Project Hail Mary Fox Cardigan Knitting Links
- 21 hours ago
- 3 min read
Lots of beginning knitters have been reaching out to me asking for tips and tutorials for making a cardigan. While I have tried to give my best advice, sometimes it’s best left up to other more knowledgeable people, so here is a round up of YouTube videos you might find helpful while knitting your first cardigan (specifically the Project Hail Mary Fox cardigan 🦊)
Here is how my sweater turned out, for reference! I ended up using a lot of these videos along the way (especially the sewing ones). So I hope they can be as helpful to you as they were to me! 😊
Knitting basics:
Stockinette stitch - The majority of the sweater is done in this stitch, including all the color work.
Garter stitch - Some details like the collar and the front edge are done in this stitch.
K2P2 Ribbing - Each panel begins with a section of ribbing.
Increasing - The recommended increase is a KFB increase, meaning you will only increase on the right (knit) side of the work.
Decreasing - The recommended decrease is a K2tog or P2tog, meaning decreases will happen on the right (knit) and wrong (purl) side of the work. For decreasing more than 1 stitch, you will cast off at the beginning of the row.
Sleeve shaping overview - Here's a general guide to shaping sleeves.
Color work:
Intarsia - For larger sections of color work, you will use bobbins and attach different balls of yarn for each large section.
Fair Isle - Stranded knitting for more often color changes, using 2 or more colors, you carry your yarn across the row in "floats."
Carrying floats - If you are carrying your yarn for more than a couple stitches in fair isle, you will have to carry floats behind the work.
Sewing:
Mattress stitch - This is what you will primarily use to sew together the side seams.
Shoulder seam
Set in sleeve seam
Side seam & sleeve seam
Collar seam - I couldn't find a specific video for sewing in a collar but this hood tutorial is very similar. My best advice is to just line is up as best as you can and pin it before you start sewing. Try to keep it as even as possible while sewing and make sure the edges of your collar line up with the front edges of your sweater!
Weaving in ends:
Overview - Here's how to weave in your ends on different stitches, like garter, stockinette, ribbing, etc.
On color work - When weaving in ends on color work, you have to be careful that they won't show through on the front side.
On normal knit panels - On one color panels you don't have to be as worried about your ends showing through.
Weaving as you go - For some sections it may be easiest to weave in your ends as you go.
I hope you find these videos somewhat helpful on your knitting journey! I’m so happy so many people decided to learn to knit the Project Hail Mary sweater. It’s been so fun seeing the reaction to it online and I’ve loved chatting with everyone while I make my own!
Let me know if there are any other links you need, I will do my best to find them!
Best of luck to all the knitters out there, enjoy the knitting journey! 😁
