This is the story of my Adventures towards creating Any Size. Any Gauge. patterns and Pattern Calculators. As with all of my adventures, I am sure I should start, yet usually don’t have any idea how I am going to reach my destination. Yeah, that’s generally my problem-solving approach.
My life adventures are had in the company of my intrepid spouse. He is a born risk manager while I am not. I am not even much of a risk assessor. I do not do crazy things, but I don’t usually plan a lot. Mitch does nothing but plan, adjust, plan more, and weigh pros and cons. We keep our see-saw balanced.
Any Size. Any Gauge.
For this story, the Adventures of Creating Any Size. Any Gauge. patterns and Pattern Calculators, my paid Intern Jamie has been my constant companion. She has allowed me, in six months, to do more than I was able to do in several years by myself. We are another well-balanced team. She is cautious, careful, thoughtful, linear, and willing to learn. I am a big idea person, who is pretty sure of what should be possible, but does not always possess a clear plan to accomplish what I want to do.
I can create spread sheets. In fact, I taught Jamie how to create workbooks for grading knitwear. I can make patterns (written and flat) and I know how to work the numbers to get a wide variety of shapes and sizes. I understand how fabric interacts with the body, stitch pattern, shape, and fiber. I know how to effectively apply ease, and what changes to make to accommodate different types of bodies. I know and understand how stitches create different textiles. I do not know how to construct IF statements, nor much advanced mathematics, or even how to think linearly.
forms near my knitting for reference points.
I treasure the moments when Jamie has put into words that could be translated into Excel formulas the various things I do instinctively, but had no way of describing mathematically. We have come to love Pythagoras (and I think I can even tell you what the Pythagorean Theory is); I still have no idea what sine and cosine are. We both now know why an ellipse is a slippery thing to mathematically describe, while a circle is not.
What Else We Have Discovered
We have translated my concepts into real ways to calculate raglan lines; worked on yokes, armholes, trims. We both embrace the joy of calculating short rows, dividing evenly, creating tapers, and calculating yarn consumption. More and more we appreciate how having good inputs are important, but having information is crucial.
We each process information through our very different styles of learning, but without the critical help of someone who can tackle tasks I am not good at, I would still be trying to write an IF statement.
Now we are at the end stages of the pattern writing. Again, I have vast amounts of experience, and Jamie has far less. But she is so useful as a knitter with some knowledge, but one who hasn’t spent years and years looking at things through the same lens. We went over what would make the new pattern format clearer, and I was amazed at the things she pointed out. I would not have thought of many of them.
Sizing Revelations
I don’t always know what I know — or what I don’t. I have taught grading over the years, set up the A System of Grading Course, adjusted it, and taught it more. I am always thinking about sizing, but didn’t feel much compelled to do more than teach.
As the world viewpoint has shifted during the Pandemic Years, I have thought and studied a lot about bodies of “non-standard” sizes. With that I put my knowledge to the test and have been using it to create the Any Size. Any Gauge. patterns and Pattern Calculators. It no longer has to matter what size you actually are. Accurate measurements, accurate gauge information, Any Size. Any Gauge. patterns and Pattern Calculators will get you to a project perfect for you.
look like by taking the time to do a proper gauge swatch and take gauge.
How You Can Join My Adventures
Even when we don’t like the status quo, it can be hard to let it go. It is familiar, which means we know what to do. You should expect to feel challenged or disrupted.
Do you remember what it felt like to first pick up knitting, or a mobile phone, a Blackberry, a computer, a tablet, or iPad? I hope you won’t need to curse and feel as badly as I do when I master new technology, but it is a bit of a challenge to learn new things.
I am always soliciting feedback; sometimes it is really hard to hear, and I can’t always comply with every request, but I will reward you with free things when buy and you make Sorrento, complete the survey, and post photos.
Why I Create These Adventures
As I said, it is usually because I have a big idea. I rarely see all the barriers to doing something differently, and I always underestimate what I will have to do to reach my goals. Likewise, I rarely see how complex my seemingly great idea is.
But they are great ideas and I love the journey the adventures take me on. I am always both the problem, and the solution.
How do I purchase the pattern calculator and accelerator? I have so much wanted to design a couple of patterns and don’t know where to start! I love Russian designs, particularly the balloon sleeved cardigans in light-weight/lace yarn. And I want to design a belted cross-over front cardigan for my daughter. Will the calculator and accelerator help me? Thanks so much for all you do. My daughter wore the Hitofude I knit for her the other day. Thankfully, it fit! Love that sweater.
Dianne,
The pattern calculators are only available as part of a pattern at this point. I would love to do a class on using one to create variations. Let me give it some thought and figure out how I can make this work.
Jill