I’ll Knit If I Want To: Episode 259 @dreareneeknits

Uploaded April 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago

Welcome to I’ll Knit (& Spin!) If I want To! I asked y’all to send in some of your questions (from everything from fiber arts, to designing and on!) so I could put together a little video for y’all every Friday doing my best to answer your questions!

Sign up for my newsletter here: Sign up for the DRK Newsletter: eepurl.com/diPxsr

In this week’s episode we cover…
1. Hi! I’m very interested in making your cute new Honey Petal cardigan for the warmer weather, but for my style I was thinking of making the button band a bit wider. Is there leeway to do that, or will it affect other proportions of the cardigan too much (shoulder fit perhaps)? Thanks!
2. Yoke depth! I’ve knit the Weekender and the DRK Everyday sweater, as well as several cowls, and I’ve always met gauge with the recommended needles, or have been able to go up a size to adjust. I’m knitting Metamorphic for the March-to-May KAL, and I can’t seem to manage the yoke depth. I’ve knit down to the 8.25” for size 2, which should fit, but when I try it on, the yoke length on my arms is about an inch above my armpit. Should it be at the length where it meets my armpit at this point? I hope my question makes sense. (A sketch would be so helpful!). Thank you!
3. Just started making steeked cardigans and even though i use short rows to raise the back of the neck, they bottom of the button band hangs much lower .The bottom front is longer than the bottom back of the sweater and looks uneven. Is there anything I can do to prevent this? Love that you are into cardigans lately too!

4. I'm curious about how often you wash your hand knit socks and how you store them. I'm currently doing a challenge knitting one pair of socks a month and I'm running out of space in my sock drawer. Bye the way, I just finished the drk everyday socks, which is a pattern I love to knit- so quick and a good way to showcase a special sock yarn. Thanks for your answer.
5. How do you handle snags in your knits. It seems that whenever I wear one of my knits I somehow find a way to snag it on something.

Today I am wearing my Honey Petal
Ravelry: ravelry.com/patterns/library/honey-petal
My Website: dreareneeknits.com/shop/honey-petal

With my Oxbow Jeans: sewhouse7.com/products/oxbow-pants-sewing-pattern-pdf

March 2 May Knitalong!
Sweater forum on Ravelry: ravelry.com/discuss/dreareneeknits/4397005
Shawl forum on Ravelry: ravelry.com/discuss/dreareneeknits/4397009
Hashtag for Instagram: #DRKM2MKAL26

Jaunty SAL with Daedalus: ravelry.com/discuss/dreareneeknits/topics/4386868

Jaunty-along intro video: youtu.be/JU1eu0G4Sl8

Ask a question for next week’s Q&A:
https://forms.gle/pKM9gF9SixkdQwmS7

$I’ll Knit If I Want To: Episode 227 BIRTHDAY SALE!! Save 30% off of all of my independently published patterns (with the exception of Ooey Gooey and any patterns that were published thru 3rd parties) with the discount code DREA30 thru 8/8/25 at midnight EST! (Please note - don’t forget to enter the code before finishing your purchase, as discounts cannot be applied retroactively!) Welcome to I’ll Knit (& Spin!) If I want To! I asked y’all to send in some of your questions (from everything from fiber arts, to designing and on!) so I could put together a little video for y’all every Friday doing my best to answer your questions! Sign up for my newsletter here: Sign up for the DRK Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/diPxsr In this week’s episode we cover: 1. Im making the Tessellated vest and just have the ribbing to go. Have loved knitting the vest so am looking forward to finishing it and wearing it. The challenge I have is picking up the stitches for the armholes. Youve mentioned in the past that you use a ratio of 5 in 7 but do you vary this for armholes? Do you use 5 in 7 when working top half of armholes and over the shoulder, but pick up more stitches on the slanting edge towards bottom of armhole. Any advice would be appreciated. 2. Im just starting out as a designer and have a question about gauge patterns. Does the gauge pattern have to match the stitch pattern used in the item? Or would a stockinette gauge sample, for example, be suitable for a brioche or cable pattern, if both the gauge sample and the item are worked flat (but no stockinette is used in the pattern)? Would your answer change if its a two color brioche pattern? Thanks for all your advice over the years - Ive learned a lot from listening! 3. My question is about spinning. Like so many others, I’ve been inspired by you to pick up spinning. I took a couple drop spindle classes a little over a year ago and fell in love. I don’t currently have the financial or spatial budget for a wheel (though I’m hoping for an e-spinner for my upcoming birthday ), so my question is specific to your experience with spindle spinning. And particularly about plying. Since most spindles can hold less spun fiber than a wheel bobbin, my plied skeins tend to be fairly small. But yours always look much larger. Do you use a felted join on your singles to add more when one spindle runs out? Or perhaps a felted join on the plied yarn to combine smaller lengths into a larger skein? A combination of both? Would either affect the integrity of the finished yarn? Or is there something else I’m missing? Also, when doing a fractal spin with half a braid spun end to end and the other half divided into smaller strips, what considerations do you take into account when deciding which singles to ply together? I imagine you end up with some parts that have two plies of the first half of the braid and one ply with the smaller strips, and vice versa. How do you decide which to combine? Or do you just choose at random? 4. Ive been knitting for years, but am newish to sock knitting. I have two questions - The first sock I ever knit was perfect, then I had a few duds after that. My tension seemed to tighten significantly to the point I have to knit the size up from my frist sock - why would that be? My tension for other types of projects havent been affected in the same way. I also notice on the last couple socks Ive knit there is a slight ridge on the inside of my sock where I grafted the toe. I can feel it on the inside of the foot and I cant determine why the ridge is there. I have watched a lot of tutorials and know I have done the Kitchener stitch correctly. Could that also be a tensioning issue? 5. I know how important swatching is however there is one aspect that has me curious. One of the reasons for swatching is to see if the fabric grows and by how much. My question is, if the swatch does grow, how does the knitter determine what pattern size to follow? It seems like it would be challenging to translate the amount of growth seen in a swatch to a larger garment such a sweater. If I normally knit a size 36 bust should I drop down to a smaller bust size? If the pattern states to knit until piece measures 10 inches, should a lesser amount be knitted? Fortunately I’ve never had any major issues with growth but I’m sure it’s just a matter of time! High Tide Set: https://matchymatchysewingclub.com/products/high-tide-set-pdf-sewing-pattern Today I am wearing Night Lights Ravelry: https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/night-lights-3 My Website: https://www.dreareneeknits.com/shop/night-lights 2025 Rhinebeck Ooey Gooey KAL Ravelry Forum: https://www.ravelry.com/discuss/dreareneeknits/topics/4368040 Facebook Forum: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1076153613959074 Instagram Hashtag: #RhinebeckOoeyGooeyKAL Ask a question for next week’s Q&A: https://forms.gle/pKM9gF9SixkdQwmS7$

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