It is a wonderful experience to combine skills (knitting, minimal sewing, simple embroidery), and here we use them to produce a quick and simple but impossibly unique summer top. It’s a solution to summer knits (aside from just knitting with cotton) and can be dressed up—with jewelry and a skirt—or dressed down—with a short-sleeved blouse or T-...

A version of this sweater initially appeared in my book, The Knit Stitch, and was called Sally’s Favourite Summer Sweater. The version written here has the following changes to the original:

After finishing a previous multi-coloured, crochet-plus-knitting garment (see DIVIDE AND CONQUER), I thought immediately about another … in only one colour. I knew I wanted the crocheted pieces to be more delicate—almost lacy—and that the knitting surrounding it needed to be very simple. I also, again, needed two weights of yarn (in this case, ...

After finishing a previous multi-coloured, crochet-plus-knitting garment (see DIVIDE AND CONQUER), I thought immediately about another … in only one colour. I knew I wanted the crocheted pieces to be more delicate—almost lacy—and that the knitting surrounding it needed to be very simple. I also, again, needed two weights of yarn (in this case, ...

I always feel that longer sweaters need some shaping, and this garment has an unexpected element to serve that purpose: buckles!

My farmer friend says this looks like farmers’ fields from the air: hence the name, which is as good as any I could come up with!

This piece is based upon one of my favourites from The Knit Stitch. I knew that beginning knitters needed a simple scarf, but triangles need to be fairly large, and rectangles are awkward to wear. So my plan became to knit a triangle—to sit at the neck—with rectangular tails to wrap. This one is fairly similar with a slight change to the cast-o...

I have always loved these fitted, very elegant pieces, originally offered in my book, The Purl Stitch. And while my eldest granddaughter is not interested in my knitting her a sweater, she is happy for any and all versions of these that I send her. Hence their now being named after her.

This pattern is BOTH knit and crochet. And since crochet is denser, it uses both fingering and DK–the former for the granny squares and the latter for the knitting.

This pattern is BOTH knit and crochet. And since crochet is denser, it uses both fingering and DK–the former for the granny squares and the latter for the knitting.

These pieces are adapted from some of my favourite patterns from my book, The Knit Stitch.

This is an easy piece to slip on and wear over anything, perfect for those in-between seasons (at least in my climate) when a parka is too heavy but an extra layer is required. It’s a quick knit that is stylish and never fails to garner compliments.

I have recently discovered how much I love garments made with fingering yarns. If you feel resistant to all that knitting, consider the following.

This piece is an evolution of L’Enveloppe (also available here on Ravelry). That piece was sized generously enough to wear over a light coat, but it doesn’t add a huge amount of warmth, doesn’t have a tall collar, and doesn’t fit well under a coat. So when the weather (at least where I live) got winter-cold, I needed something that a) could pro...

This vest is a veritable embrace. And truly, nothing could be simpler than its construction: a tube with armhole openings at just the right place plus shaping to hug the shoulders. And because it is so simple, it lends itself to multiple interpretations. Hence the three versions offered: stockinette, textured tumbling blocks, a 2-colour stitch ...

The vest for this set came from a much-loved adult pattern. So then why not knit one for the toddlers? But then it was clear that the vest needed matching leggings!

Not everyone looks good in all hats. Some of us, especially those of us with smaller features and/or a smaller head, do not look our best in tams, touques, or slouches. But we can look great in a tidy, smaller-fitting hat. Since I am one of these people, this hat shape was a wonderful discovery!

This sweater, with the iconic female power symbol, is my response to a Netflix documentary on the Feminists of the 70’s. Despite the turbulence of those years, we thought it a great time to be female. But clearly, there was much left unresolved. I can only hope that, for the girls of this century, it will truly and finally be a magnificent time...

Vests are probably my favourite piece of clothing: versatile and without the warmth, yarn, or hassle of sleeves! This one reminded me of Mediaeval armour. And then my daughter, who has a very different aesthetic than mine, admired it. So good news! I had finally designed a vest that was multi-generational. Hence, the All Ages vest.

I made a garment, entirely with yarn (The Easy Wrap Jacket, also available here), and wore it a lot. But I thought … What If I made it in a combination of knitting + fabric? I wouldn’t have to buy yarn for—and knit—that large back piece (18” x 50”) but could replace it with fabric!

Not only was this a fun knit (because I was always doing something), but it’s completion felt like an act of virtue! Here’s why… .

I think I have become cowl-obsessed! They have become an accessory I don’t want to leave home without. I have made two of these in the last 4 days.

This has become my favourite winter sweater—whose title describes how it makes me feel. And more to its credit, it is easy to wear (and does not require layers), has my favourite hem (the shirt-tail), has my favourite side shaping (a little A-line), and has a wonderful but not challenging sleeve detail.

This pattern is offered as three different garments, all with the same gauge and sizing and finishing instructions but different executions of the same basic stitch pattern (double garter ridge = dgr).

I often say If it’s asymmetrical, it’s art. But it takes confidence to wear art or asymmetry! And as soon as we knit something asymmetrically—demanding that we work in unusual ways—we need more confidence in our knitting skills. Hence, the Confident Jumper.

I found myself besotted by a “jelly roll” of fabric (bright pieces, cut into 2.5” strips) and wondered if I could KNIT something. This was the result. (It is not an inexpensive project, but it certainly is a special one!)

My friend, Susanna, owns the fabulous painting you see in the photos. I recently said “we should knit that sweater!” She agreed. Then, not long after, the yarn shop 88 Stitches, in Langley BC, sent out a blast on Ravelry to say that—for Canada’s sesquicentennial—everyone should knit a garment by a Canadian designer. I immediately thought of the...

I called this a wrap jacket, not because it overlaps or ties in front … but because it is a cross between a wrap (a rectangular shawl) and a jacket—and functions beautifully as both!

When leaving for a trip, I needed something to knit that would take a long time but not a lot of space. So I made a swatch, gathered leftover sock yarns, made a pile of 8yd butterflies, and proceeded. It did take a long time, but since every square was different, it was constantly and totally engaging. And little did I know it would become my f...

I made this because I wanted to knit a doll for Operation Christmas Child (through Samaritan’s purse—see samaritanspurse.org.) Apparently a doll, especially one made by hand, is very much appreciated by the children who receive them. Isn’t it wonderful that we knitters can do this so easily!

I have probably said before that I like to “wear what I knit.” But for summer, this can be a bit of a challenge. However, knit in a cool fibre—like cotton—this sleeveless garment, with its halter neck and deep armhole, is something we can produce and wear, even on the hottest days.

This vest has some similarities with the Einstein Coat (from The Knit Stitch)—all done in garter with slip-stitch edges. But there are significant differences: the vest has short rows (for back shaping, of which you can see evidence in side and back views), and it has no seaming.

My mission lately has been to make sweaters I can wear when the weather is warmer. So for this attempt, I knew I wanted (besides a cool main yarn) shorter sleeves in a light-weight yarn plus a sweater that was easy and quick. At some point in this exploration, I made the discovery that the number of stitches per inch in a sock yarn could be the...

My favourite thing to do is take something from my closet (that I did not knit) and re-interpret it in knitting. So, I have a black, pin-stripe, oversized, A-line shirt with a zippered panel in the back. I love it, wear it often, and needed to knit it.

I have long wanted to knit something that could be worn in the summer—other than a basic, straight-sided tank top. I wanted something that showed knitting skills—with interesting details—but was light and easy to wear. And here is my solution: an A-line, lacy top, made a lovely fingering weight yarn. The interesting detail is the surprise at th...

This is not two separate garments: READ ON!

Recently I started playing with zippers (for a ski sweater to appear in the book Stitch Mountain) … and then I found myself wearing a little black vest (bought in 1993 and worn constantly) that I promised myself to knit some day … and here is the marriage of the two.

Sometimes our hands are just itching for that two-colour stranded experience—sometimes called fairisle. If you’re having one of those moments, this piece is perfect. And it doesn’t matter how little experience you have, because this piece is easy! The 6 stitch and 10 row chart is remarkably simple (4 rows are solid, 4 rows are 3x3), the yarn is...

Every time I wear this and everywhere I go, I’ve had it commented on—by strangers on the street, by shop owners or customers, by knitters or non. And each time they say something like “I love that … thing you’re wearing!” No-one knows what to call it, and—frankly—neither do I. Because one arm goes through (as does the neck) but the other arm is...

The Log Cabin was my beloved mother-in-law’s favourite quilt pattern, and she passed the fondness onto me—to such an extent that I have already published the pattern for one. But the previous version (in The Color Book) required buying I-don’t-know-how-many colours of yarn and coordinating them … plus sewing in all those tails because each segm...

This asymmetrical, modular, garter-stitch shawl pattern is

My daughter brought me a commercially-made sweater she found in a vintage shop. The sweater was not hand-knit, so there’d be no pattern. She knew she was buying it for me to sort out how it was constructed—knowing that this is my very favourite thing to do!

This is one of my favorite sweaters. So easy to knit and to wear! But what you see is not what was planned, and it’s one of my favorite knitting stories.

In my family, a grandmother’s name is Honey. And in my family, it’s Honey’s job to make the Christmas stockings! So here are mine—knit for my three-year-old granddaughters. The colors (7 in all) are seasonal, the bobbles add a little Christmas bling, and the hearts say “The person who made this loves you.”

I have a problem with rectangular and with triangular scarves: too many wraps in the former, too short tails in the latter. But these geometrical shapes are amenable to lace stitch patterns, so I’ve made lots of lace triangles and lace rectangles … and had them do nothing more than decorate my closet.

This garment is the best of both worlds—knitting plus fabric in which both get to do what they do best and most easily: the smaller pieces are shaped and knit to fit; the larger pieces are just fabric rectangles that provide the “yardage.”

I long ago had a favourite sleeveless top. But it was commercially made in a very fine yarn and in a ribbed pattern. How to translate this to hand knitting? It took me years to bite this bullet, but I’m glad I did. Yes, it’s a lot of ribbing on a fine yarn, but I think the result worth it.

An interestingly constructed, garter stitch coat with minimal finishing.