Flying V's Legwarmers by Lee Meredith

Flying V's Legwarmers

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Knitting
November 2012
Worsted (9 wpi) ?
4.5 stitches = 1 inch
in stockinette
US 8 - 5.0 mm
320 - 430 yards (293 - 393 m)
small, medium, large
English
This pattern is available from leethalknits.com for $7.00.

A big chunk of sales will be donated to an organization doing good somewhere in the world—click to my designer page (Lee Meredith at the top of this page) to find details about where current sales will be going.


These legwarmers are part of a pattern set - for fingerless mitts, mittens, legwarmers, and a cowl - all in your choices of chevron block stranded colorwork patterns!

The PDF includes 16 different chevron colorwork chart options to choose from, ranging from using 2 colors to 5 colors.

You’ll never need to work with more than two yarns at a time, but some prior stranded colorwork experience is recommended, as it can be a bit tricky working the stranded colors with the chevron pattern at the same time. But the results are well worth the effort!

Legwarmer circumferences for small {medium, large} sizes: 13 {15, 17} inches / 33 {38, 43} cm, to fit legs up to 14 {16, 18} inches / 36 {41, 46} cm around.

Small is for adolescents/teens or small adult woman legs, medium is for medium adult woman legs, and large is for large adult woman legs. You can make the length as long as you like. The samples are medium.

Since the fabric won’t stretch much, even if the legwarmers are a perfect fit, they will probably not stay up on bare legs, but they’re great for over leggings or skinny pants, or worn slouchy. You could thread some elastic or a drawstring around the tops if you want them to stay up.


You need
yardages given for small {medium, large} sizes (see sizing section for details)

For legwarmers:

  • 320 {370, 430} yards / 300 {340, 390} meters total worsted weight yarn, in as many colors as you want to use
  • Size US 8 needles (or size to get gauge), in double points or circulars to knit in the round
  • 1 stitch marker

Yardage notes: You won’t need as much if you’re working one of the color patterns which only requires stranded knitting for half the rows. You’ll need more yardage if you’re adding extra length.

Gauge
- For legwarmers or cowl (worsted weight): 4.5 stitches per inch / 3.25 stitches per 2 cm in stockinette stitch.

The samples:

  • Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Tweed worsted weight in Down Heather, North Pole Heather, Dill Heather, and Indigo Heather; size medium legwarmers

Yarn note: A soft yarn (like the merino used in the green cowl) will make for a floppier fabric, so in a yarn like this, a large size cowl will want to flop/slouch down and legwarmers will want to slouch. If you want a piece (particularly legwarmers/cowl) which will be more stable and tend to stay up more, choose a more sturdy yarn type, not something super soft and floppy.

Sizing

Circumferences in small {medium, large} (approximate - sizes may vary based on how tightly strands are carried along the back; fit may vary depending on yarn type, etc)
- Legwarmers: 13 {15, 17} inches / 33 {38, 43} cm, to fit legs up to 14 {16, 18} inches / 36 {41, 46} cm around

Heights in small {medium, large}
(Heights are easily adjustable by knitting more or less for your ideal height; these are the approximate heights as the patterns are written.)
- Legwarmers: 14 inches / 36 cm

Because of the nature of the stranded colorwork, the fabric in these items doesn’t have much stretch, so you may prefer to make a size you think might be a bit too big rather than one you think might be too small, for a looser fit.

Legwarmers: small is for adolescents/teens or small adult woman legs, medium is for medium adult woman legs, and large is for large adult woman legs. You can make the length as long as you like. The samples are medium.
Note for legwarmers: since the fabric won’t stretch much, even if the legwarmers are a perfect fit, they will probably not stay up on bare legs, but they’re great for over leggings or skinny pants, or worn slouchy. You could thread some elastic or a drawstring around the tops if you want them to stay up.

The different sizes in the mitts and legwarmers are made by changing the number of stitches per chevron block.