Help! My Colorwork Sweater Doesn't Fit!

Last week, I answered a call for help from a knitter in distress.

This person knit the bulk of the body of their colorwork sweater, and was just trying it on now, only to realize that while the bust and body fit great, the upper bust and shoulders were about 5" too big!!! 😱😭

Would blocking help? Should they rip everything and start over again? What to do???

Answer

Please note: these techniques will work on colorwork sweaters where the colorwork charts are broken up by yoke increases. If you're working on a different kind of colorwork pattern (or intarsia knitting) this might not work, but you can always use my underarm trick to solve the issue without disrupting the colorwork pattern.

First of all, help yourself by trying the sweater on more often and not wasting hours of work because you're scared to try it on! 

Now that I've discovered the knit cords - this is a shameless plug, because they really DID change my knitting life for the better - there is NO reason to not try on your sweaters every 1-2 inches of work or so. They literally make it so easy to just slide the stitches on and off, there's no reason not to do it. You need these knit cords as much as you need stitch markers (or even more)!!! You'll know for next time. 

Let's go back to the present now and the sweater to fix. 

First of all, you need to know that it's a common mistake. Don't feel bad. You were told to measure your bust size, you did so, picked the size corresponding to the ease you wanted, and voila! You thought that was it. You did everything by the book.

It's not your fault, it's what we're being told to do. Every body is unique, and grading just sets a standard that doesn't fit everyone (or even most people).

If your bust is larger than a B cup, measuring this way can lead to choosing the wrong size to knit at the shoulders, hence getting a sweater that is way too big in the upper bust and all through the shoulders and neck.

I dealt with this for years before I had enough and started by knitting smaller sizes and then working an increase round to make up to it. Now I know.

Pro tip:

Always measure your upper chest measurement: the measurement you'll get right under the armpits, before your boobs. If you are well endowed (ahem 🙋‍♀️), you can account for this when you split for the sleeves by either working an increase round at the upper bust, or adding more stitches to the underarms (remember my previous article "Tips for Flexible Sweater Construction"?)

Okay, here's what to do. 

🚨Before ripping the work in progress, check:

• By how much is the sweater too big? This will tell you how much you need to downsize. For example, if you knit the 45" size, but it's 5" too big, then you need to cast on for the 40" size.
  
  Or it might be that you want to go rogue, and cast on the smaller neck for example, increase 3 inches after to reach the 3rd size stitch numbers, and then increase again 2 inches below? The world is your oyster. If you've got the knit cords, you can do that easily.
  
  
• Is the gauge still accurate? A small mistake in gauge can make a BIG difference when knitting a larger garment. Check the gauge on your sweater in multiple spots, then use this new gauge when choosing the correct size and casting on your new sweater.
• Any other place where the fit could be improved? Take notes.
• Take pictures of you trying on the garment so you have an idea of the prior fit.

Option 1: The Safe Choice

Here's a safe solution: You can frog it (rip it, rip it...) and start over again. 

• Cast on again, using the proper size for your neck, shoulders, and up to the upper bust.
• Work the first 3-4 inches, then try it on. Is the fit right? Yes? Then keep going. If the fit isn't right, troubleshoot for it now. 
• Once you've made it to the upper bust, try it on, and if it fits great, here's what's gonna happen:
  • If you've finished the colorwork chart, great! Work an increase round to achieve the size you want at your full bust. Refer to your gauge to know exactly how many stitches to add.
    
    Keep in mind: you don't have to increase evenly across the round because you don't want more stitches in the back! Spread your increases evenly on the FRONT and sides of your sweater.
    
    Too many stitches to increase? Use my trick of adding stitches at the sleeve separation in the underarms so you don't have to work as many increases.
    
    
  • If you haven't finished the colorwork chart, make sure you make it to the end of a colorwork section before increasing.
    
    Then, count your actual stitches. Remember earlier when I had you note by how much was the sweater too big? It was the difference between what you wanted at the bust and belly and what you needed at the shoulders. Now it's the reverse: it's the discrepancy between what you have and what you need moving forward.
    Go back to that number, multiply this by your stitch gauge, and choose the size that has the closest stitch count to that.
    
    A simple rule of math: 
    How many stitches I need for the new, bigger size - the stitches I already have = # of stitches I need to increase.
    To follow the new size of your pattern, you will need to increase your stitch count by that number of stitches before continuing so that you can complete the colorwork stitch repeats. 
    
    Increase evenly through the front and sides (you can use this underarm trick here too, just don't decrease afterward), and now you're ready to keep going in the new size. 

OPTION 2: Sweater Surgery for the Adventurous Knitter

Not for the faint of hearts, but it can be done, and it's worth trying if you've got the confidence to give it a shot. What's the worst that can happen? That you have to rip it and start over again? That's already in the cards in option 1, so the only thing you've got to lose is some time IF it doesn't work out. 

If it does work, you'll save yourself all the time you already spent knitting the body... We're talking hours of work here.

I've done this technique before, so I can vouch for it. Have I ever mentioned my Marius Sweater fiasco??? Ah... I knew I mentioned it briefly somewhere. Find it here. It does deserve its own article. Maybe one day...

This is the sweater once I fixed it like below, not when it didn't fit...

Okay... Here's what to do. 

Cut and unravel a full round of the sweater at the upper bust, right after the separation for the sleeves. Put the body on the knit cords - I told you they're a game-changer - or waste yarn, and set it aside. 

Rip the yoke/shoulder section that is too big (or if you have plenty of yarn, just cast on with fresh yarn, your choice).

Cast on the smaller size that will fit you (see option 1 for the details on how to do that), and keep knitting, trying it on every inch or 2 for fit. When you've reached the upper bust, split for the sleeves.

Take the sleeve stitches and set these aside on the famous knit cords (told you they're wonderful) before you are ready to join the yoke and the body together.

On the top upper bust, increase stitches to get to the number of stitches that are on your body (what you set aside). Refer to option one above too to figure out how many stitches you need to increase to get there.

Then, kitchener it together like Frankenstein 🧟‍♂️. Here's the kitchener technique. 

Here's Very Pink Knits, another trusted resource:

Kitchenering the full body together will take a while, but once it's done, it's done! This is the hardest part of the surgery, and you've got to be patient, but it's worth it if it keeps you from having to knit many inches of the body again.

I hope this helps!

See! I'm wearing my Marius Sweater in this picture ❤️