The by Jo Sharp is one of those under-appreciated patterns that's flown under people's radar for way too long! It's an amazing project for newbies, it's basically made from two rectangles that are cleverly sewn together - easy peasy knitting! The only skills involved are cast on, cast off, knit, purl, basic mattress stitch, and basic wet blocking. The pattern is written for two versions, one long and one short. It's also reversible, you can wear it right side up, or upside down.
We made the long version and used two skeins of very economical (costs less than $60). It's a very flexible garment, as is the yarn, so if you want a garment with a bit more drape and stretch feel free to go up in needle size. It's also a pattern that can be in a warmer winter yarn or a cooler fibre for spring/summer. Affordable yarn options include , .
Yarn Options
Approximate Yardage Required (chunky or heavy aran weight yarn): version 1 (short): 400(470) metres, version 2 (long): 535(670) metres.
Winter Yarns
- : version 1 short: 1(2) skeins, version 2 long: 2(2) skeins
- : version 1 short: 4(4) skeins, version 2 long: 5(6) skeins (use 6mm/US10 needles)
- : version 1 short: 4(5) skeins, version 2 long: 6(7) skeins (use 6mm/US10 needles)
Materials
- : version 1 (short): 1(2) skeins, version 2 (long): 2(2) skeins
- Tapestry/darning needle
Resources for Beginners
Seaming: If you've never seamed before, Mattress stitch is the way to go ... there are some good free instructions at and .
Weaving In Ends: I always go to this comprehensive tutorial from . Remeber, you never tie and cut your ends in knitting, you always weave them in!
Blocking: Wet blocking is pretty easy (it's basically just washing), but here's a nice to help you out.
Everything Else: For the basics like cast on, bind-off, knit, purl, go to .
