As a beginner knitter I was always searching for free patterns to try. I was afraid I wouldn’t understand a pattern if I bought it because those were for people who knew what they were doing!
Fortunately some clever people do write up patterns and share them for free. Some of these people are designers who also sell patterns. Free patterns can also be poorly written, so be careful there. Read through a pattern before beginning and see if it makes sense. Or go to Ravelry and see what other pattern users have to say. If the free pattern gets bad reviews it may be best to move on and find another.
Knitting has begun on my Calliope pullover sweater pattern (link to the pattern below).
Somehow I managed to pull a muscle in my neck which is causing me some extreme discomfort. The pain is keeping me from doing much of anything except sit in front of the television and knit. For that reason, my sweater is coming right along! We must take the good with the bad 😉
The Yarn Story
I’ve had the Miss Babs “Katahdin” green yarn for a long time now. The “Spring Clover” yarn is a Wild Iris – meaning they only made the color once – and the skein has 1750 yards of yarn..!! It’s made up of Bluefaced Leicester Wool and is Superwash. Originally, I thought I would use it to knit a large, rectangular stole for my daughter, then I decided not to.
So, this huge skein of yarn sat around until recently when my new idea was to pair it with mohair and knit a sweater.
Yarn is ready to knit
I ordered some dark green mohair to use, but after knitting up a swatch, decided I didn’t like the colors together. After trying the Katahdin with some leftover white mohair, and liking that combination better. I ended up buying the Filcolana Tilia mohair (link goes to Fairlight Fibers) in very light green called “Green Tea”.
Swatching for the Sweater
Using the size 7 US needles, I knit up a swatch to check for guage. Before the washing and drying of the swatch, the row counts were pretty exact. But after blocking, the knitting expanded to be slightly taller, so I will watch the length of my sweater. It’s not terribly off, so I stayed with the same size 7 needles. (I should have gone down a needle size because this sweater really grew!)
Before washing the swatch is very close to exact.Swatch for Calliope, after washing
The Sweater Pattern is “Calliope” from Espace Tricot
Raglan sweaters are generally quite easy to knit and I’d already knit the Turtle Dove pattern offered by the same designers. That one was my first raglan knit, but it came out huge – more like a big poncho / blanket.
This pullover has texture at the yoke which is created by simple knits and purls. The pattern begins with a cast-on for the neck and is knit top-down. I decided not to include the mohair until I knit a few rounds. Something about fuzz at my neck turns me off.
Photographing knitwear projects, and getting the color right to share, can be difficult. For some reason this mint green color is exceptionally difficult to capture. GRRRRRR….. I promise, my sweater color is not that ugly!
Short rows are done, moving onto the raglan increases
Calliope has short row shaping using German Short Rows. They are explained in the pattern, and are very easy to do, and a link is provided to a video by Very Pink Knits for further explanation. Short rows give the sweater a better and more comfortable shape by raising up the back section (shown in my photo below). You can see that the front of the sweater (photo on the right above) has fewer knit rows after the short rows are completed.
Once that is accomplished, the raglan increases begin. This creates the sleeves and widens the front and back. My sleeve increases are easy to see in the photo above. I have just put the two sleeves onto waste yarn and will now continue to knit the body – round and round in stockinette.
Not Liking This Mohair
Body of sweater is done. It seems a bit big around. On to the sleeves, but the fuzziness of the mohair is quite annoying. Every time I knit, I end up with fuzz in my nose, mouth and eyes – like I am a magnet for it. I don’t know if it’s this type of Mohair, or all mohair which would do this. (I have since discovered Knitting for Olive Mohair, which is much better.)
Photographing this green has been a real pain in the neck! Finally I took the sweater, with one sleeve half knitted and the other on hold, and put it outside in the sun. The photos came out a bit better, but they are not true to the pretty green of this yarn.
The sleeves have a very long section of ribbing that runs down the arm from about the elbow area. I began that with DPN’s and switched to 9-in. circulars because I really don’t like using DPNs for long lengths of time.
Because I was working on this pattern alongside the Meadow Moon color-work pullover pattern, and also my Lettlopi “Migrating Birds” pullover, among other projects, the sweater was finally done three months after I began knitting.
Calliope Sweater End Results
The Calliope Sweater is quite an easy knit. The directions are well written, and mostly you are knitting, or knitting and purling. I chose the yarn from my stash because this past year has been a year of “no buying” (for the most part).
What I like, is the easy going style and the fact that most of this sweater can be knit at night while watching TV.
The sweater is big. Superwash yarn tends to do that, and that is why I usually avoid using it for sweaters. This is a good lesson in watching the gauge and changing needles accordingly – especially if using a Superwash yarn. I may toss it into the dryer one day to maybe shrink it a bit.
Espace Tricot used to offer all free patterns. They no longer do, but the patterns are nice even if you have to spend a few bucks. Recently, they came out with a classic raglan sweater called Gingerbread Sweater and it’s another that is most likely perfect for a beginner knitter.
Knitting a simple wool chair pad to use up some heavy weight and worsted wool. This DIY pattern uses Fair Isle, colorwork that is simple and can easily be changed.
Five cozy scarf patterns to begin knitting this Fall. Keep for yourself or give to friends and family. The selection has small and long scarves, with many free patterns included.
Writing a blog, sharing photos, and doing research and making links takes time. Lately I don’t think the time spent doing all that is worth enough to continue. I have stopped writing my gardening blog, and downgraded my seashells/ boating / camping blog. I’ve been spread too thin for too long. The past 18 years…
Mat my daughter’s request, I have begun to knit boot cuffs. Last year I knit some cabled cuffs in brown yarn, but she says they are too loose.
Now I have knit a new pair of cuffs which does not have a pattern, but I will write on this post how I made them.
Boot cuffs done- unwashed! Yup, that’s a big seashell.
Quick Boot Cuffs Pattern
I don’t have a gauge to report, and since I was trying to make these fit my daughter’s small legs, it was trial and error. After my third try, this size seems to be okay. I won’t know for sure until she receives them and tries them on with her jeans and boots.
This is how I knit the boot cuffs pictured on this page, which are small – like teen girl size. It will depend on the type of yarn used also – is it stretchy? Are you a tight knitter like I am? To make them bigger, cast on more stitches by 2’s. In other words, it’s a bit of trial and error.
Using a size 6 US circular (9-inch) needle, cast on 34 stitches and join in the round. (DPN’s work too)
Do a 1×1 rib (knit one, purl one) for approximately four inches – or to desired length
When the vertical ribbing is done, knit one row around.
Next, Purl 2 rows, Knit 2 rows 4 times, or more if the top needs to be longer.
Bind off loosely
The loose bind off I used was a combination of the stretchy bind-off shown on Andrea Mowry’s video and a regular bind-off. I do one stretchy, with the extra yarn over, then a regular bind off – around.
The Yarn
The yarn used is Myak and I have to say it is the most beautiful yarn I think I’ve ever used. First of all, I LOVE that color, which is “Moss”. I really hated to use it for something like boot cuffs, but my daughter will take good care of them and not much yarn was used. I could actually make her a hat or scarf to match.
Here is what I’ve read about Myak yarn:
It is naturally sourced from Tibetan yaks
“The fiber is hand-combed from the soft undercoats with no harm to the animal” – taken from the tag on this yarn skein.
After knitting the Beloved baby bonnet pattern for a friend’s new granddaughter, I found this free baby sock pattern. The Perfect Newborn Socks pattern is offered for free by Tabitha Gandee and I got the pattern on the Ravelry site. I already had the CoBaSi machine washable yarn in color Bubblegum pink. (Pattern link below.)
Some knitters complained that the pattern did not make sense in areas and I would agree. For that reason, I would not recommend this pattern to a beginner knitter, unless you are knowledgable in the way socks are knit. It could be very frustrating if you try to follow the pattern exactly.
I have made notes below for anyone who needs a little advice along the way. I’m grateful to the people who offer us free patterns, but often those patterns can have mistakes or less clear directions than a designer who requires payment.
Places in the Pattern Where I Made Changes
First of all, I went up to a size 2 needle and knit with DPN’s, not magic loop. I am a relatively tight knitter and I didn’t want the socks to be too small. After washing and drying, the foot measures about 3 1/2 inches and the ribbed cuff is about 2 inches before folding.
These are top-down socks and I cast-on with the German Twisted cast-on. Then I did the more simple 2×2 rib without cabling.
I followed the pattern fine until the end of the Heel Turn section. For the last Row 3 knit, I did not do the SSK and simply knit across the 8 stitches, because the count was correct after Row 2. But, if you stop knitting after Row 2 you will be in the wrong place to continue.
After knitting that last Row 3, I knit four more stitches onto that needle. Then, with a new needle I knit the next four stitches and began picking up the stitches for the Gusset.
With the next needle, knit across the top of the foot with 2×2 rib or the cable rib, whichever you are doing. After that, use a new needle pick up the nine stitches along the side and knit the four stitches left onto that third needle.
Now you will have three needles. Two needles are holding stitches for the Gusset and 1/2 of heel, and the other is holding the front / top of foot stitches. In the pattern, the writer has four needles being used, but all 16 top of foot stitches can easily be worked on one needle. The fewer DPN’s the better IMO.
Getting my stitches onto three needles to begin the decreases
Doing the Kitchener Stitch at the Toe
After decreasing quickly at the toe area, the Kitchener Stitch will round out the toe. This stitch is done with a darning needle and is not terribly difficult, but it’s something I have to look up every time I do it. I also used it when I knit the Glissade colorwork mittens.
On YouTube I like the slow motion Kitchener Stitch video by Very Pink Knits which is easy to follow. She shows us what to do with the last two stitches on the needle as well. The yarn will be coming off the back needle to start, and you need a darning / embroidery needle to do it.
These ended up being cute little socks that will complete the Hat and Sock set for my friend’s granddaughter. I would make them again, and I also like the CoBaSi yarn for baby things. It washes and dries nicely – and can go in the washing machine and dryer! There is no wool in it which works well if a baby could be allergic. I washed them by hand, but it’s good to know that a new Mom won’t have to.
New England's Narrow Road 