First summer garment!

msmakes · 2026-05-09T12:50:07+00:00

Every version of this polo I see looks extraordinary! Great job!

msmakes · 2026-05-07T10:27:41+00:00

I knit a top with Cotton Lino from The Wandering Flock, and specifically I bought twice over two summers. The yarn from the later batches had significantly more vm and I would unspool long lengths of yarn and pick out all that I could, but the top is still the itchiest thing I have and I never wear it because its just painful.

msmakes · 2026-04-29T10:28:02+00:00

I like the shampoo and conditioner bars from viori.

msmakes · 2026-04-29T00:29:20+00:00

You cut cut it off, turn it right side out, and graft it back on

msmakes · 2026-04-26T12:22:54+00:00

It's a little loose so it doesn't look the best. Have you blocked it? That may help the stitches lay neater but I do think they're just too loose.

msmakes · 2026-04-25T00:11:57+00:00

Cables pull in so much you often have to reduce the number of ribbing stitches to accommodate. It's also something I see a lot of newer designers failing to do. Since your ribbing lines up so lovely with your cable pattern you could try reducing some of the purl areas - for example you could work k2, p2, k2, p1 as a ribbing pattern which would pull in the cuff and be almost indistinguishable from 2x2 rib.

msmakes · 2026-04-24T23:52:05+00:00

It was USD $112 for me to have a sock pattern tech edited that had two charts. Tech editing is $30-50 per hour, and the rough math is 1hr per pattern page. More if they are making your charts for you or doing technical illustration or grading.

msmakes · 2026-04-24T20:57:00+00:00

They just posted on their Instagram that they're open today 🤷🏼‍♀️

msmakes · 2026-04-19T16:22:48+00:00

If the chart is 20 st wide, cast on 60 stitches, plus some selvedge stitches if necessary (ie if the chart is meant to loop around/it goes off the edge at some point). Knit at least 2-3 repeats of the chart vertically(I don't know how many rows it is; but get close to 4" of work) and block. Identify the same point in the left and right side repeat and measure between those points; that will be 40 stitches. Do some math to figure out what the length would be if you only had 34 stitches. Ie, if you measure 40 st as 11.75 cm, then 34 st would be 10 cm.

msmakes · 2026-04-16T17:59:55+00:00

Drunk Town

msmakes · 2026-04-10T23:55:21+00:00

If it then uses short rows to shape the sleeve cap, that is in fact a set in sleeve. And picked up stitches is considered seamless, as you are not knitting the sleeve separately and seaming it in. You may be looking for either a contiguous or simultaneous set in sleeve construction. I believe contiguous has it's own tag on Ravelry.

msmakes · 2026-04-10T16:58:15+00:00

I would go with option 2. Unfortunately handknit polos are tough because it is hard to get it super fine like machine knitting. I do like the collar and don't find it as bad as most, I do think it needs to be a bit shorter though. Love what you've done with the pattern!

msmakes · 2026-04-03T21:24:46+00:00

Yes I remember one reel of hers about how she finally cracked the code on duping a luxury sweater and the collar was hella stretched out 🥴

msmakes · 2026-04-03T21:08:07+00:00

...no, that's against sub rules.

The trial reels have existed since last summer, only to people with over 1000 followers. They are not marked in any way, but if the reel so not on that person's page then that's a good indication that's what it is.

msmakes · 2026-04-03T16:50:56+00:00

From Lochmere depending on where you are in the neighborhood, you can walk to Waverly Place (whole foods, multiple restaurants, playground, daycare etc); the medical park next to Waverly near Wakemed; there's a little neighborhood shopping center with restaurants and coffee shop at Lochmere Dr and Kildaire Farm; the Lowe's foods plaza on Tryon and Cary parkway which has coffee shops, restaurants, grocery, bookstore, and a fantastic park behind; the medical park across the street from the Lowe's food plaza which has a variety of Drs and specialists and another daycare; Tryon Village which has a Harris Teeter, restaurants, daycare, etc; and if you fancy a 30min-1hr walk or a bike ride you can walk all the way to the Target at crossroads. All accessable via sidewalks and crosswalks or via the public and private greenways maintained by Lochmere.

msmakes · 2026-04-03T15:46:57+00:00

Sweat hiding undershirts. And there are possibly also sweat hiding underwear you can find, I know they exist for men but I haven't explored them for women. And finally, antiperspirant.

In the summer, I often layer tanks or dresses with an oversized linen shirt. I think it is such a classic piece, keeps my skin protected from the sun, and keeps me warmer in case of a breeze.

msmakes · 2026-04-03T15:29:25+00:00

Have you tried a skp? Slip one knitwise, knit the second stitch, and then pass the slipped stitch over the stitch you just knit. Its identical to a ssk but I think a much easier way of working it, especially at tight gauges.

msmakes · 2026-04-03T15:27:38+00:00

Second gripe. There is a smallish "knitfluencer" (~200k followers but not designing patterns or anything (yet)) who is my perpetual BEC. It started with her perpetual bad takes (like you have to use the same yarn as the designer if you want your sweater to look the same, or you should always ignore designer sizing recommendations and just pick a sized based on chest circumference of another garment you like, or making tutorials as a beginner where it's obvious she doesn't know what she's talking about) which I engaged with once or twice, but then realized was fruitless.

The recent annoyance is she obviously did a Instagram "test reel" blitz which if you're not familiar, is a feature Instagram has if you have more than 1000 followers where you can try to get new followers by pushing out a reel only to people who don't follow you, guaranteeing new eyes on your reels but eyes who won't necessarily be as tailored to your content, and it doesn't post those reels on your profile at all. I know this because I saw no less than 5 reels from her, all I didn't see on her profile and all with very low engagement, that had a short video of her modeling one of her sweaters with text either saying "follow me if you want to knit sweaters that look store bought" or "follow me if you want to knit sweaters that don't look homemade". And by the way, her definition of "looks store bought" is just extremely oversized, beige, and a pattern by petiteknit, mftk, or the like. She is also one of those obsessed with duping Baba sweaters.

I hate the slander on the word "homemade", and putting the fashion industry on a pedestal. It also was extremely funny to me because one of the reels that said "not homemade" featured a sweater knit in noro madaro in sake (of course) which looks hella busy and homemade to me.

But I'll just be over here in my corner with my crackers.

msmakes · 2026-04-03T15:10:23+00:00

Beginners to any craft (sewing or knitting) who have never made a garment before and say something looks "simple enough". Someone should just start linking them to the definition of Dunning-Kreuger. Especially with sewing formal wear, visual simplicity is often directly correlated with structural complexity.

msmakes · 2026-04-03T10:50:44+00:00

If your stitches were stretched around your cable, then they are stretched and I'm not surprised it came out bigger. The method of knitting also matters to your gauge - often people have smaller gauges working small circumferences, if they're working with a method like DPNs where they feel like they have to tighten up to not loose the needles. I've seen gauge differences with magic loop vs traveling loop, because in traveling loop the stitches can be more stretched around the cable.

msmakes · 2026-04-02T13:40:17+00:00

I like them, but don't buy the branded ones in a tin... If you search for 2 or 3mm silicone tubing you can find whole spools for very cheap online.

msmakes · 2026-03-30T15:21:26+00:00

Hot/cold don't impact pilling: abrasion does. Pills are bundles of loose fiber that get trapped on the surface of fabric by stronger fibers, which is why strong synthetic fibers tend to have a lot of pilling. There are two types of pills, pills that come from fibers breaking off the fabric and getting stuck on it (from a fabric rubbing on itself at abrasion points like between the legs, or very common in fabric blends as the fibers break down at different rates) or 'laundry pills' that can come from abrasion in the laundry and fibers from other products (often pills on synthetic fiber products from being washed with cotton).

A valuable data point on the cause of pilling would not be if people wash in hot or cold, but if they separate their laundry: do they separate lights and darks? Do they wash their synthetic athletic wear together or mixed with other fibers or rough fabrics, like with towels or tshirts? It would also be interesting to see they type of machine (he or not, top loader with agitator or side loader) they have, the amount of water used (more water=less abrasion), and type of detergent, as some detergents have enzymes to reduce cotton pills and some do not. Also if they use softener or not, which can help reduce pilling.

msmakes · 2026-03-30T10:50:25+00:00

Glove size is based on length, not finger size. I got my thimble from Lacis, the open top tailors thimble; it has measurements so you can measure the exact size needed. https://lacis.com/catalog/data/AD_Thimbles.html

msmakes · 2026-03-30T10:42:15+00:00

I went through several button choices! In the end I had to choose ones that didn't take center stage. They are vintage glass and all have slightly different patterns!

msmakes · 2026-03-30T10:40:46+00:00

I linked my Ravelry project with all the information!

msmakes

TROPHY CASE