The Guggen KAL

Two months ago the first clue of the Guggen KAL went live. For those of you who have joined in Carol’s knit-alongs in the past you know to expect some fun, interesting construction backed by tutorials that hold your hand and some Instagram lives for inspiration and motivation to keep going.

Today, we’ve seen the posts on Ravelry and social media of you rocking your newly created garments and it’s time to take a quick look back over the last two months as we created the Guggen Cardigan. If you are here for the finished photos, try the project runway at the end of the post. :D

Guggen – Clue 1.

Ah, the dance of swatches, buttonholes and modifications. The first clue had you all working on modifications and buttonhole sizing. Guggen is a beautiful cardigan that dives into the pattern almost immediately.

Dairiona’s Guggen

 

As shown by Dairiona’s Guggen above the german short rows are hidden within the panels allowing you to have almost hidden shaping. The extra detail of the cord edging allows you to complete the button band as you go meaning no going back to pick up stitches and work a button band at the end. Making this a fun all in one garment knit.

Guggen – Clue 2.

Two weeks passed in the blink of an eye in this KAL, very soon the yoke was being separated from the body and the right sleeve was whizzing up those needles.

A little aside note here. The second clue was one of the toughest due to the worsening situation of the Coronavirus pandemic. I was very grateful for the humour, support and contact from each and every one of you who took part and continued with their knit-along during this time. Trying to keep focused while having so many plates spinning in the air was hard for us all. All of you helped to create a special place online that allowed others to enter a craft bubble and just create for a few moments each day. Thank you.

Ahem, back to the clue. This diagram by Emmy S  sums up clue two perfectly in that the problem encountered was joining the sleeve and the yoke together. I’m a little in awe at the diagram but also at the response within the forum from helpful knitters. With knit-alongs you are never alone. You are not the only one encountering a problem and it’s that support from Carol and others that often sees what would be stalled projects, make it on to the next step.

If you are stuck on Clue two don’t worry there are tutorials linked within the pattern and if you need it a full Teachable step by step construction video suite here.

EmmyS Guggen Clue 2

Guggen – Clue 3

With the release and completion of clue 2, I could tell some of you were apprehensive with clue 3. This was quickly solved with the reassurance that the hardest part was over now that the side of the body and the sleeve were complete. Clue 3 was all about the back of the Guggen cardigan. The hardest part of this clue was keeping part of any unique modifications that you made during clues one and two. If anything clue 3 was the comfort knitting a lot of us were craving.

The tip to take away from this clue is to use either a removable locking stitch marker or lots of markers to mark the short rows as demonstrated by this fab photo by Puccini40:

Puccini40’s Guggen

 

Guggen – Clue 4

Clue 4 is always bittersweet. Everyone is excited to see their cardigans grow but seeing the endpoint approach means that our online groups will slowly grow quiet once again. It’s a proud moment to see the finished Guggens starting to appear in the FO thread especially for those for whom this is their first garment knit. This clue focused on finishing the left side and adding some finishing touches to give your handknits a professional-looking finish.

knitwitch47’s Guggen – Clue 4

 

If you have been daydreaming of your own Guggen sweater you can still join in. The KAL has a full suite of Teachable videos, easy to navigate garment kits and the pattern is available here. We also stay in contact using the dedicated Facebook group here should you need to touch base with us now that the dedicated KAL forum has ended.

 

Now, onward to celebrate your Guggen achievements, here are just some of the wonderful photos appearing in the FO thread to date:

 

 

 

2 thoughts on “The Guggen KAL

  1. Carol, what a fun knit and as always I learnt something new from your KAL We are all grateful that you decided on a career change and now great gorgeous garment patterns. I look forward to the next KAL. xx 🌺

  2. I am a beginning knitter I just finished my first (usable) project (the Tempisque shawl) and am rapidly finishing my second of the same but in different colors
    I think KALs would quickly improve my skills and deepen my understanding of knitting

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