I'm going to share my truth with you right here: I LOVE summer knitting (and crochet, even though it's not my realm of expertise). I am always so incredibly inspired in the summer. I get so much more knitting done and I wear so much more of my knitting in the summer. The extra hours of daylight make me feel like I've got more knitting time, and I get so productive!
First of all, our climate does not lend itself to wearing heavy woolens. I feel like I get to wear my winter sweaters once or twice a year and then it's spring and they go back in the mothballs for 8 or 9 months.
Linen, cotton, viscose -- the summer fibers -- can be worn almost all year. I wear my summer t-shirts, tanks, and cardigans so many times that I have to have a Big Washing at least a couple of times each summer. I can wear a summer knit every day of the week and it suits the weather fine! And the washability of summer fibers is LEGENDARY. Linen wears like iron and gets softer the rougher you are with it. Cotton can be treated like a DISHCLOTH and still look great. No fuss!
My wardrobe suits itself to summer knitwear perfectly. I'm a BIG wearer of summer dresses. That's very much my style. And no matter where you go, the air condititioning is BLASTING. All of my summer dresses are sleeveless or short sleeve, so those little popover tees, lightweight cardigans, and drapey wraps don't just look great with the outfits, they keep my arms from freezing in restaurants and offices.
INSTANT GRATIFICATION! Short sleeves, sleeveless, cropped, loosely knit -- all the tricks that make summer projects appropriate for the weather also make them FAST! You can blast through 2-3 summer tops in the time it takes to make one warm, toasty, cabled, fuzzy cardigan!
And finally (not because I'm out of reasons to love summer garments but because how much can I expect you to read?) the ease of designing and modifying these light summer garments allows me to super customize everything I make in the summer. These looser, flowy tops don't need as much strict adherence to rules of gauge, to mathematically flawless size grading, or to perfectly following the measurements of my body. A boxy cropped top can have anywhere from 2" of ease to 12" of ease and it still looks great over a sleeveless shirt dress. The forgiving fit makes for a forgiving knit!
Friends, summer knitting and crocheting is THE BEST. I've got stacks of great summer patterns and mountains of gorgeous summer yarn, and I HAVE IDEAS! If you're feeling uninspired by our back-and-forth weather, come visit and let me get you excited about summer!!
--Dana
