A Fancy Neckline

This is the neckline of my new sweater made of fisherman knit panels (sold out). All major pieces for the sweater have been cut out now. I've even started sewing! The pattern I decided to use is Neue Mode 22560, a sewing pattern I started to try out over a year ago. Plans changed, however, and I never completed that test sweater.

This sweater will be completed. Because people sometimes ask me for sewing pattern recommendations for sweater knits, I've been on a mission lately to find sewing patterns that I can recommend from personal experience. (I have a whole Pinterest board of Commercial Sewing Patterns that seem as if they'd be good, but I've only sewn a couple of them.) 

Neue Mode 22560 is available as a printed pattern (no PDFs) and has no seam allowances (my favorite way to work). It's printed on paper that's more substantial than the usual tissue paper, though the print quality isn't very crisp. The lines are clear enough, but the words on the pattern pieces appear fuzzy in places. Instructions are not included with the printed pattern; they must be downloaded separately from the Neue Mode site.

Info on Neue Mode 22460, orange line is my extension of the grainline.

There are certain basic sweater styles where I'll use only major pattern pieces -- the front, the back, and the sleeve -- then make my own choices as to the finishing pieces. This pattern is one of them. I think that if it's a basic sweater, it may be easiest to self-draft the cuffs or any bands or binding. This is especially true if "sweater knit" isn't on the recommended fabrics list of the sewing pattern or if using something other than self fabric for the bands or binding. The best part is that rectangles are usually sufficient for these finishing pieces! And even if sweater knits are listed in the recommended fabrics list, all sweater knits are not the same. Because they vary in weight, stretch, and recovery, it would be impossible for any pattern maker/designer to come up with a sewing pattern that worked well for every knit fabric.

Neue Mode 22560

Besides the major pieces, the pattern came with pieces for a facing (View A1) and an enormous collar/snood (View B). View A2 is a skirt. I, however, was inspired by the neckline on this sweater.

I cut a rectangle of fabric to include one of the cable motifs from the panel cutaways. I used the cable strip to enclose the raw edge of the neckline that I'd already lowered by 2 inches in the front and one-half inch in the back. The original neckline for this sweater pattern was much higher on me than it appears in the illustration for View A1.

This was my cable strip, sewn into a circle, before I folded it over and sewed it to the neckline.

The sweater's so close to being completed now, but the actual finish may have to wait. I'll be packing up my workspace for a week while the temporary repairs to my floor (started during a radiator installation almost a year ago) are made permanent. So glad this sweater won't take as long. (ETA: It's completed!)

O!

Matching the Texture or Color Patterns in a Cut and Sew Sweater

My first piece has already been roughly cut out. The fabric stitch pattern is exactly where I want it.  Now it's time to use that first piece, the front, to cut out the rest of the sweater.

In this post I'm continuing from where I left things last time, responding to the questions regarding laying out pattern pieces on sweater knits. If you have any experience matching patterns with woven or printed designs, you can easily match up a bold texture or color jacquard in a sweater knit. Every good basic sewing book gives instructions for matching patterns, and there are several sources on line. This is how I go about it. Some people think that it's more difficult to match sweater knits because the fabric is often less stable and stretchy. I say make the stretchy factor work for you; stretchy can be very forgiving.

As with last time, I'm working with panels of fabric, and I'll use the already cut out front for matching up the first sleeve. I'm working with a single thickness of fabric. And like last time, I start by marking the paper pattern.

Step 1. Using a marking ruler and pencil, draw a center line and a line perpendicular to the center line passing through the front notch on the paper pattern.

Don't worry about the back notch, if any. Just make sure the lines are perpendicular. The vertical center line will help you get the sleeve squared up on the fabric. Once the paper sleeve is laid out on the fabric, the relationship between the sleeve and the already cut out front should look like this.

Step 2. Using the front for reference, decide where to place the paper sleeve on the fabric. 

Traditional layout

Perhaps the diamond motif will work well placed down the center line of the sleeve like the center line of the sweater front?

Or maybe the columns of ovals would be best on the front of the sleeve? Then the layout would look like the one below.

Non-traditional layout

Since I thread traced the front on the sewing line (the solid cyan/turquoise line), I can use the line to help place the sleeve on the fabric with greater precision. If I hadn't thread traced, I could still get a pretty good idea by folding (and pinning) under the seam allowance of the front, wherever I needed to make a match.

Step 3. Once placement of the sleeve is decided upon and squared up, weight or pin the paper pattern piece to the fabric, and trace the outline of the paper sleeve pattern using your favorite tailor's chalk or erasable fabric marker. 

If working without seam allowances on the paper pattern, you'll be marking the sewing line. Be sure to mark notches to the outside of the sewing line.

If working with a seam allowance on the paper pattern, you'll be marking the cutting line. Mark notches as you prefer, but never clip your notches to the inside with sweater knits!

I think that tracing with a marker or chalk before cutting is the most important part! After removing the paper pattern, it's easy to examine your work to see if it's all ok before cutting out the sleeve. Hold the front next to the outlined sleeve and see if you really like the way they go together. Changes are easy. Chalk marks can usually be erased with a dry wash cloth. Lines made with erasable fabric markers can be removed with a damp wash cloth. (Always test markers and chalk on scrap fabric first. Let damp fabric dry before marking again.) Or you can simply use another color chalk or marker to make corrections.

Step 4. Cut the sleeve out. Continue with the second sleeve and the back using the same procedure.

I decided to go with the non-traditional layout for the final picture above. In reality, I've already cut out all my major pieces from the fisherman's knit panels using a rather traditional layout with the central motif... well... centered on front, back, and sleeves. This picture is to remind me to do something a little less traditional with the next sweater!

O!

Placing (and Cutting) the First Pattern Piece on Sweater Knit Fabric

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Fabric for a Cable Sweater

So what would you have done?

I was visiting a local knitting mill on another matter entirely, when I was presented with some gorgeous knit fabric. Cables! An Aran stitch pattern, but not a traditional fisherman knit of wool; the fabric was 100% cotton. It was bulky and beautiful. And as soon as I saw it, I knew I needed it. I asked how much and got my answer. What would you have done? I quickly added enough for a sweater "into the cart"... and then I added some more.

This dreamy fabric, in panels actually, was an overrun from a previous job at the knitting mill for another knit designer. Often when fabrics for cut and sew sweaters are produced, the fabrics are knit into segmented parts such as these. This makes it easier for whoever does the pattern placement and cutting -- no unwieldy stretchy yardage of substantial length to wrestle into submission, just nice manageable panels of fabric. These particular knit panels are pairs of fronts and backs. (I'm guessing all the sleeves were shipped off with the original order, because none remained at the mill.) A creative and innovative sewist could easily turn an extra front/back pair into left/right sleeves. Or one could forgo sleeves completely and go another way, inspired by this sleeveless beauty by Derek Lam, a very nice way to go indeed.

Here are the details:  Each panel is approximately 24.5 inches (62 cm) wide and 25.5 inches long (65 cm), including 2.25 inches (5.7 cm) ribbing at the bottom of each panel.

Each panel is connected to an adjacent identical panel. These comprise the front/back pair. The rib welt at the bottom of each panel is finished. The top of each panel has a few rows of loops that are not part of the design.

Remember when I said I bought more than I needed? I hoped there would be creative folk who'd appreciate the beauty of these once leftover, now reclaimed, sweaters-to-be. I knew there'd be people who could imagine the possibilities.

If you want in, I now have cable sweater panels available in the shop. See them at the next Open Studio event on June 13, 3-6PM, too, if you're in the area.  Item is sold out. Event is over.

On a related matter, I've received a few emails from sewers new to sweater knits. Some questions were on topics I’ve covered before, and I could refer to a previously written blog post. Other subjects I documented earlier but have since discovered or learned new ways of tackling the issue. There have also been questions on topics I’ve never gotten around to writing about at all. My next several blog posts will be devoted to answering some of these questions. I hope to demonstrate the answers using these fisherman knit panels. At the end, the new sweater sewers will hopefully have their questions answered and I should have a new sweater! In the meantime, I've made a Pinterest board of 26 cable sweaters (so far) for inspiration.

Click to view on Pinterest

The sweaters range from the traditional to the surprising. I've definitely got cables on the mind now.

O!