off
As an avid knitter of top-down, seamless sweaters, I am acutely aware of their virtues, but also their vulnerabilities. The very thing that makes a seamless sweater so delightful (i.e. no seams) can be its Achilles heel. Seams provide structure and longevity to…
How To: Stitch Multiples for Knitted Ribbing
Raise your hand if you’ve ever faced down the knitting math monster and lost. Anyone? You can be cruising along, feeling pretty fly. The end is in sight. You’re SO close, you can almost taste the glory. But then, wham! You run into…
How to Block a Sweater
Twenty years ago I knit my first adult sweater. It was a vision in moss stitch, knit in classic, undyed wool. The word “heirloom” hung in the air. But when it was finished I noticed it pulled terribly on the bias, and every time I…
Knit Tips: Sweater Growth
If you’ve ever blocked a hand knit sweater and ended up with super long sleeves or more length in the body than you planned for, you’ve probably had this thought:How do you know how much it’s going to grow when you…
How to fix an uneven button band edge
Many a knitter has lamented a wonky bottom edge of a button band. The tell-tale “arch” is the result of picking up too few stitches. But never fear! If the button band is generally laying nicely with the exception of an arch at the…
Row Gauge: Why it Matters
Tell the truth: When (if?) you knit a gauge swatch, do you measure both stitch gauge and row gauge?I mean, you know stitch gauge matters. You know that having too many or too few stitches in a 4″ swatch means you’ll end up…
How to Ruin a Perfectly Good Sweater
We’ve all been there.You’ve knit and knit and knit, and eventually (finally!) have a sweater to show for it. But, wait…Damn it. There’s a problem.What makes good sweaters go wrong? Not to harp on the point (I know I…
Tips for Adding Ribbon to a Sweater Button Band
Interested in adding a ribbon border inside your sweater button band? Here’s a very basic tutorial to get you started. Basic sewing skills are required.You’ll need: Grosgrain ribbon approximately 1/2″ narrower (give or take) than your button band. This can vary…
4 Reasons to Get Out of Your Knitting Comfort Zone
Have you ever found a pattern you really wanted to make, but when you looked at the description you realized it required an unfamiliar technique… so you didn’t go for it…
Knit Better Sweaters – Ease
Have you ever looked at a pattern and struggled to make sense of the ease, or had questions about choosing the right ease to get the results you want? Let’s talk about it!Today we’re going to cover the most common questions about…
Sweater Knitting: 5 Mistakes Knitters Make
Knitters! We sure love our sweaters, but there are five mistakes I see over and over when I meet with students and customers. I want you to have sweaters that fit you beautifully, feel great and look awesome, so I’m going to share the…
3/4 Sleeves for Everyone!
People ask me all the time about finding the right length for a 3/4 sleeve for sweaters like my Bentley Cardigan. Watch my little how-to video to find out your perfect length!Sweater patterns may give you a specific length for sleeves, but…
Swapping out the SSK
How do you all feel about the ssk stitch (slip, slip, knit)? It’s a little clunky, don’t you think?The photo above is a portion of the stitch pattern on my upcoming new design (called Washed Ashore). See the smooth decrease lines that…