Knitting sideways - patterns and ideas

As I haven’t been knitting this month, I have been amusing myself by looking at various knitting themes. This week’s theme was sideways knitting in garments.

All sideways
Garments can be knitted in one piece, from sleeve cuff through body and across to the other sleeve cuff, then sewn at the side seams. Or elements can be picked up and knitted on.

The Sideways Spencer by Annie Modesitt was a big hit when it was published in Interweave Knits in 2004:
https://www.interweave.com/product/sideways-spencer-knitting-pattern-download/

The Carnaby Skirt, free from Knitty, is another classic, with its box-stitch short-row panels:
https://knitty.com/ISSUEdf10/PATTcarnaby.php

There is a chance to embrace vertical stripes, such as the Cinna Top by Ksenia Naidyon:
https://www.knitpicks.com/cinna-top/p/14852D

Bolan, by Leila Raabe, is a delicate lace design in linen:

Joji Locatelli’s Rhapsody in Cables is a challenging all-over cable design in a lighter weight:

Or you can create a painterly effect, almost woven, by changing and mixing colours. Ravelry user “yarnbeth” has many lovely examples of colour mixing in her sideways-knit projects:
https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/11-wave-patterned-top/people

Remember your row gauge is now more important than it might otherwise be. Unless you add a band or ribbing at the bottom, you cannot change the length after the main knitting is finished.

Sideways yoke
I like this style because, after you have knitted the yoke sideways, you pick up and knit the body downwards. This gives control over the finished length, and makes it easy to adjust.

The sideways yoke can show off lace, cables, stripes and other directional patterning.

Natsumi, by Yoko Hatta, has a sideways yoke only, with body and sleeves in the conventional direction:

Patons has this lovely circular yoke design, for free:

Debbie Bliss created an ornate design called Silver Belle for Vogue Knitting’s 25th anniversary:

https://store.vogueknitting.com/product/cable-seed-stitch-jacket/

And Elizabeth Zimmermann gives us a versatile version in Knitting Workshop:

Sideways elements
Lace or cable trims, peplums and skirts can be added with sideways knitting.

Jo Sharp adds a touch of lace at the hem of a classic fitted cardigan:

St Brigid, by Alice Starmore, uses a sideways cable to finish the neckline:
https://virtualyarns.com/product/st-brigid/

Catherine Berry made use of a sideways neckline, sleeve cuffs and bands in her heavily cabled TKGA Master Knitter design:
https://www.lovecrafts.com/en-au/p/diamond-rings-aran-knitting-pattern-by-catherine-berry

And these Heidi Kirrmaier and Hinterm Stein designs play with neckline inserts:


https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/mon-ami-breton

For those who love garter stitch, this design by Stephen West incorporates sideways panels in his signature multi-directional, yarn-mixing style:

Yarns
A mention must go to Noro, which looks fabulous in sideways elements:

Do you have a favourite sideways knit?

(I’m sorry not all the links are showing photos in the post. Not quite sure how to do that. I will try to improve it tomorrow if I have the brainpower.)

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It’s really fun to try out sideways knitting and all the different looks it gives. Thank you for all the inspiration. Hope you can get back to knitting soon!

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Thanks! I feel like I’ve just been to a very interesting and entertaining knitting class!

https://www.woolwarehouse.co.uk/sublime-6121-sophia-women-s-tops-downloadable-pdf

I made this little vest a few years ago, one of my first projects after knitting colourful sweaters for little Mister. I love the side ways knit leaf pattern across the yoke. Mine is in a plain silver grey cotton/linen rather than the multi-tone Sublime yarn and personally I think it is nicer in the single colour as it sets off the leaf motif.
I had a lot of help with this.

I have been looking at side ways knits and also I don’t know what they are called but when the sweater is knit bottom up but the sleeves are like a T knitted along with the body by casting on each side for the full length of the sleeve. I have made one this way for little Mister and we love how the stripes work on the sleeves (the effect is similar to some of the side ways colour stripes in the patterns you posted). Very hard to find patterns in this style though… or I’m not looking in the right place.

Thanks again, great info.

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I forgot to mention this simple free pattern from Berroco:
https://berroco.com/patterns/espenson/

A rectangle with a neckhole :slight_smile:

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Ooh, that’s a very nice top. Leaf motifs are lovely.

I don’t know a name for the “knit from the bottom up and cast on for sleeves when you get to them” style either. Although maybe it’s covered in “Knitting in the Old Way”? I don’t have my copy handy at the moment.

In sewing, they call it a “cut on” or “grown on” sleeve, although that doesn’t really specify the shape, more that there is no seam between the arm and the body. (“Cut on” sounds so odd, but if you think about it for a while it makes sense.)

If you add all the sleeve stitches in one go, I suppose it is a true T-shirt, in that it is shaped like a T (90 degree angle of sleeves to body when laid out).

Maybe “dolman” applies, but the definition of that seems to vary.

Simple styles are lovely with stripes.

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A grand array of patterns there! I find that sizing sideways patterns is especially tricky - you have to be so sure of your gauge and your desired end point before you start!
I’m working on the Sundaze tee at the moment (with lots of neckline mods).


I’ve also made Streamers which I donated to my daughter!

I had to frog this one as it came out ridiculously wide!

These two are in my queue ( in that I have already bought the yarn​:rofl::rofl:)


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Ooh, love the fringe on the Sundaze top.

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I’ve had this in my favorites since several questions came up about it on the forum. It’s knit sideways with drop stitches.

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I’m nearly at the macrame stage!

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That’s really interesting!