Sandra's Designing Blog

This is an exclusive area of my web site where you can find out more about my knitted designs, what inspires me, how I work and what I like (and don't like) to design. 
 
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Category: Knitting Tips

  1. Why I Keep Coming Back to I-Cord Edges

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    Icord front neckline

    I’ve realised something recently… I use i-cord edges a lot.

    In fact, in my latest design I’ve added them to the armholes, neckline and side slits—and I didn’t even think twice about it. It just felt like the right finish.

    And I think that’s the thing with i-cord. Once you start using it, it quietly becomes one of your go-to techniques.

    So what is it about i-cord?

    For me, it’s all about the finish.

    It gives you that lovely, neat, rounded edge that just behaves. No flaring, no messy edges, no wondering if it needs “something else”—it already looks complete.

    I especially love it on:

    • necklines (it frames them beautifully)
    • armholes (adds structure without bulk)
    • shawls and scarves (hello, polished edges!)
    • and even side slits, where it gives a really professional touch

    It’s one of those small details that makes a big difference.

    A quick bit of knitting history

    If you’ve ever wondered about the name—i-cord was popularised by Elizabeth Zimmermann, who apparently called it “idiot cord” because it was so simple.

    Which feels about right… until you try it for the first time and think, wait… why am I not turning my work?!

    If i-cord hasn’t quite clicked yet…

    You are absolutely not alone.

    This is one of those techniques that often makes more sense when you see it rather than read it. And sometimes it takes watching it a couple of different ways before it really clicks.

    Here are a couple of really good tutorials I recommend:

    Have a watch with your knitting in hand—it makes all the difference.

    Patterns that use i-cord (if you want to try it out)

    If you fancy giving it a go, here are a few lovely patterns where i-cord really shines:

    They’re all great for seeing how i-cord works in a real project (and not just in isolation!).

     

    And in my own designs…

     I’ve used i-cord edging in quite a few of my patterns over time, but four that really highlight it are:

    And of course, my newest design (which I can’t fully show you yet 👀) uses i-cord on the armholes, neckline and side slits—which gives it that really clean, tailored feel.

    I’ll pop another sneak peek below so you can see what I mean…

    Final thoughts

    I-cord is one of those techniques that doesn’t shout for attention—but once you notice it, you start seeing it everywhere.

    And more importantly… you start using it everywhere too.

    If you’ve never tried it, this might be your sign. And if you already use it—tell me, where do you love adding i-cord most?

    Subscribe to Sandra's Newsletter to receive access to the ultimate i-cord guide and MORE.....

  2. My latest adventure in scrap yarn designing

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    I’ve been continuing my journey with leftover yarn – something close to many knitters’ hearts. If you saw my recent newsletter, you’ll know I shared my free Striata Cowl pattern (you can still find it here), designed to use up those odd little scraps we all keep tucked away. Leftover yarn projects aren’t just practical – they’re creative, sustainable, and often spark ideas we’d never have thought of with full skeins.
    FREE PATTERN - Striata Cowl
    A few days ago, I took this idea further by attending a designer workshop run by the talented Lisa Richardson, who happens to live in my village (and formerly worked with Rowan). The workshop theme? Designing a garment entirely from stash yarn.
    We were asked to bring two things:

    • A garment we already loved and wore often.

    • Some yarn from our stash to play with.
    I chose a favourite red A-line top as my starting point, and brought yarn in shades of blue, taupe, cream, and pink.

    The day began with swatching – not just for tension (I measured half a tension square 5cm x 5cm and then doubled) but also to explore whether we liked the fabric our oddments produced. Lisa encouraged us to try different techniques such as stripes, Fair Isle, intarsia, and slip stitch. My first experiment was striped slip stitch knitting, which I turned vertically to imagine slimming stripes on my A-line top. Clever in theory, but when I tried to add shaping with German short rows, the abrupt stops in the striping didn’t sit right with me. Time to rethink!

    Luckily, Lisa had brought along some sample garments, and I fell in love with one: a very simple design , The Fowberry, with no complicated shaping (just at the shoulders), no extra bottom or front bands, and the option to add sleeves later if I wished. It was a revelation – something achievable without too much maths (a relief in a busy workshop environment!).
    As an added bonus, I picked up plenty of insights listening to Lisa guide other designers – and was reassured that the way I calculate my own designs is indeed on the right track.
     

    Behind the scenes: my schematic + sums

    Here’s a little glimpse of the sort of rough notes I made during the day. It doesn’t look fancy – just sketches with measurements, and stitch counts. But this is the backbone of turning an idea into something wearable.

    • Garment shape: straight body with slight shoulder shaping.

    • Gauge from swatch: [24 sts x 32 rows = 10 cm].

    • Back length: [38cm] ÷ gauge = number of stitches to cast on.

    • Body width: [59cm] ÷ row gauge = rows needed across the back

    • Shoulder shaping - calculation concludes need to increase every 3 or 4 rows to middle then decrease down in the same way.

    It’s all very rough at this stage, but enough to get the knitting underway!

     

    I’m now nearly halfway across the back piece, and have already encountered a small issue that I’ll need to solve once I reach the end. I’ll share more about that (and whether I succeed!) in my next newsletter, so you can follow along with the whole process.