Knitting Wearable Colourwork: Lessons Learned from a Wardrobe-Planning App
As I knitted an Aran-weight sample of the Spleodar Pullover several weeks ago, I experienced something I haven’t felt in a while: excited anticipation to immediately start wearing it.
Don’t get me wrong. I love everything I knit, otherwise I wouldn’t knit it. But as a designer first, knitter second, I often love my samples abstractly, or conceptually. I don’t necessarily see each and every garment as intended for me to wear personally. In fact most of them are not: It is more important to worry what the samples will look like on the women who will model them, rather than on me. And so I tend to select the colours and fit accordingly.
Nevertheless, every once in a while a garment is destined for my personal wardrobe. And as I neared the completion of this Spleodar sample, I knew it was one of them. I was already mentally assembling outfits, in anticipation of a cozy spleodar-licious school-run the next morning.
And in doing this, I suddenly knew exactly why I sensed with such certainty that I would wear this particular jumper: As I mentally paired it with random pieces of clothing in my wardrobe, I realised it went with nearly everything I owned. I could throw it on with literally anything I happened to pick up with my eyes closed, and walk out the door looking put-together.
This is not something I can say about most of the other colourwork jumpers I’ve knitted! …which brings me to the topic at hand: Wearable Colourwork.
It is a common complaint among us knitters who love stranded knitting, that the garments we create so painstakingly often don’t get worn much.
In fact, taking stock of my clothes recently with the help of a wardrobe planning app, I realised that I wear almost none of my colourwork knits. While fun for special occasions, for everyday wear they are tricky to incorporate into my outfits in a way that suits my style and feels like ‘me’.
The notable exceptions to this were my sage-mauve-navy Cosmach Pullover and my olive-periwinkle Rural Symphony Pullover. Examining these together with the newly made Spleodar, I saw some undeniable commonalities.
The most obvious one, is that all three jumpers draw from the same muted colour palette, centred around khaki green as the main neutral, with subtle shades of blue and mauve as accents. While I love to create and photograph vibrant ‘folksy’ jumpers, my real-life wardrobe is not at all folksy and definitely not vibrant. Most of the skirts and trousers I own are either grey, khaki, or navy (I don’t really wear blue jeans, and neither do I wear black). And so it is no surprise why the muted colourwork jumpers feel so at home there.
The other common factor in all 3 of these pieces, is the neckline. I am not a person who copes well with the extra faff of scarves. Instead, in winter I prefer to wear high neck jumpers. The fact that most traditional colourwork jumpers tend to be crewnecks, is no doubt a big reason why I do not wear them. By making a colourwork jumper not just in a palette that goes with my wardrobe, but also with a high neck, I maximise my chances of wearing it.
Finally, all 3 jumpers were knitted in the same yarn: Nutiden, which I believe also plays a role - because this yarn is exceptionally lightweight. When knitted with a denser yarn, a colourwork garment can end up being quite heavy, which for me makes it less comfortable to wear - as well as more difficult to stuff inside overcoats. There have been many occasions when I would put on a colourwork jumper, then later put on my coat over it - only to realise half way out the door that I was uncomfortable, or could not extend my arms freely enough to ride my bike! Necessitating a last minute wardrobe change.
So, what’s the conclusion here?
It may not seem like much, but I do feel that having finally been able to notice and articulate all of the above so explicitly, equips me with the information I need to knit wearable colourwork garments.
But of course that’s me. You need to determine what is wearable for you. And here are a few suggestions to start that process:
1. Review your existing colourwork jumpers: Are there any at all that you wear? If so, what unites them, or makes them different from those you do not wear? Consider not just obvious factors like colour, but also perhaps less obvious ones - such as yarn, fit, bodice length, neckline, hem, style of sleeves. Write down each sweater’s features if needed, so that you can reference them and be on the lookout for commonalities. Every detail matters. Eventually you are bound to notice a recurring theme that will help you realise which features your next colourwork sweater needs to have, in order to be wearable.
2. Walk over to your physical wardrobe/ chest of drawers/ bedroom floor (heh!) or wherever it is you keep your clothes. Take the yarn you are considering using for your next colourwork jumper, and hold it next to your trousers/ skirts/ dresses. Do they work together? If not, choose different colours!
3. Consider a wardrobe planning app. And if this suggestion evokes an eye-roll response, honestly I don’t blame you. I too thought they were gimmicky and a waste of time, but in fact I have found using it helpful. Having the clothing I own and wear visually spelled-out, has helped me notice quite a lot of things about my style that I had not been explicitly aware of - and, in turn, use that to inform my purchasing and knitting decisions.
Whatever methods you use, here’s to a colourful and wearable knitted wardrobe!
Spleodar Pullover
Cosmach Pullover
Rural Symphony Pullover
