Zen Knitting

That is the most difficult question to answer. It’s like asking which is the best kind of man to have as your first husband!

Since you know how to knit and purl, you can do any pattern you like, because that’s all there is. There are some variations of those stitches, and ways to manipulate them, but that is how all knitting is created. As for patterns, there are thousands upon thousands, and you take your pick. However, that is not what will make or break your sweater. It’s your knitting technique and even tension. You have a LOT of knitting to do, and it all must be consistent from start to finish. You also need to be sure it fits. You will have to develop a pattern that fits YOU. And there are all sorts of variations in style of neck, collar, sleeves, buttons or zipper or no opening, ribbing and it goes on and on.

For your first sweater, just take your pick with any stitch pattern you like to do, and find a design of sweater that you think may look good on you, and just do it. Any pattern is good if you can do it. Knitting is after all just working one stitch at a time with two pointed sticks.

Those sweaters that are just large rectangles are very popular right now and fairly easy in terms of pattern – its a rectangle the length you want by the width you want, leaving two slits to attach the sleeves.

I have found a lot of nice patterns on Lionbrand as well as Barnet’s web sites as well as DIY’s show Knitty Gritty which I guess isn’t on the air any more but they still have the patterns on the website.