The 5 Best Knitting Patterns for a Beginner

Update! I thought it might be timely to re-publish this post given the fabulous uptake of craft in this trying lockdown period.

There have of course been some other easy patterns released since I first wrote this post in 2018 but I still stand by my choices!

Please do support your Local Yarn Stores - most of them will be open for online orders - they are struggling too.

Good luck and of Cours Thank You NHS and all the healthcare workers around the globe!

Louise

7th May 2020



Hi

I have been really happy to see the series 'Make Britain' over on BBC iPlayer, I feel that making creating things with our hands is one of the best things we can do for our brains - but if you have read my blog before then you probably already know that!

This week the group of happy volunteers learned to knit and made pretty impressive bobble hats considering they were a group of beginners. Although obviously we did not really get to see the inevitable mistakes that they must have made, because thats not going to make good TV is it!!  However having said that, they all picked up the basics really well and to come away with a wearable hat rather than just a small square of knitting - which lets face it is pretty useless unless you are furnishing a dolls house!

So that got me to thinking that there are literally thousands of knitting patterns available on Ravelry, Pinterest and many many other sites and magazines, that for a newcomer to knitting that must all seem pretty daunting - so I thought I would put a list together for anyone just starting out in the wonderful world of knitting - with the aim of giving them something they can make relatively easily and then 'voila' they can immerse themselves in the the magic that knitting brings and the inevitable addiction to yarn and all things wooly!!!

Without further ado - here we go:

1. The Barley Hat by Tin Can Knits

It would be remiss of me not to start with Tin Can Knits who have just the best patterns for beginners and for the most part they are free!  I have chosen the Barley hat because I have made that myself and can attest to how well the pattern is written for a beginner.  It introduces all the elements, casting on and off, knit, purl and cast off and the range of sizes they offer is fabulous. Also check out the Flax Sweater and their Rye beginner sock pattern!

Check out the pattern HERE and my own version on Ravelry HERE

2.  Shawl - Hitchhiker

The Hitchhiker is a great beginner shawl pattern because is pretty addictive (potato chip knitting!), easy and if you want to use one skein of really gorgeous yarn its easy to do because basically you keep going until you have run out!  I used a lovely skein of sock yarn for mine which was too nice to be hidden away on my feet!  Gauge is not too important - just use the needle size suggested on the ball band if you are not sure!  Its not a free pattern but the price is very reasonable considering it comes in a number of languages!

Check out the pattern HERE and my version HERE

3.  Honey Cowl

Cowls are great for beginners and I have included two here!  Firstly the Honey Cowl which comes in two different lengths depending on how much yarn you have.  I made the shorter one from a one off hand dyed skein I got on holiday in Scotland a few years ago.  I loved the heather colouring which reminded me of the heather on the hills!  A good introduction to working in the round for a beginner and very easy to memorise the pattern.

Check out the pattern HERE and my version HERE

4.  Gaptastic Cowl

Now full disclosure I have never made this cowl - I really want to but hey I live in the desert so maybe thats not going to work for me!  However I think its fab and the shop bought version was really expensive and only in a small range of colours so this would be an opportunity to go crazy!!

Oh and did I mention its also a free pattern!  See HERE

This is the knitters own photo and obviously not mine!!

5.  The Garter Yoke Cardigan

No I have not gone crazy - beginners can absolutely make cardigans and this is not only very cute but no seaming or complicated pattern required.  I have made the baby version of this and its super cute, but I really love the original adult version. Again I have not made it yet myself see excuse re the heat above, but its something on my list for when I go home and live in the wilds of the English Countryside (sigh..... I get so homesick sometimes - 9 years in the desert can do that to a person!!). Being Aran this is going to be a quick knit!!

Anyway check out the pattern HERE  You can also see some stunning versions that others have done on the pattern page.

So I hope this helps if you are just starting out on your knitting journey or even if you are an experienced knitter just looking for something easy to sit and knit whilst doing 'Netflix and Knit' -  I would recommend Designated Survivor and Unabomber!

Pattern Review Vogue 9253

I saw this pattern a few months ago and I thought it would be perfect for the Abu Dhabi heat - though I knew the neckline might be an issue for me since my mastectomy and subsequent rebuilding has left quite a nasty red scar between my boobs - and although I a proud breast cancer survivor its often uncomfortable so don't really like anything rubbing on it.

There are of course lots of versions of this dress on the net and the more I saw it the more I knew it was for me - and I wasn't wrong!

The fabric I used was from a fabric shop in Satwa, Dubai.  For anyone not familiar with Dubai, this is the place to go for cheap fabric - yes you take your chances on the quality, but for someone like me who is likely to make a few mistakes at first or if you want to make a wearable muslin its really worth a visit - be warned though you will have to kiss a few frogs before you find your prince in terms of fabric!!  This cotton lawn purports to be Liberty - I'm not 100% sure of that, BUT it is lovely and light and I adore the colour and the design so hey who cares!!!  Abu Dhabi is pretty good for notions and bias binding and zips in many colours are very cheap. Thread on the other hand is 'interesting' - there is a lot of very cheap (20p per reel) cotton thread, but I have concerns about the amount of cotton which sheds into my sewing machine.  The polyester thread however is more like £5 per spool!!!

I do hate cutting out - but set an afternoon aside and to be honest it was not too much of a chore.

The pattern instructions are typically not detailed but there is enough to follow. I did make an initial booboo when I basted the front bodice pleats the wrong way around! See below..... when I tried the fronts on I wondered why they looked a bit odd - but thankfully I had noticed before I sewed the bodice to the skirt!  For my next version (and I feel there will be many...) I would sew up the bodice front to the height I need as it would be very easy to do at that stage and in fact a number of versions I have seen have a full wrap over style for the bodice.  I waited until the end on this version,  which was fine and looks perfectly ok, but a note to self for next time!

Pleats going the wrong way!! They should be facing outwards and not inwards!

I was very happy with the bias binding I bought and I think it added to the finish of the garment! Also something to note is that I 'overlocked' all of the seams!  I did this on my sewing machine as I don't have an overlocker (yet - I have made many many hints to my husband!!!!).  My previous makes have all had seams done with pinking shears but it was better to overlock. Mind you for this I changed my thread to the cotton above mentioned given the price of the polyester!!

Very happy with this!!

And then there were POCKETS!!!! 

Pockets were a revelation!!  I have made some dresses before but never put pockets in because I thought they were too hard!  Silly Silly Me!!  They were easy to do and of course fabulous!

I did put an invisible zip in and it was sort of ok....... the ties are set in with the zip and bodice and I did get them slightly off!  However the dress easily goes over my head and I don't like tight waistbands (this sits above the waist) and so next time I think I might get away with no zip and attaching the ties into the back seam - or having the ties separate - again I have seen versions done like this.

Managed to get a pretty good match on the zip colour!

Yay for pink zips

So overall I absolutely adore this make. Its a very flattering dress and every time I have seen a photo of it the wearer looks stunning!  Its easy to sew but still has shape and character and I could see it in a chambray or a linen for next time!  If you are thinking about making it then please do - you will thank yourself!

I probably need to get some better modelled photos - still not happy being the other side of the camera (ever since Moon Faced Steroid 'Gate'!!!).

Also I would like to thank the stupendous support from the Curvy Sewing Collective on Facebook - over 600 likes for my photo has left me speechless - I love you ladies!!!

Back to an old Love

If you have read my blog before you might know that I am also a keen sewer, but have been up until now very very inconsistent with my projects.

Fast forward to two or three months or so ago when I was feeling a bit uninspired with life (see last post about my job search!!) and I decided to trawl through You Tube where I found the lovely Lisa Comfort of Sew Over It and binged on a number of her videos (I lost count after a while...). That led me onto the Seamwork 'Design your Own Wardrobe' challenge and from there on in down a million sewing rabbit holes.  For the first time in a while I felt inspired to get back to my sewing and discovered a fabulous sewing community where the benefits of making at least some of your own clothes seemed to me to be such a no brainer!  How many times have I trawled the shops looking for something which will fit me, not be too short, not have arm circumferences of a drinking straw and be cool enough for the heat of an Abu Dhabi summer without looking like I have just walked off the beach (although I do like the 'just off the beach' look haha). AND found a healthy sewing community here in Abu Dhabi #AbuDhabiSews !!

So without going too much into the literally HUGE amount of detail I could drone on about for hours, these are a few of the things that I have made since my love of sewing took over my life again.  Of course I still adore my knitting and crochet but I would love to bring them together now with curated handmade outfits.......but baby steps first!

Hemlock Tee

This is a free pattern from Grainline Studio (you just have to sign up to their newsletter) and it really for stretch fabric.  I happily adapted the sleeves for my lovely woven cotton, but forgot to give some more ease to the bottom (face:palm) - so it has ended up being a little 'snug' over the hips!  Also in a moment of complete DUH I did not line the material up correctly when I cut out the front on the fold line - so the pattern is off!!  I guess you can't tell too much especially when I wear it with my 2Birds Dubai fabby huge tassel necklace!!! So make number one is wearable but there were certainly some lessons learned!

Light not so good on this one but see what I mean about the necklace!!

Ruby Top

My next project was the Ruby Top by Tessuti Fabrics. Such a lovely easy little pattern with a really nice detail on the back fastening.  This was in lovely drapey cotton which I got locally and a really easy sew.  I was particularly pleased with my neat stitching on the back!  I have not worn this yet as I am working on a cotton cardigan to go with it - never comfortable about letting my arms out in public!

So those were my first little tops which I am very very pleased with.  However I have two exciting dresses to share with you - next time.........