No pattern - want to make a shirt or sweater - what ever

#1

looked everywhere for a basic sweater, cardigan, shrug or camisole pattern that i can do. It would be my first. I have done hats and gloves and shawls and wraps and scarfs…and a purse or two.

I want to make a cardigan or shrug and some sweaters or shirts or camisoles. I like knitting with circular needles (just bought some knit picks wooden harmany interachanble needls (LOVE THEM)…)

I want to knit a sweater or camisole…in the round…something easy

i took the following measurements of myself
hips
waist
bust
hip to pit
hip to top of shoulder
arm length from elbow to shoulder top
lenth from pit to shoulder
I know the number of inches i need to decress from hips to waist
and how much to increase from waist back up to bust.

I have determined the gauge of my yarn s 5 stitches per inch and 6 rows per inch

I like an A line fit from under bust to hip with some room for bust
i like a v neck line.
I am a hour glass kinda girl (with a bit more room for the sand to pass through…but still curvy)

I can do the following:
cast on, knit, purl, yarn over, k2tog, bind off, knit in the front and back

What I cant do is divide stiches for front and back

I know how to knit sleeves. Knitting in the round using DPNs I knitted two sleeves.
One inch of ribbing then stocking Knit stich until I reached the proper length to hit under arm then I continue binding off and decreasing (like you would the heel of a sock) until I get the proper lenth and width of the top of shoulder. I figure I can join these into a camisole type top that is knitted in the round up to arm pits. this would provide sleeves,

But everything I see knitting in the round tells me to divide stitches…but how do I do this? divide stiches,

i figure I can work into the round until i get to the part where i decrease for arm pit then I would decrees arm pit by binding of 3, the next row 2 then one then knit up to make arm hole…
same thing for v neck in the middle but bind of one, one, one one all the way up to shoulders.

so I would end up - I think- needing to divide stiches into four different groups… but how do I do that…do I just use four different sets of circular kneedles?

Can anyone picture what I am trying to do?

anyone know a nice free pattern thats easy to follow? I normally just knit or crochet = thus the name organic crocheter. Patterns make my eyes cross. But I want to make a cardigan, sweater etc…next step…what to do.

#2

There’s some free pattern generators where you put in your gauge and the finished measurement you want and it gives you a pattern. http://www.knittingfool.com and http://www.woolworks.org/patterns/raglan.html and there’s a yoked not raglan one at http://www.knitlist.com/99gift/top-down-percentage-sweater.htm

#3

It’s not that hard to divide stitches. You can use extra circular needles, or stitch holders, or even a length of spare yarn threaded through the stitches you’re not using (this is actually easier to carry around, since you won’t have another set of circulars poking things.) If you like the A-line look, but don’t like increasing, try using progressively bigger needles for a subtle flare in the work (or, if you like, a not-so-subtle flare.) Don’t worry. It’ll work!

#4

One of the simplest ways to make something without a pattern is to cast on the number of stitches you need to work in the round for the torso. Knit to the armholes. You can bind off 2 or 3 at each side for the underarms. Then divide into front and back. You can make the back straight up to the shoulders if you want, bind off some in the middle for the back neck. Leave live stitches on each shoulder. Then work the front. A couple of inches from the shoulders bind off some in the middle and then work the sides of the neck separately decreasing a little on each side. Plan to end with the same number of stitches for the shoulders as you had in back. Leave the shoulders live. Do a three needle bind off for the shoulders. Pick up stitches around the armholes and knit the sleeves down on dpns, shaping them a little under the arms, make a cuff, bind off. Pick up stitches around the neck and work in the round for a few rows of ribbing. Done.