Fall Knitting Patterns on My Wishlist: Garments, Accessories & More

Fall knitting patterns are officially taking over my brain again. As soon as the weather starts cooling down, I want to cast on everything at once. Sweaters finally make sense again, cozy yarn starts looking irresistible, and somehow my project queue gets longer every time I open Ravelry or flip through a knitting book.

So, naturally, I’ve been collecting another batch of projects I’d love to knit this season. Some are very realistic, some are a little ambitious, and some are on the list simply because they were too cute to ignore.

Fall Knitting Patterns for Garments

Garments usually take up the biggest part of my knitting wishlist. Smaller projects are fun too, but I really love finishing something I can actually wear, especially once fall and winter finally give knitwear a reason to exist.

This year, I seem to be drawn to vests, cable sweaters, and, unsurprisingly, cardigans.

Hyldemoer Vest by Yuko Shimizu

The Hyldemoer Vest by Yuko Shimizu caught my attention because of the X-shaped detail on the back. I kept looking at it and wondering exactly how that section is constructed, and that kind of curiosity is usually enough to make me save a pattern.

I also like that the vest seems to include several interesting techniques instead of being completely straightforward. One of the things I enjoy most about knitting now is figuring out how different constructions actually work, so patterns with an unusual detail tend to stay in my head for a while.

I knitted a vest before and had a lot of fun with that project. I talked more about it in Top Sol Vest knitting post, if you want to see how that one turned out. Since the Top Sol Vest felt much more like a summer piece, I started looking for something that would work better for fall, and the Hyldemoer Vest fits that mood perfectly. I also really love the yarn color used in the sample. The whole thing just looks like fall to me.

After School Sweater by Yeodawool

I’ve been saying for a while that I want to properly try cables, so the After School Sweater by Yeodawool feels like a very good candidate for my first real cable sweater. It’s available as a free knitting pattern on Doanity, which is already a big plus, but what really made me save it is that the cables don’t look too overwhelming.

There’s enough detail to make the sweater interesting, but it still looks approachable enough that I don’t immediately regret my decision just from looking at the photos. That’s basically what I want from a first cable project: I want to learn something, but I don’t necessarily want my first attempt to involve an enormous chart and constant panic.

Out of all the sweater knitting patterns on this list, this is probably one of the most realistic candidates to actually make it onto my needles soon.

Swing Rope Sweater from 糸とあみもの この糸で編みたい、素材感を楽しむニット

Then there’s the sweater I want to knit after I convince myself that I know what I’m doing with cables. The Swing Rope sweater is included in the Japanese knitting book 糸とあみもの この糸で編みたい、素材感を楽しむニット, and the cable design is exactly the kind of thing I want to work up to.

Compared with the After School Sweater, this one looks a little more intimidating to me, so in my perfectly organized imaginary plan, I’ll knit the free pattern first, get comfortable with cables, and then move on to this one. Whether I’ll actually follow that sensible order is another question.

I have a habit of choosing projects because they look interesting rather than because they match my current skill level, so there is always a chance I’ll suddenly decide I’m ready and cast this one on first. Either way, I’d really like to get at least one cable sweater off this wishlist and onto my needles this fall or winter.

Camélia Cardigan by Soumine Kim

I love cardigans. I wear them constantly in fall and winter, and I even carry one around in summer because I get cold so easily indoors. So if I see a cardigan knitting pattern I like, I can usually find a reason why I absolutely need another one.

The Camélia Cardigan by Soumine Kim is one of the more ambitious projects on this list. The colorwork looks like it would take quite a bit of concentration, and it definitely doesn’t look like something I could knit while half watching TV and barely looking at my hands. But that’s also part of why I want to try it.

I’ve made a few cardigans before, including a Kiki Cardigan that became one of the pieces I reached for again and again. I shared more about that project in this cardigan knitting post. I’ve also made a granny square cardigan with crochet, so cardigans are definitely one of those projects I keep coming back to in different forms.

1988 Cardigan by Hannah Kim

The 1988 Cardigan by Hannah Kim is another one that immediately went into my “one day I’m going to knit this” category. The colorwork looks fairly challenging, but I love how much pattern there is across the entire cardigan. I’ve wanted to knit a garment covered in repeated motifs like this at least once, even though I know it would require much more attention than my usual relaxing stockinette projects.

This is also one of the knitting patterns where I don’t really feel like changing the colors. Usually, choosing yarn colors is one of my favorite parts of starting a new project, but with this cardigan, I really like the designer’s original palette and would probably follow it pretty closely if I ever knit it.

It looks like the kind of project that would take a while, but also the kind that would be extremely satisfying once that final row is done.

Aster Cardigan by Irene Lin

The Aster Cardigan by Irene Lin made it onto my wishlist for a slightly different reason: I’ve already knitted one of Irene Lin’s designs, and I know I like her style. I wore that piece a lot earlier this year, which is always the best endorsement I can give a knitting project. You can see more of that project in this video.

The Aster Cardigan also has that relaxed, slightly oversized shape I tend to love. I’m much more likely to reach for a roomy cardigan that I can throw over almost anything than something very fitted or structured.

So while some of the fall knitting patterns on this list are here because I want to learn a new technique, this one is mostly here because I can already imagine myself living in it. And honestly, that may be the strongest reason of all.

Fall Knitting Projects for Accessories and More

I can’t spend the entire season knitting sweaters and cardigans—at least probably not—so I also have a few smaller projects on my list. Some are familiar, some would be completely new to me, and a couple are here mainly because I have absolutely no resistance to cute knitting projects.

Another Shawl from 52 Weeks of Shawls

I already knitted one shawl from 52 Weeks of Shawls, and I’m actually thinking about making another one. That’s slightly surprising because shawls have never really been my favorite thing to knit. I don’t think I had ever even knitted a scarf before that project, so it definitely wasn’t something I naturally gravitated toward.

The shawl was a gift, though, and seeing how happy the recipient was with it made the whole project feel much more special.

Since the book has so many different designs, I’m thinking about choosing another one for a future gift. I probably still wouldn’t call myself a shawl knitter, but apparently I’m willing to make exceptions.

Cat Hand Warmers from Knit Latvian Mittens

I bought Knit Latvian Mittens: 19 Projects with Traditional Latvian Patterns to Knit because I saw the Cat Hand Warmers and immediately decided that I needed them. Very reasonable purchasing decision.

I’ve never knitted mittens or gloves before, so technically, I could choose something very simple for my first attempt. Instead, I apparently want to begin with patterned Latvian mittens featuring tiny cats.

The two-color pattern actually looks fairly manageable, which is part of why I thought these would be a good first mitten project. They’re cute, they don’t look overly complicated, and they seem like a nice way to get used to mitten construction without adding too much difficulty at once. If I enjoy making them, I’d love to try some of the other designs in the book afterward—especially the ones with more colors and more intricate traditional patterns.

Snoopy Walking Bag Knitting Kit from Hobbyra Hobbyre

The Snoopy Walking Bag Knitting Kit from Hobbyra Hobbyre has already had a much longer journey than most projects I haven’t even cast on yet. I visited Hobbyra Hobbyre during my trip to Japan. I wanted the Snoopy Walking Bag kit while I was there, but I wasn’t able to buy it in person. So naturally, I went home and eventually ordered it online anyway. Now the kit is actually here, which means I’ve lost my best excuse for not starting it.

I usually spend most of my knitting time on garments, so a small knitted bag feels like a nice change. It should also be a good project to work on between bigger sweaters, especially when I want to knit something without committing to another weeks-long garment. Also: it’s Snoopy. That alone is doing a lot of the work here.

Knitted Amigurumi from ツムギコウボウが編む 棒針編みのあみぐるみ

One of my recent favorite knitting book purchases is ツムギコウボウが編む 棒針編みのあみぐるみ by Tsumugi Kobo. I had already seen the book online before my Japan trip and thought the dolls were adorable, so it had been sitting somewhere in the back of my mind for a while. Then I found the actual book while shopping at Okadaya, along with one of the small kits from the same collection.

At that point, I was pretty much done for, so I ended up buying both.

The dolls in this book are exactly my kind of cute. They have such a simple, slightly quirky look, and I love that they’re made with knitting needles rather than crochet. I see so many crocheted amigurumi patterns, but knitted dolls still feel a little more unusual to me.

I haven’t made anything from the book yet, but I’ll probably start with the little kit I picked up at Okadaya. If I enjoy making it, I’d love to go back to the book and try more of the dolls afterward. They’re small, adorable, and feel like the perfect break when I’ve been working on a sweater for too long.

Which Fall Knitting Project Should I Cast On First?

At this point, the real question is what I should cast on first. The After School Sweater feels like the sensible choice if I want to finally get comfortable with cables, but the Snoopy kit is already waiting for me, and I know the cardigans are going to become even more tempting as soon as the weather gets colder.

I probably won’t get to everything on this list, and that’s fine. Half the fun of fall knitting is having way too many projects to choose from anyway.

Now I just need to pick one.