At the beginning of the year, I set a goal for myself to try to create my own knitting pattern/design. I’ve made a few freestyle sweaters for my dog and she looks super sweet in her custom sweaters, but I wanted to try something a little bigger.
I decided I wanted to create a sweater for my niece and customize the pattern to something she would enjoy. Instead of starting from scratch, I made a mashup of a couple of different patterns. Continue reading for more about my freestyle sweater mashup knitting experience:
YARN
I ordered this beautiful rainbow of color to create the sweater for my niece. The colors are super vibrant and there are multiple shades of each color. She really loves blue, so I wanted the main color to be all shades of blue and there are a lot in this set.
MASHUP
Last year I knit the Moonbeam sweater for my niece and she really liked it, so I used that design as the base for my mashup sweater. I like this sweater pattern because there are a lot of sizes and it’s a simple top-down construction.
To modify the Moonbeam design, I decided to incorporate the slip stitch pattern used in the Hiberknitting Cowl. But to make it a little more interesting, I alternated between the S1/K1 from the cowl to a S2/K2 every couple rows. I wanted to use the different rainbow of colors for the slip stitches and keep the blue as the main color since it’s her favorite.
CAST ON
I started this sweater in early August and was super motivated to create this beautiful slip stitch sweater. I cast on with the German Twisted Cast On and knit the collar ribbing. Once it was the desired length, I folded it over and then knit the live stitches with the cast on edge. I like the look of a folded collar because I think it looks a little cleaner/more finished.
BODY
As I worked on the body, I alternated between rows of 1 or 2 slip stitches, shifting the slips every row. And in between slip rows, I knit two rounds of stockinette.
I picked colors for the slip stitches as I knit, without any color pattern in mind. I used light purple for the collar and faded into all of the different blues as the main color for the body. I saved half of each blue to divide later between the sleeves.
After just a couple of days, I was finished with the body!…or so I thought. I could see that this sweater was looking very short, even for a toddler. I had misread the pattern length measurements and knit the ribbing/bound off too soon.
I ripped back the ribbing and started the pattern again, but I had lost some of my motivation. I finally finished the body in the middle of September.
I really like how the colors pop against the blue background. This sweater reminds me of a sea of wild flowers.
SLEEVES
I used my Chiaogoo shorties for the sleeves which were perfect for knitting in the round. I repeated the color sequence that I used in the body, and saved half of the main blues for the second sleeve.
The sleeves were a little slow for me. Constantly cutting and adding a new contrast color, and weaving in the ends as I went. The color changes happened frequently since the sleeve diameter was so small. I shared my sleeve island struggles in my Newsletter and a lot of you said you could relate which made me feel better.
I took a huge break during the Shawlography MKAL, but I finally got back to the sleeves and finished them off at the end of November.
Because of all the floats in the sleeves, I didn’t want to decrease too much and make the sleeve feel tight. I also needed to maintain a certain number of stitches so I could continue the pattern, so I opted for a straight sleeve with only two decreases before the cuff.
I’m happy with the sleeves and how it all came together. I just hope it’s comfortable for my niece and that she likes it.
OVERALL THOUGHTS
I am really pleased with how this modded Moonbeam Sweater came out; it looks like holiday lights on an icy cool background. This yarn was really pretty and the colors were just what I was looking for. I have a fair amount left, so I have a few ideas about what I want to make next.
Slip stitches look a lot more intricate than they are. I recently started working on the Nightshift Shawl pattern which has basically the same slip stitch design as this sweater, but knit flat. So if you are familiar with that, you know how easy slip stitches are.
EDIT: It looks like this rainbow mashup is actually very similar to the Shifty sweater by Andrea Mowry. It looks like her repeats are different, but it also has slip stitches in a sweater pattern. Check out her design on Ravelry.
Even though this was a mashup of other patterns and not a true improvised creation, I think these mods are fun and unique. I can’t wait to send this to my niece and see her wear it. ♡ If you want to see more pictures of my Rainbow Mashup Sweater, check out my Ravelry page, and sign up for my Newsletter for knitting progress updates and more.
