I've been busy knitting for the past week, and I managed to finally finish the design for what I feel is the PERFECT sweater for my Buca!I used a100% wool self-striping yarn in a lovely mossy colourway... a lovely spring sweater!
Doesn't he look regal? We had some fun yesterday, and took a few photos to show him all 'decked-out'in his new stripy jumper!
The design has an incredibly stylish and 'macho' feel, and the sweater was an absolute DREAM to knit in the LIMBO self-striping wool yarn. The entire piece only needed 2 x 50g balls of dk weight yarn (with quite a lot left over.. I wonder what I can make with THAT!), making it a quick knit in a mixture of stocking and easy ribbing (in addition to the fact that you can indulge in some lovely luxury fibres if you want without breaking the bank!). The pattern is suitable for a beginner who wants to try their hand at knitting in the round, and presents a chance to experiment with eyelet increases. Enjoy!
SIZE
To fit small to medium sized dog; neck 24-29cm, chest 37-47cm, back length 26-30cm.
MATERIALS
100g of double knitting yarn (2x 50g balls of LIMBO COLOR used in sample)
3mm double pointed needles
4mm double pointed needles
Tapestry needle to weave in ends
BEFORE YOU BEGIN
Gauge/Tension
24ts and 30 rows = 10cm square over stocking stitch using 4mm needles
Notes
Slip all stitches purl-wise, with yarn held at back of work.
Abbreviations
alt - alternate
beg - begin(ing)
cont - continue
dec - decrease(ing)
foll - following
inc - increase(ing)
k - knit
m1 - make one stitch by picking up the loop lying between the stitch just worked and the next stitch, and then working into the back of it
patt - pattern
p - purl
pm - place marker
psso - pass slipped stitch over
rem - remain(ing)
rep - repeat(ing)
skpo - slip 1 stitch, knit 1 stitch, pass slipped stitch over
sl - slip
st(s) - stitch(es)
st st - stocking stitch
tbl - through back loop
tog - together
yf - yarn forward
yon - yarn over needle
yrn - yarn around needle
BUCALICIOUS PET SWEATER PATTERN
Entire piece is knitted in the round, from the neck down.
Collar
With Long-Tail cast on and 3mm needles, cast on 56 sts, divide among 3 needles. Join for working in the round, being careful not to twist sts; pm to show beginning of round. Begin rib pattern:
k1, *p2, k2*, rep from * until last 3 sts, and finish with p2, k1.
Continue in patt for an additional 44 rows.
Switch to 4mm needles and cont in patt for 2 more rows. At this point, you will have a knitted tube that looks like this:
Body
Shoulder Increases
Might seem a little complicated, but what will happen here is that the 2x2 rib will change into a 3x2 at the 2 ends and the middle of the back. Lost already? No worries, just follow the instructions and you’ll be just fine!
Round 1 : k1, [p2, k2] twice, k6, k2, m1, p2, [k2, p2] twice, k1, m1, k1, [p2 k2] twice, p2, m1, k2, k6, [k2, p2] twice, k1.
Round 2 : k over k stitches, and p over p stitches.
Leg Opening Increases
Round 1: rib9, yon, k6, yon, rib29, yon, k6, yon, rib9.
Round 2-20 & subsequent even rows: knit across with k over k, p over p
Round 3: rib9, yon, k8, yon, rib29, yon, k8, yon, rib9.
Round 5: rib9, yon, k10, yon, rib29, yon, k10, yon, rib9.
Round 7: rib9, yon, k12, yon, rib29, yon, k12, yon, rib9.
Round 9: rib9, yon, k14, yon, rib29, yon, k14, yon, rib9.
Round 11: rib9, yon, k16, yon, rib29, yon, k16, yon, rib9.
Round 13: rib9, yon, k18, yon, rib29, yon, k18, yon, rib9.
Round 15: rib9, yon, k20, yon, rib29, yon, k20, yon, rib9.
Round 17: rib9, yon, k22, yon, rib29, yon, k22, yon, rib9.
Round 19: rib9, yon, k24, yon, rib29, yon, k24, yon, rib9.
You will see the eyelet increases on the shoulder section, the photo below shows one side of the sweater increases:
Continue without increasing foll this patt:
Round 1: rib9, yon, k2tog, k22, k2tog, yon, k29, yon, k2tog, k22, k2tog, yon, rib9
Round 2: knit across with k over k, and p over p.
Repeat rows 1 & 2 three more times (8 rows in total)
Leg Openings
Rib9, k26 and place on holder, cast on and knit 14sts*, rib29, k26 and place on holder, cast on and knit 14sts*, rib9.
Belly
Continue with k over k, and p over p for 30 rounds. (You may lengthen or shorten this part depending on your dog’s size.)
Round 31: k over k, p over p until last 7sts, cast off 7sts.
Round 32: cast off first 7sts, k over k, p over p to end.
Your work will look something like this:
Back Decreases
The next rows will require working straight and turning the work at the end of each row. Sl the first st of each row for neatness. Remember to work the ribbing pattern on the back piece (because you are now working in rows instead of rounds, p over k, and k over p when working the ribs)
Row 1: sl1, k1, k2tog, work to last 4sts, skpo, k2, turn.
Row 2: work k on k, p on p.
The initial cast-off space you created when the 14sts were cast off before will grow larger:
Repeat rows 1 & 2 until 31sts are left on needles. At some point you might want to transfer all the stitches on a single needle to make life easier. You should have a nice, neat back piece:
Cast off in patt k over k, p over p.
Legs (make 2)
With 3mm needles, pick up 14 sts from cast-on edge on leg opening (*), join in circle with 26sts on holder. (40sts)
Round 1 & 2: knit all stitches
Rounds 3 – 14: rib in [k2, p2] all around.
Cast off in patt.
If you have a short-legged dog, then you can reduce the number of ribbing rows to suit.
FINISHING
Weave in loose ends. Please don't hesitate to contact me if you have any problems with the pattern!
30th March 2009 :
PATTERN ERRATA AVAILABLE!
Leg opening increases odd rows 1-19 have a typo where I failed to include the increased k stitches.
Awesome - I am putting this in my favorites queue to attempt at some point in the future! Great job on the pictures and the directions, not to mention your little guy is adorable! Check out my dog sweater pictures on Ravelry.com where my user name is kgr-ranch .... I'm new to Ravelry and completely HOOKED!
Congratulations on a fantastic job! Real wool dog sweaters ROCK!
Aww what kind of dog is that? What is he a mixture of?
Oh. My. Gosh. What a cute little guy! Of course the sweater is wonderful too (wink)! Oh, if every little critter was so loved in this world....! Very nice!
Thanks for your kind comments! Buca is a long-haired (clipped) chihuahua... :)
No way, this is SOOO cute! I would love to link to this if you don't mind. What a darling model!
the dog is such a love-wish mine would let me put sweaters on them-especially this one-thank you for the great pattern
I just lost a pit bull after 12 years. I never thought I would like small dogs let alone make them sweaters but I am hooked. Lover the sweater and love the dog I hope the weather stays bad here in chicago so I can get cozy with the dog and yarn and knit away
Thank You so much for a great project
Hi,
I just love your sweater pattern ( your little dog is adorable) I want to start knitting the sweater over the week end. I have a question?? Would you have a sweater pattern for a little female Chi that you could post. Thanks
I have been trying to knit your Bucalicious sweater pattern but I think there must be a mis-print in it - it doesnt work out at all.
Is it just me? I must add that I have tried it with 2 needles as I cant use 4 but I didnt think that would make any difference. Rita
Hi Rita!
I had noticed a misprint in the leg increases section and have uploaded the re-written pattern on the website on the 30th of March. I don't think there are any problems with knitting the pattern on 2 needles, as the pattern start is quite simple:) Please contact me if you have any other problems!
You should post this on Wacanai.com ( http://www.wacanai.com/intro ). It's a great article and I think a lot more people would see it if you post it there. I have posted articles there before and a lot more people read them. They have graphs to help you keep track of who is reading and using your info. You can also link your site to it so more people will go to your webpage. Thanks again for the info!
Machelle, I just downloaded the pattern. I've been looking for an easy to knit sweater for my Yorkipoo. Thank you so much!
Hello! I am not an expertise at knitting and this is my first doggie sweater and i have some questions about this sweater..
*once you cast on 56 sts and put them on three dp needles how many stitches on each needle? or does that even matter..? i did 18 19 19
*rib9? thats odd so what do i do? knit 2 purl 2 X4 add only one extra knit stich?
*leg oppening... thats where i am having the most problems. what do i put on what needle and do i need another pair of needles to put the 14st casted on?
thanks for your help..
ps your dog and sweater is too cute!
ERIN
Hi Erin!
I’m going to try and answer your questions as well as I can!
1. When you initially cast on the 56sts, it doesn’t really matter exactly how many sts you have on each needle, as long as you can hold all three needles comfortably, 18, 19, 19 is fine.
2. Rib 9 simply refers to k on k , and p on p sts of the previous row. If you take a look at the pattern, you initially begin with a k1 *k2, p2 to last st, then k1. So, to rib 9 at the beginning of the row would be k1*k2, p2* 4 times... and at the end of the round would be *p2, k2, 4 times, k1. Does that explain it any better?
3. When forming the leg openings, the idea is to make a space and separate the rows in 2 areas of the item, and creating a new row to continue with the work. So what you need to do is follow the rib9 (beginning off round), k26(sleeve sts) and put those sts on a holder or spare piece of yarn. I think the next bit is where it might have confused you, cast on 14 sts on the left hand needle, then k across them and continue with the pattern, working the other leg opening the same way. You don’t need another pair of needles just use the ones that you are knitting with at the time!
I hope that this helps!
Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any more questions.
Machelle
This pattern is one of the nicest I've seen. Congratulations on a lovely knitting project for our canine children! My pommies don't need extra warmth--but they have little friend who could use this!
Thank you so much. Not only just the type of pattern I was looking for but easy to locate & print the instructions complete with detail pictures. I had spent quite a bit of time looking at other sites and even if I found something a bit promising, instructions were impossible to find in spite of much feedback left by previous searchers.Congratulations on an outstanding job and thank you again, I'm so pleased.
I loove your sweater and it is so cute. I looking for a pattern with a hood as I am making a sweater for a small min doberman pincher and she came from South America and she needs her head covered to keep warm enough here. I would appreciate any suggestions.
There are plenty of dog hoodie patterns available online (and for free!).. Theres these two by drops design:
Christmas Jumper
Dog Coat
I hope these help!!
xxx
I love those little coats, I just don't think I could get my cat to wear one... :)
Have just found your pattern & think it looks great.Jack is my Wire-haired Mini Dachshund with a neck measurement of 31cms, chest 47cms and length of approx 39cms. Any suggestions on No. of stitches to start with for a size to fit him?
Hi Machelle..this is the greatests sweater pattern. I LOVE patterns that don't have to be sewn together!!!!!!! I am ready to go on it but was wondering the same as the last person who emailed you......I am making this for a Havanese.....what would I do to enlarge this by about 2 sizes? Thanks SO much!!! for your darling pattern and great photos!!
Marsha
Hi Machelle,
I LOVE your bucalicious sweater and want to make it for a havanese...probably 2 sizes larger....cast on 64-68 would probably work..could you help me increase the size of the pattern? Thank you so much!!
Marsha
Hey! Love the sweater. I'm making it for my little guy, Zeus. He's a toy goldendoodle. I'm a super beginner and I have a question that is probably lame but I was wondering on the yon if you are supposed to knit or purl it on the following row? And also above when you are talking about the Rib9: you said that you do k1*k2,p2 but the pattern states that you k1*p2,k2? So I'm kinda confused. Please clarify, as soon as possible. Thx!
Hello Angela!
The yarn overs are simply knit on the following rows, and as for rib 9, that means k1, [p2, k2] twice (total 9 sts in rib).
Hope this helps!
I love this pattern. I have a miniature dachshund and it fits him really well. Thanks for sharing.
Hi, this looks so cute...would love to try to make it for my 15 lb dog. Do you think it would work if I used a bigger size needle and yarn and stick with your pattern??
my my just the thing i am looking for for my chi as the cold snap we are having now little Monty is cold thanks a lot your a star ,
I love this pattern. I have a question though, shouldn't the ribbing continue after the Leg Opening Increase section? There are 8 rows that state to "k29" should that be "Rib29'? Seems odd to have been ribbing, then 8 rows knitted, then back to the ribbing for the belly. I am not an experienced knitter and trying to do this correctly! My mini dachshund is anxiously awaiting her new sweater! Thanks so much for sharing this pattern and for your help!
Happy New Year
Hi I am wanting to do a dog sweater in a wool that goes from a light shade to a darker shade of the same color, I am wondering if this pattern will work so thay I don't lose the color gradiation of the wool, I have tried a couple other patterns but they have to split off and ruins the color gradiation. I am a beginner knitter, I hope I am getting my question across. Thanks for your help
Also I was wondering waht weight of yarn are you using, the yarn I am wanting to use is a medium worsted yarn thanks again!!
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