Knitting Pattern Essentials: Adapting and Drafting Knitting Patterns for Great Knitwear

by Sally Melville

Bring Your Vision to Life with Pattern-Drafting Essentials
What’s the number one mistake that knitters make? They follow a pattern exactly! In this comprehensive guide to sweater construction, acclaimed knitting instructor Sally Melville reveals the secrets to creating or modifying a pattern so the finished project looks and fits exactly how you want it to. Pattern drafting has never been easier to understand as Sally breaks down each skill, including how to
 
• calculate your personal measurements, ease, and stitch patterns
• create a pattern for an existing garment that you love
• shape a variety of necklines, shoulders, sides, sleeves, and hemlines
• combine garment elements for an endless array of design possibilities
• rescue a project when it doesn’t turn out as expected
• finish your projects with a professional look
• knit 10 original projects that showcase the elements covered in the book
 
With Sally’s knitting expertise at your fingertips, you have all the tools you need to adjust patterns to fit you better than ever and create patterns that finally make your dream designs a reality.

Genres: Knitting, Nonfiction, Crafts, Reference

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

This is the space where you are to hear about me, Sally Melville—knitting designer / teacher / author. These spaces are usually written by people other than the person who is written about—for objectivity and all that good stuff. But I suspect what you’d then get is my story as told from the end and with all its ‘high points.’ And I don’t think that’s either inspiring or particularly truthful. Because while the ‘high points’ may define us (to the eyes of the world and in our obituaries), isn’t it really the early stuff with its ‘low points’ that make us who we are? So here are the truly important events that made me a knitting designer / teacher / author. (I’ll write about these in detail in my first five blog entries, but here are the bare bones.)

As a young girl, I couldn’t get gauge so had to write my own patterns.


As a young woman, I made a truly weird sweater that, when fixed, was oddly appealing . . . enough that I could begin selling my work.


The subsequent purchase of a knitting machine taught me how much I truly did not know.


I enrolled in a one-day, knitting design class . . . where everyone wanted to know about the sweater I was wearing (referred to in point 2) and where I was thrown out for passing notes (the pattern for the sweater referred to in point 2).


Back to my knitting machine where my math and writing (both studied in university) got to work and taught me what that class should have.


Soon enough I started my own knitting design class . . . from which no student would ever be thrown out! This became an ongoing group and then the K-W Knitters’ Guild.


I developed more classes—to stay one step ahead of the guild members.


One of our guest teachers pushed me into the light of the public of knitting world.


In 1993 my husband died, and all knitting came to a halt. I took a job as Study Skills Advisor at my local university.


But my daughter asked me to knit a sweater for her boyfriend. So I did—out of leftovers. And it became the centre piece of my first book: see Styles in books.


Styles was wonderfully successful. But what would I do next?


I had a desire to teach the world to knit. The result is The Knit Stitch, which sold really really well and probably led you to this website.

So thanks for coming. Keep in touch, play safe, and keep knitting!
(from her website, listed below)

Reviews

[Penney Kolb · Rating 5 out of 5]

So some people read knitting books cover to cover and one of them is me. This book is not a pattern book, although a few patterns are included, but it cover what one needs to know to successfully draft patterns - a weakness of mine.

There are sections on measuring, a variety of shapes, sleeve styles, etc. It is going to be very useful for me and I highly recommend it.

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a life-saver for me since I needed to convert a pattern and this made it easy. Very clear and easy to follow. I'm not a fan of pieced sweaters and seaming, so that's the only reason for 4 instead of 5 stars. Definitely need to add to my resources.

[Mckinley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots about fit and shaping of pullovers and cardigans. Several intricate patterns included.

[Charlotte · Rating 3 out of 5]

A wealth of information but not very accessible. You need to do a lot of back-and-forth flipping once you actually start to draft. Many things are interdependable, so you always need to refer back to the introductory text, because the instructions will contain things like 'stitches for shoulder shaping' on the section on the neck, but when you go to shoulder shaping it'll tell you you need the neck stitches first. Honestly best way to go about it is to start a spreadsheet.

Also, do not trust anything the books says in centimetres. It usually only mentions inches, so the happiness you feel once you see metric mentioned anywhere melts away once you realise its been used wrongly. A swatch made on one inch doesn't translate in use to one made on 2.5 cm !

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great book from Sally Melville full of knitting information.

I have been building up my library of Sally ' s books. Each one is educational and great for reference.

[Lydia Chiang · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book to help improve your knitting path. A must have.

[Thomasin Propson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very helpful, if you’re making your own patterns!

[Kristi · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent resource if you knit and want to be free from commercial patterns. Highly recommended!

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a little beyond me right now. I'm still learning the basics of garment construction through working patterns. But, if I ever wanted to get into designing my own patterns, this would be the resource that I would go to. Melville clearly explains different sweater shapes and construction and how to draft the design you want into a pattern that works. I've always wanted a really luxe knit vest with a racerback detail. The designs for vests on Revelry are not so much my thing. So, at some point, once I am more comfortable with basic knitting techniques, I might want to branch out and this book would be the first thing I would reach for.

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

This covers a topic too complicated for me to learn from a book. This could be an entire semester class. For me at least.

[Sarah Winters · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Sally's books. She definitely my favorite designer. Loved this book.

[Tabithas_Heart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome