CustomFit: Now for men, women, and kids.

I think my kids are even happier to see this day than I am:

And believe me, I’m pretty happy to announce that you can now use CustomFit to make straight-shaped sweaters for men, women, and kids. We’ve added to, and changed a bunch of, the site to make this possible – here’s how it breaks down!

Sweater designs now have ‘shapes’.

Each design built into CustomFit (or each pattern you make yourself through our “Build your own” wizard) now has a shape associated with it – for now, either hourglass (the designs that were there already) or straight (the new designs I’ve just released!). (We will add more shapes in the new year!)

Straight sweaters are just that – straight from hem to armhole, with no shaping. And we’ve now built in eases and sizing appropriate to men, women, and children:

Straight is a super versatile shape – not only for men and kids, but also in terms of adding all-over stitch patterning to sweaters. No waist shaping gives you the freedom to try out large-scale stitch patterns that won’t be interrupted. Stay tuned for some heavily-patterned designs in the coming months!

Body measurements are simpler.

Because we don’t need all of those measurements for a straight sweater, we’ve streamlined and simplified the measurement process. Measurements are now broken up into “Essentials,” “Extras,” and “Optional” categories (and we’ve updated the measurement videos for CustomFit to reflect this). Only Essentials are needed to make a sweater, and they’re taken the same way no matter who you’re measuring:

But, you can also start with CYCA standards and modify from there! The CYCA charts range from 34” – 52” for a man, and we’ve built in kiddo charts for CYCA numbers from ages 4 – 16. (CustomFit has trouble with babies – or anyone whose full chest is smaller than 23” – though that will change soon!)

“Extras” measurements include everything you need to make an hourglass-shaped sweater. Right now, you must enter all of these or none of them, but that will change soon as well to allow you to enter them one at a time.

One slight change with this new shape is that CustomFit now thinks about sweater lengths as being from hem to armhole. The hem-to-waist and waist-to-armhole measurements have been combined in your existing measurement sets, and your sweaters will stay the same length they’ve always been. When entering new measurements, please measure from the desired hem spot of your sweater to the armhole shaping as directed in the videos.

There are 3 new straight designs.

I absolutely adored the design challenge of creating garments that would not only work in a bunch of different yarns, but on many differently-sized bodies! I have three to share with you today – click on the photo to go to the design page for more detail. All three are suitable for men, women, and kids.

Helm is a classic V-neck pullover with 2×2 rib trim. Doesn’t everyone need a classic V-neck pullover?

I worked the sample in Rowan Pure Wool Superwash DK in the color “Anthracite.” It makes a perfect hard-wearing, easy-care garment. Jay is wearing the sample in a men’s average fit.

Tramontane is a long-sleeve, crew neck pullover with 1×1 rib trim. This one was a special request from Jackie – it’s the kind of sweater she wears daily through the winter:

I worked this one up in one of my favorite all-time yarns, Harrisville WATERshed, in the color “Granite.” Jackie is wearing a women’s average fit.

Vendavel is a slight update on a regular ribbed cardigan. It features a crew neckline and Garter stitch trim, with 8 luscious buttons:

The sample is in the super kid-friendly Berroco Vintage, in “Cracked Pepper.” Brenna is wearing a child’s close fit.

Or, Build Your Own!

We hope you like the new designs and CustomFit’s new features as much as we do. Of course, if these 3 particular garments don’t scratch your gift-knitting itch, you can also build your own using our handy wizard.

And as we move closer to (or into) the holidays, more designs will follow! In fact, while waiting for some of the code updates yesterday, I grabbed some leftover Rowan Lima for a quickie gift vest:

I have to say, these kid sweaters are pretty addictive!