Handmade Wardrobe | Dog Star - A Children's Sweater Knitting Pattern

Alex is holding the Dog Star sweater she knitted in size 1-2 years. It’s dark green with a white pattern around the yoke.

I knit the Dog Star pullover by Tin Can Knits for my nephew in the size for a 1-2 year old, but as with all of the Tin Can Knits patterns, you can knit this sweater for the whole family. Sizes start at 0-6months and go up to a 63.5” chest adult.

I love the classic shape and style of this pullover and can’t wait for my nephew to wear it this year.

The Dog Star sweater was a bit too oversized for my nephew at just 1 years old when I bound off. He’ll be turning 2 this winter so I think he will have grown into it nicely when the temperatures drop this year.

Dog Star Children’s Knitting Pattern

Knitted from the bottom up, Tin Can Knits have a whole library of tutorials to help beginners, included one specifically on knitting a bottom up sweater.

I do think think the pattern would be easier to follow if you have some experience knitting sweaters and understand their construction.

A children’s sweater in green and white is folded on a desk next to a basket of yarn and a notions bag and snips. There is a coffee cup in the background and you can see Alex’s hand touching the sweater.

I found that there are a few points in the pattern when they let you decide what techniques to use which I don’t think would be easy for beginners. I would have preferred them to have clear instructions for which increase to use and what sort of ribbing to use for each size for example.

I chose to used the German Twisted Cast On method which is a nice stretchy cast on that is supposed to be durable too. When increasing I decided to do M1L and M1R.

The stitch count I started with was an odd number so I knit a 1x1 rib which has given the cuffs, collar and hem and neat finish.

Be sure to leave really long tails at the underarms. The holes on both sides of my sweater when joining the sleeves where bigger than I expected and I wished I’d had a bit more yarn for sewing up.

The colour work pattern is charted and easy to follow as you’re knitting with only two colours. The longest stretch between colours is just 5 stitches so it’s a great first colour work project with no long floats to manage.

The yoke is shaped a little using short rows before knitting the ribbing at the neck. I cast off using Jeny’s Surprising Stretchy Bind Off.

I hope me sharing the techniques I used is helpful if you’d like to knit your own Dog Star sweater. I’m really pleased with the finished sweater and I think it would look great in an adult size too. It’s such a classic look for winter.

Two colour yoke sweater knitting pattern. Dog Star by Tin Can Knits

Knit Picks Swish DK

This was my first time using Knit Picks Swish DK yarn.

I prefer a yarn like Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Sport which I used for the Field Day cardigan for my own garments as I like more woolliness and structure in a sweater but this yarn is perfect for children and those with sensitive skin.

There is zero itch factor in my opinion and it created a wonderfully soft squishy fabric.

The yarn is machine washable but I chose to wet block the finished sweater in the sink with a little wool wash. I squeezed out the excess water and gently rolled the pullover in a towel to draw out as much water as possible.

The sweater really grew with washing but I was able to manipulate the stitches by massaging them together. With a lot of pushing and pressing with my hands I was able to get the pullover to fit the measurements given in the schematic.

Knit Picks Swish DK comes in a fantastic range of colours. There are 42 shades with a good range of neutrals and rich brighter shades that I’m drawn to when choosing colours.

Knit Picks Swish DK in Rainforest Heather photographed in a basket of yarn.

Knit Picks Swish DK in Rainforest Heather

My sister picked out Rainforest Heather, this beautiful teal shade I used for the body. I had no problems with the dark rich green bleeding into the White which is a bright and clear contrast.

I might experiment with knitting a smaller size now I know how much the yarn can grow with blocking but I would happily use this yarn again, especially when knitting for children. I thought the quality, softness and price were just right for this project.