Starting early enough
The honest first question for a Christmas jumper is not which design but when you are starting. An adult sweater in DK is a two-month project for most people knitting in the evenings; the same design in chunky might take a fortnight. Colourwork adds time, and intarsia motifs add finishing time on top of knitting time. If it is already late autumn, choose chunky yarn and opt for a patterned yoke rather than an all-over design, and accept that a child's jumper is a far more achievable target than an adult one.
Types of festive jumpers
- Traditional colourwork: Fair Isle and Nordic bands, snowflakes, stars and reindeer worked in stranded knitting, usually across a yoke. While festive, they are still wearable well beyond December!
- Novelty: Christmas puddings, snowmen, robins and elves, often worked in intarsia with applied details, pompoms and sometimes a bell or two.
- Motif-on-plain: a single large chart on the front of an otherwise plain jumper — the least knitting for the most impact.
- Children's and baby versions: quick projects where the loudest designs are most welcome.
- Matching sets: family jumpers in the same chart at several sizes, plus dog versions.
Stranded or intarsia?
The two colourwork methods behave completely differently and it is worth knowing which a pattern uses before you commit. Stranded knitting carries both colours along the whole round and suits repeating motifs like snowflakes; keep the floats relaxed by spreading the stitches on the right needle before carrying a colour across. Intarsia uses a separate small ball for each block of colour and suits one big isolated motif, such as a single pudding on the chest; it is worked flat, and each colour change means twisting the yarns at the back to avoid a hole. Intarsia knits up faster but leaves you far more ends to weave in.
Yarn, tension and size
Wool and wool blends are the traditional choice for colourwork because the fibres grip each other and even out small tension differences after blocking. Acrylic and washable blends are the practical choice for a child's jumper that will be worn to school parties and covered in chocolate. Whatever you choose, swatch in the stranded pattern rather than in plain stocking stitch, because colourwork almost always knits at a different tension. Choose your size from the pattern's finished chest measurement compared with a jumper you already wear, and remember Christmas jumpers are usually worn with a bit of room.
Novelty details and finishing
The applied extras are what make a novelty jumper, and they are also what makes it unwashable if you are careless. Sew pompoms, bobbles and knitted appliqués on securely with the project yarn, and think twice about bells or beads on anything for a small child. Block the pieces before seaming so the colourwork settles into an even fabric — this step transforms a slightly puckered yoke. Weave ends along the direction of the stitches, and on intarsia use the ends to close up any small gaps at colour changes.
Storing it for next year
A Christmas jumper spends eleven months in a cupboard. Wash it after the season rather than before, dry it flat, and store folded with a lavender or cedar sachet if it is wool, since moths are the main threat to something that sits untouched. Never hang it wet, and never store it in a sealed plastic bag, which traps moisture.
Christmas jumper questions
Are there Christmas jumper knitting patterns for adults? Yes, this collection covers adult sizes as well as children's and baby designs.
How long does one take to knit? Anything from a fortnight for a chunky adult jumper to a couple of months for a DK colourwork design, so start in good time.
Which is easier, Fair Isle or intarsia? Fair Isle is easier to keep tidy on a repeating pattern; intarsia is quicker for one large motif but leaves more ends to weave in.
Can a beginner make one? Yes — choose a plain chunky jumper with a single motif or an appliquéd design rather than an all-over chart.
Can I make matching family jumpers? Many patterns are graded across child and adult sizes; see also knitting patterns for dogs for the fourth family member.
