When My Knitting Plans Changed - Snowy Thistle Knits

I don’t usually set intentions for each year, but I did for 2022. And then I realised I was just putting unnecessary pressure on myself. See what happened when my knitting plans changed.

It Started At New Year

I took a quick stock of the knitting I had completed in 2021 and was delighted to see there was more to show than I’d expected.
All shawls though.

I decided that this should be the year. 2022 was going to be the year when I designed my first garment. It’s a running joke in my family that I’m always cold and seeking out the warmest sweater, but this knitter’s wardrobe was lacking in knitted garments! I was going to design a sweater and it was going to be glorious!

The fact that I had knitted a grand total of two sweaters and one cardigan before wasn’t going to stop me. I had learned from those projects and other bought sweaters too:
1. Round yokes don’t tend to fit me across the shoulders.
2. I prefer raglan increases for fit.
3. 100% alpaca is not the best yarn for a heavy cabled cardigan.
4. Balloon sleeves and housework do not mix well.

I knew what I wanted to incorporate into my design. There were going to be some cables, but it was going to be a lot of mindless knitting so that I could finish it quickly and start wearing it.

I thought about the sweater a lot. I dreamed about it. I told everyone my plans though nothing materialised on paper or on my needles. Many knitters will know that when we get excited about a project there isn’t much that can stop us from casting it on. Something was going on here.

February Surprised Me

All of a sudden it was February. This is my birthday month and always feels different. (Is it just me? Is your favourite month your birthday one?) I had swatched with three different yarns looking for a fabric that was just right. No closer to casting on my dream sweater, I sought a distraction. I came across a pattern I loved which was perfect for a special yarn I’d had in my stash for 9 years. I cast on immediately! (after swatching, of course…) The pattern was Zopf by Midori Hirosi (Ravelry link) a stunning sweater with minimal cables and an oversized fit. This was more like it. I knitted every minute I could find and finished it very quickly.

It did not fit.

My gauge swatch was correct and I had adjusted needle sizes. The pattern was great and my finished sweater looked correct. It just didn’t fit.

After that, my confidence was shaken. How could I design a sweater when I couldn’t even knit one to fit me?

Knitting Buddies To The Rescue

Now March was approaching and I was no closer than I had been at the beginning of January. I moaned about my lack of knitting enthusiasm to everyone who would listen (my poor family…!).Far too many hours were spent doom-scrolling on Instagram, looking at all the pretty projects on display and all the fabulous knitters who were wearing garments that were way out of the reach of my technical ability, so I thought.

The subject came up during a zoom call with my best little knitting family. They asked: “How did you learn how to design shawls?”
I thought about that for a minute. “I knitted so many and learned how to make the shapes so I could make them look how I wanted them to.”
All three of my friends looked at me on that screen while I actually heard what I had said and the penny dropped.

I didn’t know how to knit a sweater, yet. And that was the important word I had been missing for the last two months. YET.

There is something so freeing about those three little letters. I had put so much pressure on myself to do something I didn’t know how to do that I had given myself a good case of Knitter’s Block. That probably isn’t a technical term but it seems apt… I was frozen in my lack of confidence. And now I had a solution. I needed to learn how to knit a sweater!

Good Teachers Are Not Hard To Find

The internet is full of resources. And there are books. Lots of knitting books! I had forgotten just how much knowledge is out there and how easy it can be to find it.

I knew raglan sweaters fit my shoulders well, as well as set-in sleeves and dropped shoulders. There was my yarn stash crying out to be used while I was experimenting. And I wanted to learn as many skills and techniques as I could get my hands on.

Altogether, I chose six patterns. Three long-sleeved and three short-sleeved. I realised despite my haste to knit ALL the things over the years, I had no summer knitwear at all. Seizing the opportunity, I made sure the patterns would be suitable for the warmer months too. I also realised that most of my stash consists of single skeins of superwash merino, alpaca in various weights – which I find too itchy to wear, and chunky weight acrylic. It looks like I need to do a Destash!

I did manage to find two sweater quantities, a couple of fades, and some coordinating colours in useful amounts. Here’s what I came up with (in no particular order):

Autumn League Pullover

Autumn League Pullover by Two of Wands (Ravelry link) is an oversized sweatshirt style pullover with plenty of ease for comfort. It has a raglan construction and a crew neck.

This Moonshine yarn by Juniper Moon Farms is a mixture of merino, alpaca and silk and is dreamy to touch. It was lovely to knit with when I made the swatch and I’m looking forward to wearing this one. I did check the swatch next to skin and the alpaca content seems to be offset by the silk so I think this will be great for my silly sensitive skin!

This yarn was originally destined to be a Weekender by Andrea Mowry until I discovered that boat neck sweaters are not the most flattering on me. This one is a perfect alternative.

An unfinished knitted sweater lies on a pale grey wooden surface. The sweater is cream coloured with rainbow coloured speckles. A dark coloured bag is visible next to the sweater on the left and there are two skeins of blue yarn covering the bottom of the sweater. One skein has been unwound and lies loose. — Felix Pullover by Amy Christoffers

Felix Pullover

The Felix Pullover is a very popular pattern by Amy Christoffers of Savory Knitting (Ravelry link). There are many, many versions of this out in the knitting world and this can be very useful to help you see colour choices and yarn options. Many knitters have also made modifications to the pattern and it’s possible to see different sleeve or body lengths to help you choose what you would like to make.

I started knitting this in Aran weight BFL from Stewart Yarns in her Ptarmigan colourway and will add Cascade Yarns 128 Superwash for the body.

A white skinned hand is showing the detail of the raglan increases on a brightly speckled sweater. The sleeve has not been finished yet. There is blue yarn just visible at the top of the image and there is a wooden surface underneath. — Raglan details at left shoulder

Victoria

Lacy patterns, like cables, can be hidden in very speckled, colourful or variegated yarns. For these designs, it works better to use a tonal or lightly speckled yarn.

I found four yarns that are going to make a beautiful fade for Justyna Lorkowska’s Victoria (Ravelry link). The yarn on the left is Malabrigo Sock in Pearl. The other three skeins are one of a kind colourways from Serendipitous Wool.
This short-sleeved summer top has a boxy shape which gives a dropped shoulder effect. The light lacy fabric will drape perfectly and the delicate colours of the Serendipitous Wool colourways will give it an air of elegance. I’m interested to see how this shape will look on and I think the lace pattern will fly off my needles even though these are all light fingering weight yarns. I can’t wait to wear this one!

An ipad lies on a wooden surface with a photo of a white woman tucking her dark blonde hair behind her right ear.She is wearing a lace patterned short sleeve knitted top in a creamy beige colour. — Photograph from Victoria by Justyna Lorkowska on Ravelry

Contiguous Method

Susie Myers developed a sleeve construction method called the Contiguous Method. Just like raglan increases, contiguous garments are knit in one piece though the resulting sleeve shape is similar to a set-in sleeve.

An orange and brown tartan bag with leather handles lies on a wooden surface. There is an ipad in a pink and green case on top of the bag. The screen of the device shows a close up picture of the sleeve of a grey knitted sweater. The sleeve has a lacy chevron pattern. There are three skeins of yarn to the right of the ipad, one peach, one pink and grey and the third is orange and peach. — Este by Justyna Lorkowska

I found two patterns I’m eager to try.
Este by Justyna Lorkowska (Ravelry link) is a short sleeved top with a chevron detail on the sleeve. I’m going to fade these peaches and pinks together for a warm summer palette.
On The Beach (Ravelry link) is a long-sleeved striped sweater by Isabell Kraemer. These navy and cream skeins of Patagonia from Juniper Moon Farms are giving me fabulous waterfront vibes.

A piece of paper on a wooden surface shows a woman wearing a red and white striped sweater with her back turned to the camera and her face out of view. There is a skein of cream coloured yarn on top of the page with a ball of the same yarn to the left of it. The label on the yarn says Juniper Moon Farm Patagonia. The are two skeins of royal blue yarn to the right and above the picture on the paper. At the bottom of the image, there is a black and white canvas bag with some print in the middle. The title of the text reads Makkin in Shetlan. The text below shows many definitions for words from the Shetland dialect. — On The Beach by Isabell Kraemer

Ball of beige yarn and two skeins of the same yarn peek out of the top of a purple drawstring bag. The bag is on a wooden surface and the photograph is looking directly down into the bag. The lining and drqstring of the bag are white. The text on the blue label on the skein of yarn reads sand bank. The white label below reads Susurro though the letters are slightly obscured by the label above. — Three skeins of Malabrigo yarn are visible in a purple project bag

Edie

The final short sleeved top on my list is Edie by Isabell Kraemer (Ravelry link). This raglan top has a simple sillhouette with the stockinette body broken up with garter stripe details and it looks like it could become a staple in my summer wardrobe.
I have never knitted with, or even worn, linen (don’t judge!) so I’m looking forward to trying this Susurro base from Malabrigo. 50% silk, 25% merino and 25% linen sounds like a dreamy combination and it certainly feels lovely to touch. I’ve forever been a fan of Malabrigo yarns and their colourways, and Sand Banks is a perfect neutral for any time of year.

I’m Going To Be Busy!

I’ll have made a healthy dent in my stash when these six projects are finished and I aim to have a good understanding of raglan and contiguous sleeve construction too.
More importantly, I no longer feel the same pressure (entirely self-inflicted) to produce a design that isn’t a shawl this year.
I still have my favourite yarn set aside for that first sweater design when I’m ready.
And there may still be a shawl or two that make an appearance in 2022.

What do you do when your subconscious tries to put too much pressure on your productivity? Leave me a comment below – I’d love to hear some ideas!