Month: January 2020

Get Gauge or Gauge-Free patterns

SPECIFIC gauge (traditional patterns), MULTI-gauge, ANY gauge, gauge-FREE. This is a sliding scale of how important a specific gauge is and how much information about the number of stitches per inch/cm is needed in a pattern to get a certain size of garment. It’s also the history of my designing journey and where it’s leading me, and you, as you continue to read along with me.

A SPECIFIC GAUGE pattern, a traditional pattern, tells you what gauge is expected with a certain weight of yarn (and often a specific yarn by name) and needle. When you match the needle size and gauge correctly you’ll be successful.

Unfortunately for some of us, me included, gauge is difficult to get and we don’t often hit the gauge with the needle size recommended. Changing needle sizes is necessary to get close to gauge and close is usually the best I can do.

I have written a lots and lots, over 100, specific gauge patterns for Cabin Fever. I have used the same yarn for many of these patterns. Not the same ball of course, ha, ha, the same style and weight of yarn. Familiar yarn makes knitting traditional patterns easier because I know what I need to do to get gauge.

Cabin Fever patterns by Deb & Lyn Gemmell and Friends of Cabin Fever

They totally work. As a designer, they are satisfying to write because once the gauge is established the calculator comes out and it’s all about basic arithmetic. Imagine that a sweater is a schematic of little boxes, all the same size. It’s sort of like drawing a life-size garment on a giant piece of knitters graph paper, except that I don’t actually do that. But now that I think of it … no, no, not going there.

MULTI-GAUGE patterns give you a range of weights of yarn you can use. This is the basis of the Need A … series of books by Cabin Fever. Each book with a title that begins “Need A …” gives you several gauges of yarn to choose from to knit each garment. For example, each of the 14 hats in the Need A Hat book can be knit in any yarn from sock weight to chunky weight. We knit lots and lots and lots of hats to show you how they look in the different yarns.

Having multiple gauge patterns are great for stash diving. It gives you a range of yarns to use and a range of gauges to duplicate. Sometimes you can hit the gauge of one of the choices with a different weight of yarn than we used. For example, in the Need A Circular Yoke book you could get the gauge for DK weight of 22 sts = 4″ with fingering (sock) weight yarn with a 4.0mm/US6 needle and make a terrific sweater following the directions for the DK weight sweater. It would totally fit (because you got the gauge correctly) but it would have a different feel and drape.

ANY GAUGE patterns are all about the size of the garment in inches or cm, not specific stitch counts. Dive into your stash for some yarn, grab some appropriate needles and work a swatch. Measure and work out your own particular gauge, with your chosen yarn, and then do the math for each part of the garment.

It’s a step away from traditional patterns and puts much more control in your hands. You are designing your own garment along with general construction directions from the named designer. You will be able to see places where you can add your own design elements to make your very own unique garments.

I have written several Any Gauge Raglans in this way. You work out your own gauge and then do some simple math, cast on and work Top Down to make your own sweater. I have knit the 3 sizes of Any Gauge Raglan Pullovers in all different gauges of yarn. It works.

Next GAUGE-FREE where the gauge doesn’t matter at all!! Phew. No swatches, no changing needles, no measuring tiny parts of stitches. This is Gauge Freedom!!

How can this work? Knit, following the directions, until the piece measures the size required, measuring with a ruler. I know, very old-school. No one cares what the gauge is at all. Write down the number of stitches on your needle and continue on. For example, in the Any Gauge Mitten pattern you cast on and work until the mitten fits your hand. Note down the number of stitches on your needle. The pattern uses that number of stitches as a basis for the thumb size. It doesn’t matter what yarn you used or what size you’re knitting. Once the mitten body is the correct size you’re golden.

Which of these types of patterns have you knit? Would you like to try some of the others? What is drawing you to them?

I can’t wait to hear from you,

Deb

ANY GAUGE and GAUGE-FREE patterns by Deb

Cabin Fever patterns

Deb on instagram

Step Away ?? from the pattern

Following a pattern exactly is comforting. But can you do it? Right to the end – no deviations?

Following exactly gives you a very good chance of success after many hours of knitting. You know what it’s going to look like from the beginning. Learning something new can make it exciting. Admiring clever construction is fun. But can you do it?

Do you step away from the pattern? If you don’t make modifications do you wish you could? What’s stopping you?

I seem unable to stay the course to the end. “What if I just …” runs through my head constantly. And I mean CONSTANTLY!

I am knitting Climb Every Mountain by Heidi Kirrmaier. I really like how she writes her patterns and this one was up to her usual standard. I started out fine. It’s an oversized, poncho style, Top Down pullover in DK weight yarn. I thought my daughter would like it.

I worked it a size smaller since I thought it would fit my daughter better. I worked to script to the Great Divide where I did the cuffs for the sleeves. This was great. No sleeves to knit. I loved this part.img_20200108_112310

Then I started thinking.
I had quite a lot of knitting left and the interesting part was done. This is always a most dangerous place. I was taking a good look at the schematic and thinking about the recipient of this sweater and … made some changes.

Longer and wider seemed to make sense for the person I was knitting for. I’ll tell you why in a minute.20200117_100515I just finished steaming it with my leaky steamer and am pretty happy with the result. It’s 6.5″ longer for a tunic length. To make it wider I didn’t work the decreases on every Round 7 which added 4 sts to the width.She likes it and there is room for a baby bump under there.20200118_130943Thanks for reading, Deb

Any Gauge patterns by Deb

Cabin Fever No-Sew patterns on ravelry

Catch Deb on instagram

Decisions, decisions

What’s in your “knitting time out” corner? Do you know why it’s there?

My 3×3 Cardigan has been sitting in the corner for several weeks. I have found myself putting this new design down to work on something else that seemed more pressing. I look at it every day and pass it by. Nope, not today. Right now I am knitting Climb Every Mountain sweater for my daughter and socks for myself and telling myself I needed this break but It’s TOTAL DENIAL!!

I was just stalled and trying to ignore it. I thought I had made all the design decisions for the 3×3 Cardigan. That’s the idea right? Make all the design decisions at the start, think of everything you want to do and then just knit it up. Easy, peasy, right?  In hind sight, I realize now that I had to do a rethink on some of those decisions and didn’t want to admit it.

This cardigan has a square neck (which will eventually be filled in at the back of neck) and quite wide shoulders, as you can see.DSC_0047 (2)

That means that at the Great Divide many knitters will find that the sleeve size they need will be inside the Raglan Lines. The raglan lines are only used as a guide here, not the exact size of the sleeves. (The orange markers are the raglan lines and the green markers show where the width of my sleeve is going to be.)sleeve markers 3x3

The problem is … what to do with the raglan lines themselves. I used YO increases for the raglan lines and did’t want to leave the line of holes hanging, sort of dead ending at the underarm level.  I’m sure no one would notice that they just stop but it doesn’t seem right or finished.DSC_0068 (2)

Do I continue the lines down at the same angle to make a V under the arms? I did that on the Any Gauge Raglan Pullover which worked fine. The underarm V made nice clean lines and worked into the side seam line.DSC_0071 (2)

Not the case here. Way too much going on to see the V.20190722_100316

Soooo, there my latest 3×3 Cardigan sat in the corner through no fault of it’s own. Just my indecision causing a Big Stall.

I have taken myself in hand and made a decision. I had to take a good look at where I was now and think ahead to consider what kind of shaping I want for the body of this cardigan.

Decision: I’m taking the raglan lines in a straight line down the sides. I’m keeping the YO increases and working corresponding decreases to keep the stitch count even. I know, not exactly earth shaking stuff.DSC_0066 (2)

I think this will work fine. What to you think?

There is going to be A-line hip shaping in this cardigans future because I want to make it quite long. I have the wool. Now doing the A-line shaping should be easy to work. At the  side panel I will work the increases without the decreases every inch or so, and ta, da, it will be wider at the hip where I need some extra room. Now of course the decision is how often to work the shaping. Stop! One decision at a time please.dsc_0070-2.jpg

I have a plan. The sweater is out of the corner and I’m getting a better feeling about continuing. I might have a new spring cardi yet.

Thanks for reading,

Deb

Catch me on instagram for my other knitting projects because you know there has to be more than one.

Any Gauge patterns by Deb

Cabin Fever No-Sew patterns

Sentimental Yarn

I’m back on my regularly scheduled project, the3×3 Cardigan, now that the holidays are over. I hope yours were joyful and have helped you prepare to face and conquer another winter.

Now that I’m back knitting this cardigan I’m looking at the wool I chose. Thanks everyone for helping me choose 3 colours.DSC_0047 (2)

Two of the colours are discontinued wool from my stash. The blue though, well that has a history.DSC_0059 (2)

I have had it in my stash for more than twenty+ years. Yes, a long time. It’s roughish rustic wool  and I believe was hand dyed. Many years ago we were driving along an isolated road in Scotland and came across a croft with a yarn sign outside. In the middle of no where (at least it seemed so to us).

croft bothy

Stop!! There was wool, local wool, from the sheep we had been looking at out of the window. I bought it because the croft was so amazing, the view beautiful and as a treat for myself. But it sat in my stash for all this time. There wasn’t enough for a sweater and it’s too rough for a hat.

I feel like I failed this wool. I’m sure it didn’t want to sit in the dark in my closet for all this time. I’m sure it wanted to be … something special. It wasn’t telling me what though. So now it’s going to be something, a cardigan. A big, cozy cardigan that I will associate with Scotland and an isolated croft in the middle of a purple field of heather.

I’m sure it’s sighing and asking what took me so long. Am I the only sentimental yarn collector?

Deb

ANY GAUGE and GAUGE-FREE patternsby Deb

Cabin Fever patterns

Deb oninstagram

 

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