I started an Aran vest in December, no pattern – just picked some stitches I liked and set to work on a wearable swatch!
The first panel was for the back, with a honeycomb stitch centre and diamond cable panels on either side. Using aran weight yarn and 5mm needles. 2×2 rib along the bottom edge.
The tension is a little uneven and I had a few mistakes when I got distracted by the TV! I got pretty fast at fixing the mistakes after a while, undoing only the relevant stitches and working back up:
The back panel was narrower than I needed, so for the front piece I added a blackberry stitch panel at either side:
I tried it on along the way to figure out the armhole shaping :
I then joined the panels at the shoulder using a three needle bind-off, the collar is a doubled band of ribbing.
To increase the back width, I added freeform crochet panels.
I didn’t extend the crochet to the ribbing, I liked the look of the shorter side panel.
It fits fine, but I’m a bit meh about it. It’s wearable, but I think I’d rather a looser fit.
A good friend tried it on, and it had more wearing ease. She loved it, so I gave it to her! I have no interest in ripping back my knitting, I’d much rather it was being worn, and this friend is very knit-worthy.!
I have no plans at the minute to make another one, but I have plenty of this wool-mix aran left if I change my mind.
I’d like to try a nice cosy jumper using a mix of aran knit and crochet. I’m finding lots of inspirational pieces made by the designer below:
I’ve started on some new sewing projects, so it might have to wait until next Winter.
I bought some new fabrics last year and I’ve started on Summer sewing, so will hopefully share it soon!