Sophie

Sophie Knitted Dress by Katya Frankel

What is Being Made

Sophie is a children's knitted dress designed by Katya Frankel, available in eight sizes ranging from 3 months to 8 years. The dress features a fitted silhouette with chest circumferences ranging from 16 inches (40.5cm) for the smallest size to 26.5 inches (67.25cm) for the largest size. This intermediate-level knitting project combines knitted fabric with a woven fabric insert, creating a sophisticated mixed-media garment suitable for everyday wear or special occasions.

Techniques Used

This design employs a combination of knitting and sewing techniques to achieve its finished construction. The primary garment body is knitted using a stitch pattern worked on 3.5mm needles, while a coordinating woven fabric panel is incorporated into the dress design. The integration of knitted and fabric components requires both knitting skills and basic sewing machine work, making this an intermediate project that introduces crafters to mixed-fiber garment construction.

Stitches and Stitch Details

The pattern utilizes fundamental knitting decreases to shape the garment. Key stitches include:

• K2tog – knit 2 stitches together with a right slant, used for shaping and creating decorative decreases
• Ssk – slip 2 stitches individually knitwise, insert the left-hand needle into the fronts of these 2 stitches and knit together, creating a left-leaning decrease

The garment is worked in a stitch pattern that creates a 24 stitch and 36 row gauge over 4 inches (10cm) when measured in pattern. Proper gauge is essential for achieving the correct finished measurements, and knitters are advised to adjust needle size as necessary to match the specified gauge.

Materials and Tools

The dress is knitted using Cotton Glace by Rowan, a 100% cotton yarn that provides a lightweight, breathable fabric ideal for children's garments. Each 50-gram ball yields 115 meters or 137 yards. The sample shown is worked in colorway 724 Bubbles. Yardage requirements vary by size, ranging from 2 balls for the smallest sizes (3 months through 2 years) to 3 balls for the larger sizes (2 through 8 years).

The woven fabric component requires a piece of fabric measuring 34 inches wide by 11.5 to 15.5 inches long for the smaller sizes, or 38 to 42 inches wide by 16.5 to 27 inches long for the larger sizes (measurements in centimeters: 86.5cm wide by 29 to 40cm long, or 96.5 to 106.75cm wide by 42 to 70cm long).

Additional tools required include 3.5mm (US 4) size knitting needles, a tapestry needle for weaving in yarn ends, and a sewing machine for attaching the fabric component and finishing seams.