2 comments

1. Erssie / October 7, 2022 My top top for knitting a stranded pattern is to prepare your charts in advance I find it slow going to keep looking to see where I caught strands in the back on previous rows. I avoid doing it in the same place on a following row and catch it 2 sts or more away from a previous row but it’s awkward to remember So on my chart, I mark the places in advance of where I am going to catch my strands. It means that if I get frequent interruptions I can pick up and put down the project and always know where I am. I am thinking of putting an extra chart in my pattern notes in my own patterns to show where I catch my strands. If you strand too loosely you can always tighten it up later but if you knit too tight you don’t have enough yarn to relax it,

2. Erssie / October 7, 2022 I’m a curvy girl and UK size 18 or XL and love that you’re making the effort to include people like me. One of the biggest challenges with plus sized patterns is that they make them a bit wider but then don’t get other proportions correct. There’s an assumption that if you’re over a size 14 you’ll automatically be about 5′ 10″. I am 5’¾” but most patterns swamp me even if the bust width is correct. I make my personal projects a modular knits I shorten body length, shoulder to waist , sleeves, to fit but choose a width for my bust. And deeper armholes etc I’d advise anybody thinking of doing a bigger size but who is shorter to draw your own schematic diagram of a sweater shape and measure yourself at crucial places and mark it on the diagram then when you’re on that section, read ahead in the pattern and see how many rows make the length and work out how long you need it. For example if your gauge is: 28 rows = 4 inches that means it’s 7 rows per inch. If the pattern says there are 56 rows between the waist and bottom of a sweater, that means the waist to hem length in that size is 8 inches. But if your peesinal waist to hem length that suits on your favourite sweater only 5 inches then you’ll want to knit from the waist doen: 5 rows x 7 (rows per inch) which is 35 rows. You can adapt any larger width pattern to suit you’re height and arm length. There are lots of us who are curvy ut still fall into the petite height category. I m only 5 ft, and I have disabled shortened arms that have too much hanging over if sizing up. My partner is 6’4″ or over tall but when I see men’s socks patterns there’s extra width in leg, length of foot but not many patterns cater for a deeper heel flap or larger instep. I’m loving the size revolution and seeing models my size too. Many patterns out in he World in general are starting to have those XL+ sizes instructions but still pick a skinny model. Sometimes I think a redesign is needed too for larger sizes to work and I’ve often used a different extra bit of colourwork on the larger sizes in my kids or baby patterns to make it in proportion to the background rather than extra empty space. So what if it needs an extra chart? Now most patterns are digital, publishers of patterns don’t have to worry about extra charts and knitters can save ink just printing out only their own size’s chart If adding more sizes means many more pages, I prefer to see each sizes schematics or charts on their own individual pages so I’m not printing out all the other numerous sizes I’m not using. I have seen some patterns lately updated to 12 sizes which is amazing but if I printed I wouldn’t want to be printing off the parts that are changed or adapted as bits that don’t apply to me. As sometimes a designer has a need to do tweaks to the basic design for sizing up in a flattering way.