Hey, all! Yes, we are still alive and kicking. I am slowly working on my Big Love Cardigan. Everyone who sees it says they love the color — and I have to agree. And I am soldiering on despite my middle finger splint and packing to move!
So what is the problem with Big Love?? It is a very cute, boxy, cropped cardi (mine won’t be cropped!!) with almost 350 projects on Ravelry. I am not trying to diss this very talented designer, but it has a shoulder placement problem. And it could very well be that she did this on purpose as a design element…so there is that.
This diagram shows how a typical shoulder line aligns with the underarm:
The shoulder should line up right above the center point of the underarm. Big Love doesn’t do this. Because there is no neck shaping the shoulder line is pushed toward the back.
It can’t help itself — your neck is in the way! This moves the shoulder line to the back and rotates the underarm midpoint toward the bust:
This rotation affects the fit. Also, it pulls the front of the sweater up which makes the front shorter. The designer added a series of short rows to the bottom of fronts to account for this. 😐
I recently finished Ebbets which has the same construction, but corrects for it. So what I did was make the front two inches longer than the back. To do the math, just add one inch to the front measurement and subtract one inch from the back measurement (my original number was 7-1/4″). The resulting combination is the same overall depth for the armhole, it just places the shoulder in the correct position:
My armhole is still 14-1/2 as needed, but this small tweak deliberately moves the original shoulder line to the back of the neck instead of forcing it there. The underarm is now centered to the actual shoulder line. Because of this change, I did not need to add short rows to the fronts.
I reknit the bottom hems multiple times trying to get a nice tubular bind off. Finally got it the way I wanted. Now if I can get off sleeve island I can call it done!
And please be kind to Lettie. She is not fond of nudie shots!!
PS to Tracey: ETA I wrote it wrong where I said to add the inch!! Corrected now! The front is longer than the back. This sweater front needs extra length along the armhole to go up and over the natural shoulder line.
PS2 to Susan: No, I am no longer playing yarn chicken. I never was apparently! I started sleeve #1 with a partial skein, but thought it was a full skein. Before finishing sleeve one, I started sleeve two to see how long to make them (to equalize the shoulder drop on each side). I have TONS of yarn!! Unfortunately, I ordered an additional skein prior to this realization and spent beaucoup bucks on a skein I do not need. I feel really smart!! Now I have a skein that if sent back wastes a ton of dough on shipping. Whatta dork.
PS3 to Chloe: The longer version had not yet launched and it is REALLY long.
PS4 to Annie: The extra fabric is due to the extra ease in the body. There is some short row shaping which shapes the shoulder and lowers the armhole opening. This does reduce excess fabric but does not eliminate it. The tight sleeves can easily be corrected by using your own measurements and preferred ease around the arm — then use the size sleeve that matches (i.e., one or two sizes bigger). I did this and my sleeves were too tight anyway because of tighter gauge! I am blocking it now and did correct the tight sleeves with blocking. It is drying right now and I really don’t know what it will look like!!
Hi Susan (and Lettie) thank you for this post – this has happened to me in the past and I’ve just lived with it. Can I just double-check a detail in your instructions … isn’t it that you’ve made the back longer than the front? Thanks again
Comment by Tracey — March 30, 2019 @ 5:08 pm
Thanks for the detail. And, the color is lovely, but are you still playing yarn chicken? And poor Lettie. Nudie shots and moving chaos?
If you need any help at either of your homes, just let me know.
Comment by Susan Fahning — March 31, 2019 @ 8:18 am
I am one who loves this color and the texture in this sweater! Lettie is such a good friend to you! She’s willing to help you out – even allowing you to expose her bare shoulders to your readers. Your diagrams helped me to totally understand this predicament. I would never have even discovered it and just thought I messed up with “something!” Thanks for sharing!
Comment by Kathy W. — March 31, 2019 @ 3:29 pm
Since you are making yours longer, Susan, did you ever consider Great Love, her longer version, or is it significantly different in some way. It seems as if you would get a bigger bang for your buck,
Comment by Chloe — April 1, 2019 @ 4:38 am
Yes, thank you for the details! I noticed in the Ravelry projects a lot of excess knit fabric around the shoulders, front and back. One knitter said she found the sleeves too tight. Could be that rotation! You are so good at fitting, and Lettie is worth her weight in cashmere!
Comment by annie — April 1, 2019 @ 2:50 pm
Thank you
Comment by Tracey — April 1, 2019 @ 4:23 pm
I often add a couple of inches to the top of the fronts for a better fit. I thought it was a quirk of my body shape, but your clear diagrams explain it as a feature of some designs. If you don’t add it you are constantly pulling at the sleave head trying to get the sleeve head to fit.
Comment by Julie in San Diego — April 3, 2019 @ 2:51 pm
Thank you, thank you, a million times thank you! I avoid “this” style of pattern so often because I can see in the model photos that they DON’T FIT! My knitting time and dollars are precious to me and I won’t waste them on a sweater that clearly wasn’t designed with correct fit in mind. I appreciate that you recognize good/correct fit and always have. I love your very clear method of correction, but resent that the knitter has to make up for poor pattern design after we PAY the designers for their pattern! I wish designers would see that cute and current are NOT enough. We need our garments to FIT! That being said there are plenty of fabulous designs for knitters to choose from. I count on great photos. Thanks again for taking your time to explain this correction.
Comment by Cheryl — April 5, 2019 @ 8:30 am
Hi Susan, just a quick question about Woodford and Ebberts. I look like a linebacker in dropped shoulder designs…not a good look. Do you think either of these would work since the shoulders are down the arm and not close to the shoulder seam
Comment by Linda — April 8, 2019 @ 4:47 pm
Hi Susan,
Could you please share the details of how you made the front longer? Iam not that seasoned of a knitter to figure it out. I appreciate your time.
Thank you,
Raeann
Comment by Raeann Hatfield — May 20, 2019 @ 1:58 pm
I routinely make the front armhole measurement 2 inches longer than the back. If you don’t need it, it does no harm. Or conversely, you can cast off the center of the back and put 2 inch extensions on each shoulder of the back. When you see a pattern where the back is straight across, you know you must do this mod for it to fit right. The top of your shoulder lines up with the middle or so of your neck, not the back edge of the neck. Check it out the next time you get out of the shower and are naked in front of a mirror. The straight across back only works (poorly) because knitting stretches. It is anatomically incorrect. Raeann, just keep knitting another 2 inches when they tell you to bind off the front. Then do the bind off as specified. Same on the other side.
Julie in San Diego, where fall is in the aire, bring on the PSL’s
Comment by Julie in San Diego — September 22, 2019 @ 4:18 pm
Makes so much sense! thanks for laying it out so clearly.
Comment by twinsetellen — June 25, 2020 @ 1:51 am
Thank you so much. I’m glad I found your notes before it was too late. Just need to frog one inch from the back and finish the front with an extra inch. I love this interesting knit and can continue with confidence that it will fit properly.
Comment by Ann Carrigan — February 14, 2021 @ 8:41 am