Anchorage Daily News

Cooler weather makes knitwear feel cozy and appealing. As you dig out the winter clothing, take a good look at your knitwear. In addition to cleaning it, mending snags and tightening loose buttons, it might be time to revamp your sweaters. You might also think about a fresh new look to knit or crochet for this season.

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Color often determines if a garment looks fresh or outdated, so let's begin there. This season's fashion offers a more refined look with a very different color palette. Gray has been reborn after several years of neutral brown and joins the wardrobe staple; black, as this season's must-have color to go with beautiful jewel tones; or Cindy McCain's orange, acid green and turquoise.

Shades of gray found in menswear, such as those a banker or politician might wear, are appearing as the neutral of this year's runway fashions. Charcoal gray, pewter, silver gray and fog gray in wool and even tweed or houndstooth make a serious statement.

It's safe, that's true, but it is also good for knitwear because it creates a wardrobe extender to pair with many options. This means you can spend your yarn budget and precious time knitting up something that will last for several years. In anyone's book, this makes good fashion sense.

The cut of a garment will make it look stylish or "so last year." Runways are crowded with little jackets. Three-quarter sleeves worn over a longer sleeve or bare wrists and bangles are the look of the moment.

Perhaps you can consider shortening your older cardigan sleeves or even rolling them up to create a fresh look. The shorter hem length can be created with ease just by folding the bottom up and sewing the new hem in by hand.

If you are more adventurous, you can snip off the sweater a couple of inches above the bottom cast on stitches, pick up the stitches on your circular needles, knitting downward, and loosely bind off with bigger needles for a flirty new hemline with flair.

Twin sets are making a comeback. That little shell under your matching cardigan is just a wonderful way to layer your knits this winter. Shells are very quick and offer a variety of necklines to compliment your face. Best of all, they don't require much more yarn, making it an inexpensive option.

Buttons and bows are one of the season's easiest tricks. You might update an older cardigan with oversized buttons. Sew on buttons of several different shapes and sizes for a one-of-a kind look. You can open up the buttonholes with a matching thread and a few hours in just one evening. Pin small fabric bows at the collar or at the neckline. Don't take fashion so seriously that you can't have some fun; experiment a little. Try Michelle Obama's trick of pinning several fabric flowers along a neckline.

Texture adds lots of eye appeal. This is the opportunity to let yourself go wild at the yarn store. Mix up a little tweedy wool with your new projects for the perfect compliment to a pair of gray pants or even a plaid skirt. It's a very traditional and timely look.

Stitch patterns, such as houndstooth or moss stitch, add interest to an otherwise boring yarn and allow you to try your hand at a new stitch without reading a complicated chart or stopping to cable. Look at a good knitting book for stitches that were popular several years ago.

Think 1940s. The conservative look of a country at war, where frills and extravagance are too much, often signals that the times are tough, but you can look at these wardrobe options as a good way to recycle your knits and a good reason to get your needles clicking this fall.

Catherine Hollingsworth, interior designer, artist and professional knitwear designer, has lived in Alaska for 18 years. She is interim president of the Alaska State Yarn Council and past president of Knitters of the North. To reach her, e-mail twosticks@adnmail.com.

KNITTERS OF THE NORTH: Open meeting from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Pioneer School House, lower level, Third and Eagle streets. For more information, call Janice Chulick at 561-3933 or visit groups.yahoo.com/group/Knitters_North.

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