So the whole pullover goes like this.
0. You download the basic argyle pattern which is here.
http://freevintageknitting.com/free-sweater-pattern/cm736/ladys-argyle-pullover
You use your spreadsheet to chart this. You can shorten the diamonds if you want, and it will probably help your lines to work out properly.
Pick your colors and show them (approximately) on your base chart, then replicate it onto your stitch count for a pullover in your size. Make sure you have complete diamonds at the shoulders and hem and mark where the underarm goes, but don't worry about the underarm being at the top of a complete diamond.
Now mark where the lines will go if you are going to have them.
1. Cable on your hem to a size 5 24-inch circular needle, and join leaving a long tail to show you where the stitch wrap goes to prevent gaps at the underarm where the rounds end/begin. You should also run a marker thread up on the other side where the other underarm will be.
0. You download the basic argyle pattern which is here.
http://freevintageknitting.com/free-sweater-pattern/cm736/ladys-argyle-pullover
You use your spreadsheet to chart this. You can shorten the diamonds if you want, and it will probably help your lines to work out properly.
Pick your colors and show them (approximately) on your base chart, then replicate it onto your stitch count for a pullover in your size. Make sure you have complete diamonds at the shoulders and hem and mark where the underarm goes, but don't worry about the underarm being at the top of a complete diamond.
Now mark where the lines will go if you are going to have them.
1. Cable on your hem to a size 5 24-inch circular needle, and join leaving a long tail to show you where the stitch wrap goes to prevent gaps at the underarm where the rounds end/begin. You should also run a marker thread up on the other side where the other underarm will be.
2. Do your rib, switch to size 7 24-inch circular needle, and knit one round above that.
3. Add in a bobbin of the diamond color for the one-stitch point of the first diamond, then go back to your rib color. Add another bobbin in diamond color for each single stitch at the base of the diamonds evenly around the row.
4. When you get back to your tail, knit the bottom diamond stitch in that same color.
5. Add another stitch in the same color here, lock your colors, and make 3 stitches in this row for every diamond. When you get back to the first diamond above the tail, knit the very last stitch of the round so this diamond also has three stitches in this round. Here's the video for how to lock colors Fair Isle style on the knit side. You need Adobe Flash to run the video.
https://www.philosopherswool.com/Pages/Twohandedvideo.htm
6. Wrap the middle stitch of the first diamond to close the gap, and turn to purl. Here's the video for how to wrap stitches on both knit and purl sides.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_fb7nf2pP0
7. Work the pattern in alternating purl and knit rounds, locking colors at the edges of the diamonds, and doing the purl-wrap at the end of the round before turning the work to knit the next round.
FOLLOW YOUR CHART OBSESSIVELY
Remember to add in a second bobbin for the diamond under the arm to let you work to the middle of the first diamond without creating floaties. Here's the video for wrapping colors on the purl side.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWHr3PH0RHg
https://www.philosopherswool.com/Pages/Twohandedvideo.htm
6. Wrap the middle stitch of the first diamond to close the gap, and turn to purl. Here's the video for how to wrap stitches on both knit and purl sides.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_fb7nf2pP0
7. Work the pattern in alternating purl and knit rounds, locking colors at the edges of the diamonds, and doing the purl-wrap at the end of the round before turning the work to knit the next round.
FOLLOW YOUR CHART OBSESSIVELY
Remember to add in a second bobbin for the diamond under the arm to let you work to the middle of the first diamond without creating floaties. Here's the video for wrapping colors on the purl side.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWHr3PH0RHg
8. Work up to the armpit. Your spreadsheet chart should not worry about making sure that you have whole diamonds at the armpit, just when you get to the shoulders. Here I did something unusual for me.
On my chart, I would lose the outsides of the diamonds if I worked the underarm as I usually do with a pullover.
It turns out that with 55 rows/rounds above the armpit, my sleeves are very roomy at the top.
So you have a choice.
Divide the armholes 55 rows below the shoulders on your chart, but don't put the armpit stitches on a holder
OR
Work to 50 rows below the shoulders and make the armpits, sacrificing part of the diamonds.
The sleeve will have about the same number of stitches, 110, in its largest round at the top.
Now you are going to work the front and back separately. You will NOT use steeking, unlike my basic pullover pattern.
I got out two size 7 16-inch circular needles to work one side and left the other side on the size 7 24-inch needle.
You'll end with a complete diamond in diamond color at the shoulders..
You'll knit off your shoulders as usual (23 stitches front and back on each side of the neck), matching the top stitches of the diamonds in front and back.
NOW you can use that stitch wrapping technique again before you knit the neck round.
Then do your rib for the neck and bind off in rib.
This picture shows the inside so you can see the pattern made by locking the colors.
On my chart, I would lose the outsides of the diamonds if I worked the underarm as I usually do with a pullover.
It turns out that with 55 rows/rounds above the armpit, my sleeves are very roomy at the top.
So you have a choice.
Divide the armholes 55 rows below the shoulders on your chart, but don't put the armpit stitches on a holder
OR
Work to 50 rows below the shoulders and make the armpits, sacrificing part of the diamonds.
The sleeve will have about the same number of stitches, 110, in its largest round at the top.
Now you are going to work the front and back separately. You will NOT use steeking, unlike my basic pullover pattern.
I got out two size 7 16-inch circular needles to work one side and left the other side on the size 7 24-inch needle.
You'll end with a complete diamond in diamond color at the shoulders..
You'll knit off your shoulders as usual (23 stitches front and back on each side of the neck), matching the top stitches of the diamonds in front and back.
NOW you can use that stitch wrapping technique again before you knit the neck round.
Then do your rib for the neck and bind off in rib.
This picture shows the inside so you can see the pattern made by locking the colors.
9. Now add your lines. Here's the video for how to do duplicate stitch.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9St7SyHOeJA
10 Now pick up around the armhole with a size 7 16 inch circular needle. Use the technique I talked about with lace making, where you pull the edge out and pick up through that little horizontal bit of yarn. Here's the video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgM7xTZT54E
Knit your sleeve in the round as you would do for a Fair Isle pullover, decreasing at the underarm down to the cuff. Make sure and switch to size 7 double point needles when the tether pulls the sleeve tight, and use size 5 double points for the cuff.
11. Turn inside out and lock down all the ends of the yarn from the lines. You can unravel them and tie them to other unraveled ends or just knot the full threads or if the ends are long enough, you can wind them into the backs of the stitches and trust to your first wash-and-block to hackle them down.
11. Turn inside out and lock down all the ends of the yarn from the lines. You can unravel them and tie them to other unraveled ends or just knot the full threads or if the ends are long enough, you can wind them into the backs of the stitches and trust to your first wash-and-block to hackle them down.
Here's one final lesson learned. What if you step away from the work and when you come back, you can't remember if you're knitting this round or purling?
I have to admit this happened over lunch one day. I had just finished a round and when I had washed the lunch dishes, I picked up my work and found that my needles were close to some diamond yarn, but if I worked in the direction I thought I was supposed to, I would come up against more of the same color at the boundary of the diamond. That's a good sign you're about to work in the wrong direction.
The other saver was that I was close to the point of an increasing diamond, and I remembered that I had knit the round before that point. So I counted up from the knit round and sure enough, I was about to purl when I should be knitting.
People who work with markers probably color code; they put a marker of one color on a knit round and another color on a purl round, and they never have this problem. I just don't like fussing with lots of tiny things because I have a nasty habit of losing them. I even lose important stuff like a whole circular needle set.
YMMV.
Here's the finished top.
It took me almost a month to knit this, almost as long as with the Fair Isle top, but partly that is because I made so many mistakes with the diamonds getting started, and partly it is because of having to watch the videos and try out the new techniques. For example, it took me a while to get the hang of duplicate stitch but once I did, the lines went vi geshmirt as we say in The Tribe. Again, I hope I've inspired you instead of scaring you.
It took me almost a month to knit this, almost as long as with the Fair Isle top, but partly that is because I made so many mistakes with the diamonds getting started, and partly it is because of having to watch the videos and try out the new techniques. For example, it took me a while to get the hang of duplicate stitch but once I did, the lines went vi geshmirt as we say in The Tribe. Again, I hope I've inspired you instead of scaring you.
© Patricia Jo Heil, 2013-2020 All Rights Reserved
No comments:
Post a Comment