This week I launched an update of my Knitter’s Dude and Little Dude patterns and I hope knitters will really enjoy the improved pattern. Don’t miss this week’s sale if you don’t already have the pattern!

🌟 Use code UPDATE23 to get 15% off! 🌟

Sale runs through next Wednesday, October 25, 2023.

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If you’re curious about the update, here’s more info about that.

Andrea is standing holding a cup of tea and wearing a patterned cardigan.

Choosing Yarn

I first published these patterns in 2015, so that’s eight years ago now! Since then one of the colours of yarn that I used for my original sample has been discontinued, so I wanted to give some suggestions for other options that might work to get this same colour scheme.

You want to choose a worsted weight wool yarn with an intended gauge of 20 stitches = 4”/10 cm. Keep in mind the sweater will have a lot of weight to it because of the colourwork (especially in adult sizes), so lofty woolen spun or semi-woolen spun yarns could be better than very dense ones.

And you want to avoid very slippery yarns like superwash yarns that have been treated to be machine washable, plant fiber yarns, or silk yarns because you’ll be cutting your sweater open and stickier yarns work better for that.

Whatever yarn you choose, I always recommend reinforcing and cutting your swatch in whatever way you plan to do for your final sweater. That way you can practice the method and find out if it works well for your chosen yarn.

Yarn Ideas

The Original, Brooklyn Tweed Shelter

My sample was knit in Brooklyn Tweed Shelter in the colours Fossil (white), Nest (brown), and Cast Iron (black), and Nest is the one that’s been discontinued. If you want to use Shelter, I think the colour Stormcloud is probably your best bet for substituting, but it’s a lot cooler than Nest, with some blues in it.

Cascade 220

In researching for this post, I looked at what yarns knitters have been using in their Ravelry projects (there are over 700 projects of just the grownup sweater on Ravelry — Ravelry link) and one I came across a lot was Cascade 220. That’s a lovely yarn with a lot of colour options. If I was putting together colours of 220, I think I’d choose 8010 Natural for the Main Colour, 9695 Praline for Contrast Colour 1, and 4002 Jet for Contrast Colour 2.

There are other brown options and a darker black if you want your colours to be richer and more saturated. Cascade 220 isn’t quite as wooly and lofty as Shelter and it’s worsted rather than woolen spun, so your sweater is likely to be a little bit heavier than if you worked it in a woolen spun, but it’s still a good option. Keep in mind that 220 comes in a superwash version and I don’t recommend that because it’s better to do the steeking with a non-superwash yarn.

Hudson and West Forge

If you’re looking for a really beautiful American-produced yarn, Hudson and West Forge is a great option. I’d choose Aspen for Main Colour, Camel for Contrast Colour 1, and Charcoal for Contrast Colour 2, though Raven is a better option for CC2 if you want black rather than very dark grey. This yarn is listed as semi-worsted and from my experience knitting it, I’d say it’s a nice in-between yarn, not as lofty as Shelter, but not as dense as 220. I think it would make a great, long-lasting heirloom sweater.

Kelbourne Woolens Germantown

Germantown is a worsted spun yarn, so not as lofty as Shetler or Forge, but it’s a very sturdy, lovely option. I’d choose 105 Natural for Main Colour, 278 Tan for Contrast Colour 1, and 020 Dark Gray Heather for Contrast Colour 2, though again, if you want to go with true black, there’s also 005 Black.

Plucky Knitter Scholar Worsted 1.0

I noticed a bunch of folks on Ravelry used Scholar to make their Knitter’s Dudes. This project in particular (Ravelry link) caught my eye and I think the colours are perfect. Megan used Twill for her Main Colour, Map Room for Contrast Colour 1, and Morticia for Contrast Colour 2. I’ve never actually knit with this yarn so I can’t speak from experience about it, but it seems to have a lot of fans! It looks like this one has a superwash option too (Scholar Worsted 2.0), so I recommend being sure you’re going with the non-superwash if you want to use this yarn.

Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Worsted

Another very popular choice among Ravelry projects is Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Worsted. This one also has a superwash version so make sure you’re getting non-superwash. For colours, I’d choose Cloud for Main Colour, Chestnut for Contrast Colour 1, and Onyx Heather for Contrast Colour 2.

8 Years Ago

Here’s a little blast from the past — In 2015 I had very short hair and this sweater was new! This is me at our bowling alley photo shoot. (Thanks for the portrait, Kathy!) I very much enjoy my long curly hair now, but I variations on short hair for most of my life before I grew it out this time. Loved that pixie cut!

Andrea with a very short pixie haircut is standing in a bright bowling alley wearing her Knitter’s Dude sweater, a mustard-coloured miniskirt, and over-the-knee socks. Photo by Kathy Cadigan.

And since my book came out last week, I’m required as an author to say, did you see my new book? If you like colourwork, I think you’ll love KnitOvation!

Knitter's Dude Yarn Choice