Rediscover the Knit Leader!

Diana’s Demo

Advantages:

· The same garment pattern can be used for multiple knitting techniques

· Facilitates altering and getting a body pattern fits perfectly

· Go from yarn to knitting quicker

· It’s easy, making sense to sewers and people who like a picture

· It’s the easiest way to create unusual shapes

· Pockets, buttonholes, and intarsia can be incorporated

1. Trace your design.

· I’ve had good luck with pens for making transparencies and dry-erase pens. I like to use a curved sewing ruler and a flexible curve.

· You can use sewing patterns sized for knit fabric. Eliminate the seam allowance as you trace.

· You can draft your own pattern

· You can copy an existing garment

2. Make your swatch

· The measured area is 40 stitches wide and 60 rows tall

· The procedure is to knit 8-10 rows waste yarn over 60 stitches, switch to garment yarn and start counting rows, knit a few rows, mark needles 21 left and 21 right every few rows, knit to 40 rows, knit 8-10 rows waste again, and cast off.

· Launder, block, or do whatever you will do to the garment to the swatch.

· Measure in centimeters and milimeters, height of 60 rows, width of 40 stitches. Measure in several places on the swatch.

3. Put the guide for your width measurement in the knitleader

4. Set the knitleader for your height measurement (push in the clutch and move the slider)

5. Follow the outline as you knit

· Increase and decrease to match slopes

· No worries – one stitch doesn’t matter