Last year I designed a cardigan for The Knitter, Garmain. I then forgot completely about it until the sample arrived back to me in the post! It was such a fun design I wanted to put it on general release. It took me a little while as I wanted to make a few additions to the design. First of all, I added a few extra sizes to the range and secondly I rewrote it in my own pattern style.
Garmain and Mosaic Knitting
This was an enjoyable cardigan to design with a big emphasis on knitterly fun. It started at the back where there is a wide mosaic stitch panel which is the full width of the neck. In the sample, there is low contrast between the tones of the colour.
Knitting tip if you look at the image in black and white and you’ll see that there’s not much contrast. If you are ever wondering about colour choices and contrast take a picture with your phone and edit it to back and white.
This low contrast choice for Garmain produced a subtle effect where the mosaic stitch pattern almost blends together.
Garmain Yarn Kits
If you’re wondering about my colour choices; this is knit in my Nua Worsted yarn and the main colour is August Storms with the contrast colour in Cafe Flamingo.
If you haven’t done mosaic stitch before you’re in for a treat. It’s a two-colour pattern that only uses one colour for every two rows. When you encounter the other colour you just slip the stitches so that you maintain a two-colour pattern. It’s worked in Garter Stitch so that the vertical compression of slipping stitches has less of an impact.
Don’t be put off by choosing your colours! I know this is something that some can sweat about and end up never casting a project on because the colour choice overwhelmed. To help you out I’ve put a few colour ideas together in yarn kits that will each create a unique effect:
From back panel to side to side knitting.
Once you’ve completed the back panel the rest of the cardigan is worked from side to side. The front is cast on and the neck is shaped with short rows and then the back is picked up from the edge of the mosaic panel. If you look carefully you can see that the decreases are done on the top of the shoulder and work all the way down the sleeve as a decorative feature.
Finally, the cuff is finished with a slip stitch colourwork detail to echo the two colours worked on the back. A final detail to finish an exciting knit.
Want to get started on the cardigan?
You can find the pattern on my website here or on Ravelry here.
If you want to get the yarn for this pattern you can find yarn kits here.