I am thinking about knitting a cardigan. I haven’t even bought the yarn yet but I have been watching some tutorials with easy raglan cardigans and they seem pretty straightforward but the button band part is kind of intimidating me… especially since I am left-handed. I see in the videos I have watched that people seem to pick up stitches from the right front of the cardigan. Would I do that from the left side?
Not all left handed knitters knit the same way (same can be said of right handed knitters too!), but yes, you can pick up left handed on the left front of a cardigan, the key aspect is to have the RS (right side, out side, the visible side) of the fabric facing you as you pick up because there will be a line of selvedge left on the WS (inside, hidden side) of the fabric which you want hidden.
It’s also possible to knit a seperate button band and sew it on meaning you can avoid the pick up if you wanted. There are options.
Button holes can even be made afterwards, meaning you don’t have to decide where the buttons and button holes go before you start, but can decide afterwards.
Go for it!
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Do you knit sts from the right hand needle onto the left hand needle?
If the bands extend up the front, around the neck and down the second side then it’s easiest to pick up starting at the left front. The needle picking up the new sts will be in you left hand and you’ll be working so that you can directly knit any sts on hold (sometimes the back of the neck) from the right to the left.
That way you can also follow the pattern directions for RS/WS rows.
I’m left handed although I learned to knit right handed. Picking up sts was initially awkward for me since the working needle is in the right hand.
In addition to separate front bands there are also bands that are an integral part of the fronts. So many different patterns to choose from or even modify. You might think about knitting a baby cardigan just to test out the parts of the cardigan. Have fun with a cardigan and let us know how it’s going.
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Yeah I knit from the right hand needle on to my right. I am starting to wonder if maybe I should have started knitting with my right hand just to save confusion. The pattern I have been leaning towards is one with chunky yarn and one of those bands that goes all the way up and around the neck and back down and makes a v neck. But I haven’t decided anything yet. Maybe it would be good to do a smaller version first. I did see one pattern where they just add garter stitches to make the band so I suppose I could even just do that instead of what the pattern calls for.
Yes, I did see a video about afterthought button holes. Maybe I will do that. I will probably just give it to my mom like I do with everything else and I don’t think she minds just an open cardigan without buttons. Also I don’t know how to sew yet.
What is the name of your pattern and designer?
You’ll be able to make this work either as given or substituting the garter band, I’m sure. We’ll be happy to help
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This is one of the ones I was looking at. My thinking was it seems like a good beginner cardigan and that the super bulky yarn would make it a quick knit.
That looks like a nice one with a helpful video to go with. It’s knit back and forth on a circular needle to accommodate all the sts. The sleeves are knit in the round.
If you decide to use this one or any other, we’re always here to help.
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I’ve used the afterthought button hole, specifically the “no snip afterthought button hole” and I was very pleased with it. Honestly you’d never know on my cardigan that the button holes were added afterwards and the no snip method means no risk of ruining the fabric with unraveling. You can make a swatch of the button band and try out the button hole as many times as you like before taking on the real thing.
It sounds like you’ve chosen a seam free cardigan which is fine, and a very nice design, but don’t let seaming put you off other patterns. Mattress stitch (lots of videos available) works like magic. When I learned it a few years ago I was utterly amazed. I have never been able to sew anything but mattress stitch is this invisible wonder of a thing. I seamed everything just to get the thrill of watching it ‘zip up’.
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I’ve done a little mattress stitch before but only on small things like a hat. I confess I am a bit intimidated to try a garment that requires seaming. I just finished my first sweater a little over a month ago and it was seam free. Part of me really does want to try a sweater where I have to seam though.
Not entirely sure if I am going to do a cardigan next but I do want to do one this year for sure. I have also been thinking of doing another blanket (did one last year) or maybe a shawl for a friend of mine.
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Make up some swatches and try mattress stitch on them to practice. It works so nicely that I think you will be surprised.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=46IUyefCkXA
Keep pulling the seaming thread every so often to make sure it will zip up. If it catches on itself it has to be re-done so the earlier you realize this the better.