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Spiral Hill Sweater Vest is Here + Knit Along Details

September 27, 2023 Leave a Comment

Get the Spiral Hill Sweater Vest pattern, inspired by the new Nightmare Before Christmas knitting book from Tanis Gray and Insight Editions. Designed by Heidi Gustad.
via Insight Editions

As announced last month, I have a new intarsia pattern available called the Spiral Hill Sweater Vest, inspired by the Nightmare Before Christmas’ iconic landmark. You can find the vest pattern in the new book Disney Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Official Knitting Guide to Halloween Town and Christmas Town. To celebrate this release, and help teach knitters more about intarsia colorwork, we are doing a knit along (KAL) from October 1-29. Read on for all of the knit along details.

About the Spiral Hill Sweater Vest

Recreate the Tim Burton’s Nightmare Before Christmas’s iconic landmark in garment form! Knit flat from the bottom up in two panels with armhole shaping and then seamed together with mattress stitch, this vest uses intarsia colorwork and an intentional combination of stockinette and garter stitch to set the scene. Once the pieces are joined, stitches are picked up around the armholes and neckline and topped with ribbing. Don’t wait for the next full moon to cast on!

from the official Nightmare Before Christmas knitting book
Get the Spiral Hill Sweater Vest pattern, available in the new Nightmare Before Christmas knitting book from Tanis Gray and Insight Editions.
via Insight Editions

About the knit along!

For convenience’s sake and to better loop in the YouTube community, I’ve made this little intro to the knit along, which runs October 1-29. The video covers more about the pattern & KAL, and it shows what it looks like on my body in a size 3 with the recommended 2″ of positive ease.

You can find the Nightmare Before Christmas knitting book from several retailers, including Amazon.

Here is the Intarsia Flower Pillow pattern if you’d like to knit it to follow along with the educational content of the KAL.

There will be a prize pack raffle for knit along participants. Throughout the knit along, you will be able to enter the giveaway here on the blog (see this recent giveaway example for what the format will be like). Prizes include stitch balm from Scented Stitches, notions from Twice Sheared Sheep, and a $100 gift certificate from Brooklyn Tweed.

Get the Spiral Hill Sweater Vest pattern, available in the new Nightmare Before Christmas knitting book from Tanis Gray and Insight Editions.
via Insight Editions

Pattern Information / Yarn Quantities Needed

The pattern is exclusively available in the Nightmare Before Christmas knitting book.

SIZES 1(2, 3, 4, 5)[6, 7, 8, 9]{10, 11}

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS chest circumference: 36.25 (39.5, 42, 44.5, 47) [50.5, 53, 55.5, 59]{61.5, 64.74}” / 92 (100.5, 106.5, 113, 119.5) [128.5, 134.5, 141, 150] {156, 164.5} cm

YARN Worsted weight yarn, shown in Brooklyn Tweed Imbue (5-ply; 100% American merino wool; 104 yd. / 95 m per 50g hank)

COLORWAYS
Main Color (MC): Carbon, 5 (5, 5, 6, 7)[7, 7, 8, 8,]{8, 9} hanks
Contrast Color 1 (CC1): Ash, 1(1, 1, 1, 1)[1, 1, 1, 1]{2, 2} hanks
Contrast Color 2 (CC2): Crepe, 1 hank (all sizes)

NEEDLES
US 5 (3.75 mm), 16-32″ circular needles & an optional set of 5 DPNs
US 6 (4 mm), 16-32″ circular needle or size needed to obtain gauge

NOTIONS stitch markers waste yarn tapestry needle

GAUGE 19 sts and 28 rows = 4 in/10cm in stockinette stitch worked flat on larger needle, with measurements taken after blocking.

If you have any questions, email me or reach out in the comments section. This should be a fun knit along! :)

Coming this October: A knit along (KAL) featuring Heidi Gustad’s pattern from the new Nightmare Before Christmas knitting book from Tanis Gray and Insight Editions.

Filed Under: Knit Along, Knitting Tagged With: colorwork knitting, how to knit intarsia, intarsia, kal, knit along, nightmare before Christmas knitting book, spiral hill sweater vest, spiral hill sweater vest knit along

About Heidi

Heidi Gustad (she/her) is a craft book author & designer specializing in yarn crafts. Her work combines vintage and modern design elements, prioritizing color and graphic motifs. Her first book, Latch Hook: 12 Projects for the Modern Maker, is out now.

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Heidi Gustad from Hands Occupied / Craft Book Author and Knitting, Crochet, Latch Hook and Macrame Designer

Hi! I’m Heidi (she/her/hers), and I’ve been helping yarn crafters untangle various techniques on the internet since 2010. I got my start here, as a blogger, and since then I’ve shared more than a few tutorials here and on YouTube as I’ve grown as a pattern designer. 🧶 

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Heidi Gustad 🧶 knitting & yarn crafts

handsoccupied

Knitting & yarn crafts designer 🧶
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Stay up-to-date 💌 & shop new patterns ⤵️

POV: Showing you how my new Bevelled Tank pattern POV: Showing you how my new Bevelled Tank pattern fits with no ease vs. 4” of positive ease. There’s a bit more length to the cotton (brighter color) sample, but both are cropped and feature shoulder seams designed to sit an inch back onto the shoulder instead of on top, giving it a little swing. Length is easily adjustable for folks looking for less of a crop. 
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Pattern: Bevelled Tank by @handsoccupied for @pompommag x @hobbii_yarn summer 2024. Available for free from Hobbii at the 🔗 in my profile.
Yarn pictured: @kelbournewoolens Skipper and Camper. 
Dress form is adjusted to a 36” chest and ~5’3”ish in height. 
Human has a 40” chest and is 5’5”.
Both skirts are vintage.
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#pompomxhobbiisummer2024 #handsoccupied #intarsia #handmade #knitting #colorwork
Let’s talk about fit and ease! . During the Beve Let’s talk about fit and ease!
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During the Bevelled Tank design process for @pompommag, I knit 2 samples using 2 different @KelbourneWoolens yarns. One was in Skipper (100% cotton, second photo) and the other was in Camper (100% 2 ply wool). The Skipper sample was knit for a 36” bust, which measures in at 40” with 4” of positive ease. And I knit the Camper Sample for my 40” bust with a 44” finished measurement. (BTW, I’m 5’5” for folks that find that measurement helpful in visualizing fit.)
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Based on the size chart for the Bevelled Tank, that means I knit one size 3 sample and one size 4. As designed, I conveniently fit a size 4 as intended with 4” of positive ease. When I wear the 3, there is no ease at all because the garment and my body are both 40” in size. Comparing the 2 garments, you can see how the fiber content (cotton vs. wool) and fit (no ease vs. 4” of positive ease) makes a difference in the look and feel of the finished garment. 
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These samples are a great way to compare what ease looks like on different bodies. While I can fit both a size 3 and 4, the garment with no ease feels more like pajamas or a bralette when I wear it. On the other hand, when I wear the one with 4” of positive ease, I feel comfortable enough to wear it to work, even as a crop top. Plus, it leaves me with enough room to layer it with a nice button down if I’m not feeling the cropped look one day. 
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I’m curious - how would you style this tank? Would you modify it with a few stockinette rows for added length? I’m so curious now that this pattern is finally out in the world. :) 
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#pompomxhobbiisummer2024 #bevelledtank #handsoccupied #knitting #intarisa #handmade #kelbournewoolens #croppedsweater #summerknits
After a 6 month hiatus, I am happy to say I’m ba After a 6 month hiatus, I am happy to say I’m back with a brand new pattern in 9 sizes, and it’s FREE as part of @pompommag x @hobbii_yarn’s summer design collection! (Link is in my bio.)
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In my December newsletter, I announced that I was soliciting test knitters for a pattern that had originally been selected for the summer ’24 issue of Pom Pom Quarterly magazine. However, the magazine ceased publication after its spring ’24 issue, leaving in-progress designs unpublished. (It happens.) As a result, I’d begun the long process of editing, testing, and photographing the pattern for independent release through the Hands Occupied pattern shop and Ravelry.
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Before I was done with that process, Pom Pom Quarterly’s former editors reached out with an exciting proposal for the pattern. Post-magazine, they’ve begun to partner with yarn companies to produce high quality pattern collections. They wanted to include designs from the would-be current issue of Pom Pom Quarterly in a new collection for Hobbii yarn, including my Bevelled Tank. I worked with the same technical editors I would have for the magazine on this one, and as you can see from the photos, Pom Pom’s team did an amazing job of styling the garment to the beautiful standards they’re known for.
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You can learn more about the pattern on my blog and get the free pattern from Hobbii yarn - links to both in my profile. I’ll post sizing info in the comments for quick reference too. 🧶
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#pompomxhobbiisummer2024 #knitting #intarsia #sponsored #colorworkknitting 
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Photos: @dianascarrunz 
Model: @angel.jade_
Here’s a nice throwback for you: my take on a vi Here’s a nice throwback for you: my take on a vintage knitting pattern from 1938 called the Fernlace Pullover. A pattern so nice, I knit it twice.
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Yellow version 💛: knit with Despondent Dyes’ Vintage Vixen Sport after attending a @squidneyknits vintage knitting retreat in 2019 & learning *so much*. Paired with a self-drafted circle skirt pattern. 
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Blue version 💙: knit with @eweeweyarns Ewe So Sporty in Sky Blue. Paired with the 1940s Boardwalk Duet sewing pattern from @decades_of_style 
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Head to my stories for 🔗🔗 to the handmade wardrobe blog posts I wrote about each take on the Fernlace Pullover, working with a vintage pattern, where to find vintage patterns (including the one I used), & some thoughts on sizing. 
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Image descriptions available in alt text. 
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#handsoccupied #handmadewardrobe #fernlacepullover #vintageknitting #vintageknittingpatterns #knitting_inspiration
Frogging is a word in the knitting world that mean Frogging is a word in the knitting world that means to rip out your knitting. It’s called frogging because frogs say “ribbit,” and when you’re tearing out your knitting, you will “rip it” out, and that sounds like ribbit. No really. 🐸 Did you know this fun fact? 
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P.S. I did like this design concept, but to make the pattern more knitter friendly as well as more wearable, I am making some tweaks to the construction. Excited to share when it’s ready! 🥰🧶
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Yarn: @blueskyfibers Woolstok North in Morning Frost & Highland Fleece 
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#handsoccupied #knitting #frogging #blueskyfibers #knittersofinstagram #blueskymakers #knittingvocabulary #bsfmakers #knitdesign
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