Would it be more difficult to do the sweater intarsia style or to work each part in a panel, only doing horizontal color changes? I don’t have a pattern in mind yet, but I think I’d have to pick a “normal” pattern that’s not accounting for separate panels so I am not really sure how I would modify to work that in. Appreciate any advice on how this could be constructed!
It almost looks like the side panels for the body continue as the panels for the insides of the sleeves. So it's two super long side panels. Kind of hard to see with how the fabric scrunches up in the armholes. So it could just be:
Yeah agree- I think the under sleeve panels are continuous with the sides of the body
Edit- acctually when I look more at the light blue armpit- I think I see a seam- so I go back to my original guess of 8 panels
I love working intarsia so much, but I actually suggest that you DON'T work this in intarsia. Instead you could work this in a modular construction where you work each panel one at a time but simultaneously attach it to the previous panel.
It's a super fun way to construct a sweater AND you don't have to manage different colorwork rates and bobbins.
I made this sweater pattern uses this construction and found it to be super fun. I also modded it to add sleeves and shoulder shaping, so depending on your skill level it's definitely possible to get shaping in the sleeves and shoulder. There are other modular constructed patterns out there too!
I’ve never done intarsia on an actual project (only practice) so was definitely leaning more towards seaming. I think I would lose my mind if I had so much “active” yarn attached, which I honestly didn’t even think about when I posted this!
My skill level isn’t super advanced, only started to learn to knit back in November 2023, but I’m motivated to figure anything out if I want it bad enough.
Thank you for the input / knowledge :) that pattern is so cool!
Pick a pattern you like. Trace the schematic. Color it with colored pencils. Look at the stitch and row count, and do a little 4th grade arithmetic to figure out how many stitches and rows your stripes and sections need to be. Add 2 stitches per section for seams, and if you have to have a horizontal seam (but might not need to), add a row, if you will be sewing, or subtract a row from only one section and use a provisional cast on for the other if grafting.
A couple of resources that I think will help you is the Knit Design Workshop by Shirley Paden and Knitting from the Top Down by Barbara Walker (especially the part about knitting sleeves in set in patterns). I think those two should help you walk through the math you need to figure out, plus look at some modular construction patterns to wrap your head around the construction. This honestly shouldn't be TOO difficult to make but you will need to do a lot of the math up front and will basically have to have it all figured out before you actually begin the knitting
If you want a little practice before diving into this project, Stephen West has some patterns that are striped and worked in sections. The Vertices Unite pattern would be a great one to give a go— each section is a couple of colors that you work at a time, and then once finished you often will pick up stitches to work them into another section. I think that method combined with a sweater pattern would work well!
PATTERN: Beads of Joy by James N Watts
Please use caution. Users have reported effects such as seizures, migraines, and nausea when opening Ravelry links. More details. | I found this post by myself! Opt-Out | About Me | Contact Maintainer
Wow this just became my white whale too!
It’s a beauty!!! It’s hard to even find modern knitwear that’s similar!
Just for some extra info on it, it’s “Alley Cat by Betsey Johnson”, from 1970s (pretty sure?!!).
Yeah! Early in Betsey Johnson's career, which began in 1965, she designed junior wear for Alley Cat between 1970-1974.
I freaking love her, and her knitwear designs throughout her entire life are amazing, and now I just want to replicate her designs.
lol same. We all must be around the same age.
I'm 35, and this is now my white whale. I must learn how to make a paneled sweater immediately.
I hope in a few months or so there are an influx of posts with pics of WIP / completed colorful, striped paneled sweaters on this sub
Intarsia
My approach would be to knit in panels & seam it together. I like to bring my knitting with me & an intarsia project of this complexity would be tough
Intarsia with more than ~2 colors is a "do at home" project for me lol
Take a look at this pattern, it gives very similar vibes to what you are looking for, snd even though I have not made it myself, my understanding is that it walks you through it; as others have suggested, it's intarsia
Study Group by Jennifer Parroccini
PATTERN: Study Group by Jennifer L Parroccini
Please use caution. Users have reported effects such as seizures, migraines, and nausea when opening Ravelry links. More details. | I found this post by myself! Opt-Out | About Me | Contact Maintainer
Intarsia might be a good option for the big block color changes.
I think I would find an old-school plain vanilla pattern that has panels that you Kitchener graft together. My brain would find it easier to figure out the front, then the back, as opposed to trying to make them make sense in one go and circular knit the body. Then I would use intarsia if there’s a need for a vertical change of colour within a panel. I would then plan out my colour changes so they work with the number of stitches the pattern calls for.
Same. Intarsia seems like so much more work than just knitting flat sections and putting them together at the end.
I think I'd pick a seamed set in sleeves pattern.
(Though if you weren't trying to be exact this could be an option: Gartrell Crew)
This might work, as it is definitely seamed together: Kai Fell
Is probably what I'd go with. Then, figure out your gauge, really, for real. Figure out the measurements you want, for real.
Divide the sleeve stitches at cuff, halfway up, and right before sleeve cap into probably 2/3 and 1/3. The 1/3 is going to be the first 1/6 of the stitches and the last 1/6. That is your underarm. add 2 stitches for seaming.
PATTERN: Gartrell Crew by Tanis Lavallee
PATTERN: Kai Fella Sweater by Knitwits and Yarns
PATTERN: Cobble Hill Pullover by Heather Lodinsky
Please use caution. Users have reported effects such as seizures, migraines, and nausea when opening Ravelry links. More details. | I found this post by myself! Opt-Out | About Me | Contact Maintainer
Looks like it is knitted flat, everything is panels except the neckline that is int the round, and done after everthing else is sewn together.
1 back panel(pink/purple stripes with black ribbing)(*that might continue to the front purple part)
1 lower front(black with red ribbing)
*(front top solid purple)(there is a seam between the purple and black)
2 side panels(one blue/pink stripe with with white rib, one black/white with yellow ribbing)
2 under sleeve panels(same colour as side panels, it is not one panel as other have sugested, it bulk up and there is a visible seam on the blue underarm)
2 Oversleeve panels(blue double stripe on yellow with pink rib, pink/red breton stribes with blue rib)
It’s so cool and you can totally do this. It will be fun and easy to do the actual knitting. It’s not the colourwork that’s the struggle, it’s getting the fit and stitch counts. For that you can totally use a vanilla stockinette pattern you like already as the basis for your maths.
Use your OWN measurements to do this. Find your yarns, make decent size swatches, first of all. Get the fabric how YOU want it; drape, texture. Then measure your stitch counts. A vanilla pattern can then help you work out your shaping - you just need to cross check the counts and intervals given with your OWN swatch stitch counts. Tweak accordingly. That sounds complicated, but it won’t be as bad as it sounds.
Don’t forget that for efforts like this Roxanne Richardson and Suzanne Bryan have lots of helpful videos on all the questions you didn’t know you were going to ask about fit and shaping.
Have a nose around in Amy Herzog’s work for help on that, too. As others have said - just make panels and seam them. Except the neck/cuffs obviously you will pick that up off the body.
🐋🐋🐋🐋
Upvote for Queen Betsey
As others mentioned it might be easier to knit this in pieces and sew them together. Looking at the body, you could start with that (work one front and one back piece) and then work the sleeves and neck. The bottom sleeves would have minimal shaping and the set-in sleeve shaping would need to be worked out in the top halves of each sleeve.
I think intarsia might be too difficult with this design, as you'd need to keep track of the design elements plus the color changes.
The garment construction looks quite similar to a reverse-weave sweatshirt with side panel gussets. If you can find one in the size you like that could help with visualizing the construction and fit.
Agree: likely knit together in panels and seamed
I see:
2x sleeve bottoms/torso sides 1x front 1x back 2x sleeve tops/shoulders
It looks like the ribbing is knit flat and seamed with the possible exception of the neckline.
I have a vintage pattern that looks like this!
So cute!! Definitely similar vibes / something I’d go for! Of course it’s in danish though lol
It’s Dutch, I can see if I can translate, but it’s a vintage pattern so it has limited instructions. This one is also intarsia based
Sorta!
Yeah in my memory they were more alike 😂
I mean there are similar attributes, the stripes. Im sure op can figure this out with all the great minds in this sub😊
I'd probably do the center of body front and back as a basic set-in sleeve top down. I would work the side panels separately and seam them to the center front and back. Block. Then do sleeves in the round with intarsia. I don't like all the extra strands and bobbins of intarsia but I could put up with it for a sleeve or two.
I could probably tolerate doing the bottom band as intarsia, as finishing work.
Bottom up contiguous (after working the majority of the body as a seamed garment) might be close enough and would allow me to work the majority of the intarsia sleeves before they were attached to the body.
This is a really cool sweater.
It kinda reminds me of Kit Couture Langeland sweater. Unfortunately the pattern is only available as part of a book, or as a kit. I don't think they make an English version of the pattern either.
I don’t have any advice for constructing this specific sweater, but I have also recently fallen in love with the idea of colour work. I follow a local (to me) knitter on Instagram @pickyfemme who does amazing amazing colourful knits. Watching the current project : a kids charted cardigan that I would 100% wear as a 33year old, it’s inspiring me to look into learning some new techniques.
Super cool sweater. I love trying to think the construction through. It looks seamed like others have said but it would be hard to keep the gauge consistent between the seams and the panels. Good luck!
These are amazing! It made me think of this post from a while ago which does use intarsia and stripes....
https://www.reddit.com/r/knitting/comments/12l9p2a/colorblock_sweater_intarsia_technique/
Your submission has been automatically removed.
Feel free to try again with a real source instead of a rehosting service. Thanks.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
I think I wore this with leggings...
I think it would be easier to adapt this to intarsia, but the sweater in the picture looks like it was knit in panels and seamed. I’d gues 2 panels for the sleeve and 4 for the body.