A step-by-step guide to knitting the Skye Jumper.
Ever gotten halfway through a project and thought “Hang on, am I even doing this right?” We have 🙋♀️
That’s why we’ve created these step-by-step guides to walk you through the knitting process.
Even if you've never knitted before, we'll take you from zero to knitting hero in no time 🦸♀️
PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT
Before we get started on the pattern we suggest you spend a bit of time learning the basic stitches you’ll need to complete your masterpiece. The Sky Jumper is made using a combination of knit and purl stitches. We put these together to make a 2x2 rib stitch and a stockinette stitch. You'll want to be confident with the knit and purl stitches before you start. You'll also want to get a hang of tying a slip knot and casting on your stitches which is the first step in any knitting project.
📹 Watch How To Tie A Slip Knot
📹 Watch How To Cast On
📹 Watch How To Knit Stitch
📹 Watch How To Purl Stitch
You can use the yarn that came in your kit to practice with. Once you've got these mastered you'll find the pattern a cinch!
👩🏫 For a more comprehensive lesson on the basics of knitting visit our Learn How To Knit page.
Cardigang Hotline ☎️. These sessions are designed to help give you the skills you need to create a masterpiece. Whether you're just starting out, or you've got a specific question or problem (dropped a stitch, no stress!), we're here to get you out of a bind.
TEST YOUR TENSION
First thing's first. Before you start your project, make sure your tension (how tightly or loosely your knitting is) is juuuust right 🥣 We do this by knitting a “tension swatch”. It's a bit like goldilocks, if the tension is too tight, your piece will be too small, and if it's too loose it may not hold its shape and might be too big.
If done correctly, your 10x10cm knitted swatch should be 11 stitches wide and 16 rows high when knitted in stockinette on 6mm needles.
To test your gauge grab your needles and chunky cotton yarn. Cast on 16 stitches, then knit in stockinette stitch (knit first row, purl second repeat) until your piece is just longer than 10cm high. Then measure your 10x10cm swatch and count the stitches and rows within your 10x10 square.
💡 We know knitting a gauge swatch can seem like a bit of a drain, but it's really important because the difference of a few millimetres in a gauge swatch can lead to a finished piece this is quite different in size to what you intended.
Onto the knit
SIZING
You can knit your jumper in size 6-8, 10-12, 14-16, 18-20 or 22-24. Your pattern is read like this: 6-8 (10-12, 14-16, 18-20, 22-24). Make sure you're following the right instructions for your chosen size.
MEASUREMENTS
Laying flat, your finished piece will measure approximately:
- 6-8: 55cm wide x 43cm high
- 10-12: 60cm wide x 43cm high
- 14-16: 65cm wide x 47cm high
- 18-20: 70cm wide x 50cm high
- 22-24: 75cm wide x 50cm high
USING YOUR PATTERN
One of the things we found the hardest when we were learning to knit was keeping track of our rows. Before we were able to easily identify a row of stitches we used a pen and paper to keep track. That's why we've included handy circles in our patterns - you can tick them off as you go. The dashed circles are for the larger sizes. We've also colour-coordinated the circles to help keep track of the colour you're knitting with.
LET'S KNIT UP A STORM
We knit our masterpiece in pieces, starting with the back panel, then the front, and then the sleeves. Once we have all our pieces we’ll sew the jumper together and knit the ribbed neckline.
BACK
We knit the back panel from the bottom up.
STEP 1
Cast on your stitches in colour 1. We recommend using the long tail cast-on method when using the chunky cotton yarn. It's a lot easier to get the new stitches onto your needle.
This is what it will look like when all your stitches are cast on.
STEP 2
Complete 7 rows of 2x2 rib stitch. A 2x2 rib stitch is where you knit 2 stitches, then purl 2 stitches, then knit 2, purl 2- repeat. Remember to move your yarn from the front to the back of your work as you alternate knit and purl stitches.
📹 Watch How To Do A Rib Stitch - make sure you're knitting 2 stitches, then purling 2 to make a 2x2 pattern, instead of a 1x1.
STEP 3
Continuing in colour 1, you'll begin knitting in stockinette stitch Stockinette stitch is made by alternating knit and purl rows.
Knit one row, then purl the next.
STEP 4
Change to colour 2. We change colour at the end of a row. Tie a knot with the new yarn colour around the end of the tail of the colour you were knitting with, then start knitting with the new colour. You can cut the yarn from the ball of colour 1.
📹 Watch How To Change Colours
Complete two more rows of stockinette stitch.
STEP 5
Change to colour 3 and continue in stockinette stitch.
STEP 6 - 8
Continue in stockinette stitch and change colours as instructed.
STEP 9
Cast off all stitches and cut your yarn from the ball. Secure the last stitch by threading the tail through the stitch and pulling it to secure.
📹 Watch How To Cast Off
Well done 💪 You've finished the back!
FRONT
The front knits up the same way as the back until you get to the last 6 rows which is where we create the shape for the neckline.
STEP 1 - 12
Repeat the same sequence as the back.
STEP 13
We're going to start shaping the neckline. To do this you'll knit up one shoulder and then the other. We decrease stitches every second row to create a curve for our neckline.
In this step, you'll knit the instructed number of stitches and then you'll knit two stitches together.
📹 Watch How To Knit Two Stitches Together
STEP 14
Flip your work and we're going to purl the same stitches again. The rest of the stitches will just hang out on your needles, we'll come back to them once the first shoulder is finished.
STEP 15
We're going to do another decrease on this row. Knit the instructed number of stitches before you knit the next two stitches together.
STEP 16 - 19
Continue in this fashion, following the stitch numbers, before casting off the stitches for the first shoulder.
STEP 20
⚡️ Rejoin your yarn by tying a knot to the base of the stitch closest to the end of your needle.
We're going to cast off 14/16 stitches before we knit up the second shoulder.
Once you've cast off the stitches you'll have one stitch on your right needle and the rest of the stitches on your left. Slip a second stitch from your left needle onto your right and then knit those two stitches together.
STEP 21 - 26
You'll knit up the second shoulder following the instructions and decreasing stitches around the neckline every second row.
The front is F.I.N.I.S.H.E.D! 🥳 Have a stretch and give yourself a pat on the back.
SLEEVES
We knit the sleeves from the top down. You'll need two sleeves, so follow the instructions twice ✌️😊
STEP 1
Cast on your stitches with colour 1.
STEP 2 - 8
We'll knit again in stockinette stitch, changing colours as instructed. You'll be good at this by now!
STEP 9
This is a decrease row. We will knit some stitches together to create a balloon shape in our sleeve before we knit the ribbed cuff. Knit two stitches together along the length of your row.
STEP 10
You'll finish the sleeve with a 2x2 rib stitch cuff.
STEP 11
Cast off your stitches. Tip - Cast off loosely so you can fit your hands through the finished sleeve!
SEWING IT TOGETHER
Now it’s time to get to work with the darning needle to sew your masterpiece together. We lay our pieces flat and sew them together one by one.
📹 Watch How To Sew Your Knit Together
STEP 1
Lay your front and back pieces on a flat surface, the right sides facing you.
STEP 2
Sew the shoulder panels together using the invisible seam technique, and leave the hole for your head.
STEP 3
Time to attach the sleeves to the body. Make sure the middle of your sleeve is lined up with the shoulder seam. This will ensure the seam of your sleeve is right under your armpit, not halfway around your arm! Once you've made sure it's all lined up, sew the sleeves to the shoulders.
STEP 4
Fold your jumper in half so it looks like the shape of a T. With the wrong sides facing each other, we're going to sew it together using a Mattress Stitch, from the cuff all the way up the arm to the armpit, then down the side seam to the bottom of your jumper. And then repeat this on the other side.
NECKLINE
The last thing we need to do is knit the ribbed neckline. We're nearly there... I can see the finish line! 🚀
STEP 1
Pick up an even number of stitches from around the neckline. You'll want to pick up roughly one for every stitch around the raw edge of your neck hole.
📹 Watch How To Pick Up Stitches
STEP 2
We'll knit in loops to create a seamless rib around the neckline. This means you knit around in a loop, instead of back and forth. Use anything round as a stitch marker so you can keep track of the number of loops you've knitted.
STEP 3
Cast off your stitches LOOSELY. If you have too much tension when you cast off you'll find the hole too tight and won't be able to get your head through. We've been there (a few too many times) and we don't recommend it!
Weave in your loose ends using your darning needle.
FINISHED!
Time to rock your masterpiece 💪🔥🥳
Well done on finishing your knit! Epic job. We know from experience that there's nothing quite like that first time someone asks you where you got your knit from 😎
We'd LOVE to see how you go! Share your masterpiece with us by tagging @cardigang_knits on socials or by sending us an email at hello@cardigang.com.au
Until next time! 😘🧶💕
Morgan & Cat xx