What is a Knitalong (KAL) / Fit Mods to a Vintage Sweater // Casual Friday 2-30

[@sekaihatsu]

Thank you for taking the time to talk about the construction of this pattern. Vintage or not, I learned a few things about sweater construction troubleshooting.

[@javashopcafe]

YOUR LEARNING INSTRUCTIONS ARE SO HELPFUL TO MY SELF. I APPRECIATE THESE VIDEOS YOU DO. I WAS ALSO ATTEMPTING TO IMPROVE MY SOCK KNITTING AND YOUR HEAL INSTRUCTIONS DID MUCH TO AID ME IN TO DOING A WISER, BETTER FITTING, HEAL. THANK YOU FOR YOUR AID. YOUR SWEATER, AS IT SITS WITH A BINDING AROUND THE INNER/UPPER PORTION, WOULD MAKE A NICE PATTERNED VEST AS WELL. THANKS AGAIN FOR YOUR TIME AND INSTRUCTIONS.

[@joan9569]

I have a pattern book using that stitch pattern, which I really like, as a pullover. You teach so well. I especially like the tip on different dye lots, where to put them. Thank you.

[@connieorenstein2965]

I had to laugh out loud when you mentioned "lurking" on social media - that is totally me!! I decided to participate in this KAL because I enjoy your videos so much even though you're a totally different kind of knitter than I am - if I had to do a spreadsheet I would never knit a stitch!! I wanted to force myself to follow some of your wonderful sock knitting tips that I'm by nature too lazy to do, like measuring my foot, and to try some different heels. Like someone mentioned above, I also find following all the chatter in groups confusing, I'd rather just watch videos and knit. So I'm working on my socks, trying a bunch of stuff I've never done before, will report at the end. I'll be in Mpls toward the end of the month - I always send you a mental shout out if I drive through Linden Hills - I hope to have both sock legs and heels done before I leave and save the feet for knitting on the plane.

[@melanezoe]

Love the video, yes. Love the explanations for the vintage sweater, yes. But the epiphany (‼️) was your reply to billie e about using the tail to cast on and just unraveling as you reknit. Brilliant! Thanks.

[@terryhickman7929]

I want to thank you for all the work you have done on the KAL as well. Due to some arthritis problems I'm not going to be keeping up with the group but I thoroughly enjoy the Ravelry threads and am learning a lot from them. As for the "mistake," I admire your determination even unto repeatedly frogging large parts of the project! You certainly have more patience than I do. OTOH, it is quite true that I literally learned everything I know (in all fields) mostly by making mistakes. So you're a great example for me to follow.

[@IvymaeOriginals]

I have heard of Cast-On party’s, on a specific day, like Christmas or Boxing Day cast on, New Years cast ons, and you start when it is that time for you in your part of the world 👍🧦🧦🧦 I understood what your sock KAL, so am glad you explained it to everyone who didn’t... 🐸🐸🐸 all the best with your frogging if it’s what is needed Rox 🌸🌺🧶🧶🧶

[@Loyal-cat]

Thanks Roxanne for bravely telling us your mistakes. Many KZbin knitting videos don't tell us how many times that they had to frog or the method of problem solve a pattern. I am knitting a baby jacket pattern that garter stripes on every four rows. I am going to frog my front panels because my cast on stitches are incorrect and one panel is wider than the other. I liked the hint about having a stockinette edge for seaming. You're a great educator.

[@RoxanneRichardson]

Well, if I didn't share all my mistakes, I wouldn't have much to talk about! :-)

[@Grandmasterrett]

I feel for you...that moment when you realize a huge error ( or oversight ) is excruciatingly painful! But, being the master knitter that you are, I am confident you will work it out. It is a beautiful color and lovely design, so take a breath, sleep on it, and rip it, rip it! Thank you for all the hard work you did for the sock KAL, the videos and written materials will guide us novice knitters for the rest of our knitting life! Your story about the purple sweater gave me the confidence to just jump into sock knitting....and if it doesn’t work out, at least I will learn something that I didn’t know the day before!

[@jhenderson2286]

Another very enjoyable and interesting episode. Thanks so much Rox, I wait up into the early morning here to watch your Friday videos!. I'm sitting here surrounded by vintage sock yarns making first steps in sorting out a gauge. I've been reading your sock kal handouts today - so much detail and very easy to follow. I hope to join in with the Ravelry group discussion just as soon as I've finished a jersey I'm knitting. I'm very tempted to have a go at that cardie, such a nice shape and the yoke will be lovely.

[@Barbbfly]

Sooo glad to see someone else frogs easily . I frog cuz i'm too creative and dont listen to the pattern lol. Im not experienced to do them also so i frog a lot . Its ok to me to get what I want.

[@heiroot]

What is frogging?

[@altaporro]

Doing the KAL, takes a long time cause I'm a novice. Great concepts, rewarding practice. I'd like to see a video on how to become a more confident knitter.

[@teresaallan6841]

What would you call watching your video and knitting a sock 🧦? All the sock info is amazing. I’m going have to knit more than one pair!

[@caraxkins]

love the purl bump stripes 🤗

[@michellelindgren8419]

I can’t wait to see what you decide about your sweater.

[@KLD521]

I love your choice(s) with the vintage patterns. I enjoy your channel, learning so much with regards to knitting. I did (1) KAL doing a shawl. I would love to learn how to knit socks but I'm not sure whether to start with toe up or top down and working the heel section. One day I will attempt this sock journey. Thanks for sharing. Respectfully, Donna K.

[@janranger9724]

This is a UK pattern. I was taught to knit in the fifties. I was taught to cast on by the new-fangled cable cast on, which obviated the need to knit into the back of the stitches on the first row. The difference between the new cable cast-on and the original was that in the cable method, the new stitch is slightly twisted before it goes on to the left hand needle. The original method required the stitches to be knitted into the back of in the second row because if tyou don't do that little twist, that we all do automatically now, the edge would be very loopy and loose. It was a method of tightening the cast-on , and making it look neater. This was something that all knitters knew at this time, and the pattern didn't need to remind you for the back, two fronts and the sleeves. Once would be sufficient. This pattern obviously predates the new-fangled cable cast-on.

[@RoxanneRichardson]

Interesting. I just looked at one of my UK books published in the 1940s (written by Jane Koster and Margaret Murray). They mention three different CO methods, in this order: the thumb method (long tail CO), two needle cast on (knitting on), and corded cast on (cable cast on). They have this to say about knitting on: "two needles can be used for casting on, but this results in an untidy, loopy edge, which can be avoided only if the first row is knitted into the back of the cast-on stitches--a slow, laborious process which produces an inelastic edge." So it sounds like you're saying that most people used knitting on before that, and not the thumb method/LTCO?

[@RoxanneRichardson]

I just re-read the pattern instructions. There is plenty in the pattern that is stated only once, and not repeated, but this situation is a bit different. I think what struck me as odd was the the instructions for the back (which came first in the pattern) did not say to knit through the back, but the instructions for the front (which came later) did. If they had mentioned it for the first piece, but not the others, I might have inferred they meant for it to be done for all the pieces, but they didn't instruct it for the first piece (the back). They waited until the right front, and then repeated the instruction for the left front.

[@Billie-]

I always feel defeated when I have to frog, but knowing that a pro like you, Rox, does it, too, helps me realize it's par for the course. I'm shortwaisted and have hips that are a size or two bigger than my waist, so I'm always needing to knit large size for ribbing and tapering to small size for waist. I was nearly done with the project on my needles now, and when I tried it on, decided to frog back to underarm and redo the fronts and back and sleeves all in smaller size. Ugh. Luckily, it too is in aran weight and knitting up quickly. At the end of the day, once I frog, and start to re-knit, I'm elated that I'll end up with a better fitting garment. The pain subsides rather rapidly!! Rox, does your frogged yarn ever show up as uneven when re-knit? I know it will come out in blocking, but it's annoying to see the sloppiness of the re-done areas vs. the even tension of the section below.

[@RoxanneRichardson]

I did a video on de-kinking yarn a few months ago. kzbin.info/www/bejne/oYTdeZaJlLuBr6s For this sweater, I don't see the need, because all the pieces were knit in the past week. so the yarn is barely wavy. Rather than frogging, re-winding, and then re-knitting, I just took the sweater back off the needles, and used the tail to cast on. So it's raveling while I knit. Much easier to manage the two strands I'm using, and less depressing than erasing all my work before re-doing it.

[@heiroot]

When I saw CAL or KAL, I always thought it was talking about cawl fat.

[@gabriellespanke]

I love that yarn but my monitor can't decide if its blue or purple. I love blurples!

[@RoxanneRichardson]

It's called "Mulberry," I think, and it really is a blue-purple.

[@gabriellespanke]

@@RoxanneRichardson Very cool

[@jayering1343]

Hi Roxanne, I like how you teach. Most often, your teaching style speaks to how my brain works. So I offer these thoughts not as criticism but as a different point of view. These days, KALs aren't all the same; they're no longer set up in one specific way. In fact, many KALs are different from one another except in one respect - how they're set up is what seems to work best for the KAL facilitator/teacher. To say “the” KAL, referring to all KALs, or “the” nature of KALs doesn't seem quite fair. Your friends on the boat who don't knit are actually right in part, as are you. There are KZbin knitting instructors who set up their KALs exactly as your boating friends described - there are some real-time videos for group meetings and Q&A sessions in addition to individual videos that are released related to the part of the pattern that's being worked on that week or during that timeframe. Some designers who facilitate KALs and offer YT videos specifically related to the KAL release patterns in parts over time, similar to the way the FLAK experience was that you talk about this week. Others release the pattern all at once but say that one part will be worked on during Week 1, and the next part on Week 2, etc. Some KALs are not facilitated or taught by designers. A pattern is chosen, sometimes by the YT teacher/facilitator alone and sometimes by the group who follow her/him on YT. Sometimes a KAL facilitator will create all videos related to a KAL over time but not release them on YT until all videos are completed and then will release the videos over time. Sometimes KAL facilitators say that they'll release videos each week and can't keep to the schedule that was promised. Of course, as the designer/teacher/facilitator of your KAL, you'll set up the KAL in whatever way works best for you. Your way isn't any longer the only way that KALs are run. So I'm not surprised that there may have been confusion on the part of some of your viewers. I'm pretty sure I'm right in thinking that it's really not that they don't know what a KAL is. And I'm pretty sure I'm also right in thinking that many of your viewers who may have been confused are actually part of online knitting communities. I'm sorry if the next thought isn't put softly - I can't think of how to say this. Here goes: this time, perhaps part of the confusion is yours in assuming that all KALs are operated in the old way, with questions asked in writing in an online forum. There really are online KALs that offer live-streams on YT and/or Facebook, participants post questions in the YT or FB “chat” during the live-stream, there is sometimes a moderator who reads questions to the KAL teacher/facilitator, who then answers them during in the live-stream. I find Ravelry visually confusing - I get googly-eyed trying to figure out how to find answers to my questions in Rav chat forums. Because it honestly hurts my brain to look around the Rav forums for too long I don't post there in case my question has already been asked - in some groups there can be blowback from group members if your question has been asked - often because it's been asked more than once. I like the comraderie of live-streams. But I also respect your choice to set up your KAL in a way that works best for you. So if I do have questions about your sock KAL, I'll do my best to find answers on Ravelry.

[@shalimar742]

How can I purchase your KAL information if I do not have a Ravelry account? I watch your videos faithfully and would like to participate. I can PayPal you, or Kofi you. And just follow through your technique videos.

[@RoxanneRichardson]

You can purchase patterns from Ravelry without an account. It's just a conduit to PayPal, with a storage platform for the PDFs that allow me to automatically alert purchasers when I've uploaded an update.

[@sandygrogg1203]

💜

[@bendiehintz1175]

That's the 1930s vintage sweater pattern

[@sueanngardiner6161]

Hi There, I'm very new on knitting sweaters and really love vintage clothing. If I wanted to make this a 42 inch bust as i need this for the waist width as well can I just do the increase as the beginning of the cast on? Will this effect the pattern? Forgive me i'm new lol I have socks down pat but cannot master the math on sweaters hahahah

[@RoxanneRichardson]

The easy part is figuring out the body. You are correct that you CO the number needed to get the measurement you want around the waist. The harder part is adjusting the yoke and upper bodice shaping, the armhole, and sleeve cap shaping. If you're interested in vintage knits, you might consider one of the Stitch in Time books, which have lots of vintage sweaters from the 1930s-1950s that have been updated with modern yarns and graded to multiple sizes.

[@sueanngardiner6161]

@@RoxanneRichardson Thanks so much for all your help! I actually have that book in my wish list on amazon lol and have been wondering if it was a good book or not

[@bendiehintz1175]

I would like to know where I can get a copy of this vintage pattern that your knitting

[@RoxanneRichardson]

There's a link in the video description.

[@tagladyify]

I deleted my Ravelry when they decided to get political and to censor.

[@Jayadancer1]

Tracy, in Roxanne's reply to Colleen Sheridan's question, she says that people don't need a Ravelry account to buy her sock KAL instructions through Ravelry. Roxanne calls Ravelry "conduit to PayPal," meaning that it's simply a way to get to Paypal to buy the KAL if folks want to participate but don't have a Ravelry account.

[@tagladyify]

@@Jayadancer1 I won't use Ravelry.

[@tagladyify]

@jisatsu using Ravelry supports censoring whether you mean to or not and censoring is anti American. Why do you feel the need to ask?

[@tagladyify]

@jisatsu oh I see rhetorical question because shut up. You shut up you are a nazi.

[@angelagoodwin8313]

@@tagladyify WOW