Cross posted with my blog Stolen Stitches.
Last week when Jo Watson said that she was setting up a new blog for Knit Camp I though it was a great idea and volunteered to contribute to it.

For anyone who doesn't know me, I am a knitwear designer living in Ireland and will be one of the tutors at Knit camp in August. I self-publish my work and I have contributed to several magazines and books (Interweave Knits, Twist Collective, Yarn Forward, Knitty, Knotions and the book 'Knitting in the Sun'). If you're interested in finding out a little more about me you can visit my blog Stolen Stitches and also see an recent interview I did for a Dublin knitting shop This is Knit.

In this post I though I'd talk a little about one of the classes I'll be running on Thursday 12th August 'Shaping up your Traditional Knits'. This will be an all day class aimed at experienced knitters who are able to knit cables but who what to learn how to modify a traditional pattern to fit them.

The idea for this class came from my own love of traditional cable stitches. I love digging through old patterns to see how different stitch patterns are combined. However the standard square unshaped pieces with drop shoulder construction is unappealing to me. I like waist shaping, fitted shoulders and ideally seamless knits. As a designer I have the experience to modify patterns myself and I wanted this full day class to give experienced knitters the knowledge and confidence to do that also. Please note that this is not a design class, it is to step you through the process of modify the pattern.

How will the class work?
As knitters I think we are practical and hands-on so this class will work around a pattern. I will provide a very basic cabled pattern that we will modify. If you have a pattern that you would like to work on in the class you are welcome to bring your own also.

What will you learn?
I will be focusing on a number of different areas to modify in this class which will include:

1. Seamless Knitting
For all of you knitters out there who love to knit seamless garments I will work with you to help convert a flat pattern to a seamless one.

2. Waist Shaping
If you would rather a little waist shaping in your knits we'll work out some ways of incorporating waist shaping into your garment. Where is the easiest place to add it? How will it effect the overall garment?
When you are working a more fitted garment gauge is critical, so we'll be looking at the best way of measuring gauge and calculating size for a heavily patterned garment.





























3. Shoulder Shaping
If drop shoulders aren't really you're thing we'll take a look at how they can be converted to a set-in sleeves. I will also work through how to work a set-in sleeve from the top down. You'll be amazed how easy it is!






















Hopefully that will give you an idea of how this unique class will work, if it sounds like something you've been waiting for please come and sign up!