pimping ziggy

so I'm back on the pimping bandwagon today.

I think I'll preface this post by saying that this design might just be my most favourite thing I've knitted all year. That's a pretty big call, and particularly considering that this is a boy knit but ...I'm going to put it out there.

This is ziggy, a wee pattern that had me thinking outside the square I live in, quite literally.

I so love this hoodie, not just because Toby has worn it to death this winter, but because visually it just really appeals to me.  Ask any kids' knitwear designer and they will tell you the struggles of designing for boys, trying to find a new angle or something slightly different without it being too out there. Despite lots of knitters asking for more boys' patterns, we do tend to knit quite conservatively for our boys.

I love that while this is a hoodie, it's got something else going on with it. I love the zig-zag stitch pattern on the front and the way it works up onto the hood. I love the shape and fit of the hood. It was well worth the ripping and reknitting and ripping and reknitting! And I particularly loved the rolled hems. I had sort of envisaged sewn hemlines but I couldn't be bothered sewing them down  I decided I preferred them rolled.

One of the most exciting things about this pattern though is that while it looks super cute on my little two-year-old Toby, it looks absolutely awesome on the boys at the bigger end of the age scale.  You have no idea how pumped I was when my big knit testers started finishing these up. Have a peep at the projects on Rav.  You know, I even have the need to knit DK a man-sized version!

I am really proud of this design, simply because it is a good boys' pattern. Something a little bit out of the box. It will probably never be as successful as milo, but I don't care! I love it just the same!

I do have a little bit of a secret in relation to this pattern though.
The first version and the alternate version in the pattern looked like this;

What you actually can't tell is that the first garment was knit top-down and the second one, the hoodie was knit bottom-up.

My preference for kids' knit is top down because it's easier to custom knit length, try it on and even add length later, hence the prototype was knit that way. But when I came to write up the pattern, I realised it was just going to be so long and convoluted to write it up that way, particularly having to incorporate the changes in the zig-zag stitch pattern into every raglan increase across the size range. This is a pretty lengthy and detailed pattern as it is, without that.  The option was there to use instructions like, "Work into existing pattern" but.. that's not my style and those who knit my patterns are used to me detailing each step of the way thoroughly, so that wouldn't really be fair to them.

I was a wee bit stressing over it when my friend Shannon suggested I go bottom-up. Simple. Sensible. Pure Genius. That's Shannon. So that's what I went for.

It was fun thinking outside my normal design box and designing something bottom up. I'm so glad I did it. It's opened up a whole other avenue of thinking in terms of design for me, which has been great. Who knows where I'll head next with it?

So if you're in the market for a kids' jumper, ziggy could be just the one you need.

It's sized from 6months to size 12 (17 - 30" chest).

It is very much a modern take on the classic hoodie/henley. The pattern contains instructions for knitting either the henley style tab front and collar, or the hood. The hood borrows construction techniques from sock knitting to create a fun little hood that fits perfectly.

It is a seamless construction and knit bottom up. The only special techniques required are circular knitting, simple cable knitting (this can be done without a cable needle), a small amount of kitchener stitch and picking up stitches.

You can purchase ziggy either as an individual pattern for $AUD6, or as part of an ebook containing four other patterns.

 Both are available for purchase via my Ravelry store.