The Ziggurat Method
NEW!!: sign up for my standalone Ziggurat Masterclass (KnitStars)
T h e Z i g g u r a t m e t h o d
- tailored & top down
- seamless
- simultaneous set-in sleeves
- simultaneous neck-shaping
- built-in everything (pockets, buttonband, seamlessly lined hems
- absolutely minimal sewing in of ends
A Ziggurat pullover is knitted seamlessly and top down with simultaneously set in sleeves and neckline (and other) shaping, buttonbands, pockets… the whole shebang.
You knit in a zigging and zagging manner to create each shoulder in turn before normal knitting in the round begins. The yarn is cut only when absolutely necessary – so there are very few ends to sew in. In fact, if your were to knit from a huge skein with yardage enough for the whole sweater, you would have precisely 6 ends to weave in at the end.
a t y p i c a l Z i g g u r a t p u l l o v e r
t h e s t a r t o f a t y p i c a l Z i g g u r a t c a r d i g a n
s t r u c t u r e w i t h o u t s e a m s o r s e w i n g
I like these wrong-side pictures – in classes I pass this swatch around. It gives a clear idea of what you are constructing. It also shows that there is indeed structure, without seams or sewing. The selvedges created by picking up stitches in cast ons provide sturdy yet stretchy joining points or lines.
t h e b a s i c p r i n c i p l e is the same since the very first Ziggurat back in 2011: you cast on for back and shoulders, then work the back and front shoulders in turn while also creating tailored sleeve caps, all in one continuous piece without cutting or joining yarn or pieces. Along the way, I have tweaked the Ziggurat steps and refined details. And designed new pockets and cuffs. And things.
The Ziggurat Method is indebted to and inspired by Tuulia Salmela’s Tailored Sweater Method.
t h e Z i g g u r a t s t e p s a r e a l w a y s f a m i l i a r
(Steps 1–5, colour coded)
One feature of every Ziggurat pattern is that the Steps are instantly recognisable from one pattern to another. As are the shaping instructions.
In every Ziggurat pattern they are coded and displayed in the same way.
Step 6: colour-coded sleeve, neck, and body increases
sleeve increases (sM1) are always red
neck increases (nM1) are always green
body increases (bM1) are always blue
They are coded that way in the written instructions, and also in the (surprisingly helpful!) Helpful Table that has been a signature feature since the start. This means that once you’ve knitted just one Ziggurat sweater you’ll be able to navigate through any other Ziggurat pattern with ease.
a d d i t i o n a l g u i d a n c e
You’ll find more photos and guidance in Ziggurats: 16 elegantly seamless knits, where there are also closeups of how and exactly where you pick up stitches for the sleeve caps and other tricksy bits, including how to read and make good use of the Helpful Table.
Z i g g u r a t C l a s s
a h e l p f u l v i d e o
If the construction sounds odd, you get good a overview of the Ziggurat method in this FruityKnitting video interview; coaxed and coached by the host, Andrea, I explain the steps and the many virtues of Ziggurating.
a n o t h e r h e l p f u l 3 0 – s e c o n d v i d e o
Here is a breezy Instagram video of Steps 1–6 for a recent design. The Basic Steps are the same for all Ziggurats with some slight variations for cardigans (the buttonband is built in) and other sweaters with built-in neck edging.
l i s t o f b r e e z y i n s t a g r a m t u t o r i a l v i d e o s
Use the direct links on this (Ravelry) page to go straight to each tutorial (available also without an Instagram account)
l e t h e l p f u l k n i t t e r s h e l p y o u
For your first Ziggurat you may nevertheless have to knit on trust and not worry about some of the moves seemingly not making sense. If you’re stumped you are likely to find very good advice and cheering on from the friendly knitters in the Åsa Tricosa Group on Ravelry.
I encourage you to drop by!
h a l l m a r k s o f t h e Z i g g u r a t M e t h o d
t a i l o r e d
A tailored fit with set-in sleeves that is easily modified to
accommodate disobedient body parts.
The shoulders look almost sculpted, no?
a l l – i n – o n e
Ziggurat is true all-in-one-everything-built-in-as-you-go.
v e r y ( v e r y ) f e w e n d s
If you were knitting from a huge skein with yardage enough for the
whole sweater, you would have precisely 6 ends to weave in at the
end.
- 1 at the top for the cast on
- 1 at the bottom hem after pulling the yarn through the final cast-off stitch
- 2 for each sleeve (1 at underarm pickup, 1 at cuff)
There are some exceptions for I realise that not all knitters are pigheadedly
adhering strictly to principles for principles‘ sake.
There are several good reasons for leaving the collar until last, not
least that it’s nice to leave things open – you may while knitting
change your mind several times about what will look best. Moreover,
a collar added on last can easily be undone and reknitted.
That said, some Ziggurat designs begin with the collar.
n o s e a m i n g
I have nothing against sewing per se. I just like to keep sewing and
knitting apart.
n o c u t t i n g
This is really in the interest of saving ends to weave in.
And also for the beauty of the challenge of sticking to principles.
And for the integrity of a treasured yarn – this is not just a silly idée fixe. No, for it leaves the yarn intact should you decide to frog (unravel) your sweater to start over.
n o j o i n i n g
There are no separate little pieces or schnipzels to join. You start at
the top, and then zig and zag in a rather clever manner to the end,
creating a tailored look and fit along the way.
In my designs, you will find optional waist shaping, bust darts, a sneaky way of adding space for a prominent bootie, built-in pockets – or you can add your own details.
w h e n i t ‚ s d o n e i t ‚ s d o n e
When done knitting, the garment is and looks finished, trims, buttonbands, hems, cuffs. All of it. Well ok, except the collars on (most) pullovers – the collars on cardigans are, so far, built in, even when they’re a little pesky to get started.
And some very few ends to weave in. That’s it.
s t r i p e s & s t i t c h p a t t e r n s
One simply cannot have too many stripes. However, striped Ziggurats present an additional challenge.
For symmetry (intended asymmetry is good, unintended, well… often not so good) each version has to be worked out individually.The 6-row striped cardigan will have its Ziggurat turns in a different place than the 4-row pullover, and the 6-row pullover at a different place again.
The same holds for other stitch patterns. More of those to come in Book The Next (a wip with no set publication date… yet).
a d d i c t i v e
A word of warning: Ziggurating is a bit addictive. I will not be held responsible.
a d a p t a b l e
Ziggurat designs are adaptable and easy to modify, especially if you make use of the Helpful Table to guide you between sizes.
You may, for example, have narrower shoulders than usual for your standard size. Solution: cast on for a smaller size but follow increases and stitch counts for your desired size and ease to accommodate bust and other measurements.
Try your sweater on as you go! The beauty of Ziggurating (and other top-down designs) is that you can get a good idea of the fit without sewing and before blocking and drying.
z i g g u r a t d e s i g n s
You can find all Åsa Tricosa Ziggurat sweaters and tops here.
The most basic Ziggurat is Simple Ziggurat (the photo at top of this page).
My book, Åsa Tricosa Ziggurats: 16 elegantly seamless knits is a selection of very knittable pullovers and cardigans along with plenty of detailed tutorials for both novices and advanced knitters.
d e s i g n i n g w i t h t h e Z i g g u r a t m e t h od
Please do! – with proper credit to Ziggurat method by Åsa Tricosa
(contact me if you wish permission to use also tutorial steps and/or graphics)
Designer Ann Kingstone features two sweaters using the Ziggurat method in her book, Lace Knits: Magical Methods for Openwork Knitting.
s o m e e a r l y z i g g u r a t s . . .
Want to know what’s up my knitted sleeve? Sign up for the occasional Åsa Tricosa Newsletter.
49 Comments
This looks *very* interesting! Off to investigate my copy of Strrripes!
Dear Åsa
Happy New Year
Do you have a video showing how to assemble stitches in Zuggurat Tricnique.
I have purchased in the fall Stripey Ahoy! I finally started on. I now turn to Step 4 and having a little trouble though I have studied the pictures many times.
Sincerely,
Tove Bjerg
Denmark
Oh dear… it’s now a bit late for a reply… Did you find your way around the Ziggurating already? If not, you could come to a workshop this summer!
åsa
[…] trying to finish a Ziggurat cardigan to wear to Unravel this weekend, and of course I had last-minute button panic. I had nice […]
[…] pattern Messing About in Boats, one of her very clever top-down garments that uses her Ziggurat […]
Greetings from Toronto.
What amazing work – congratulations! I’m so inspired by your sweaters I need to make one immediately. Are they really seamless?
I looked but couldn’t find tutorials or instructions. Are they for sale?
Thank you!!
Hello Nina (hello Toronto) !
Yes, truly seamless… it’s a bit of an obsession of mine (I also don’t like to cut the yarn if not absolutely necessary). There are photo tutorials in the patterns themselves and also links to techniques. My patterns are for sale via Ravelry on my Ravelry Designer page (there are links to that page from each design here, too). Thanks for asking – and welcome to Ziggurating!
p.s. You don’t have to be a member of Ravelry to access the patterns, but every knitter should be! (membership is free).
[…] into a certain gauge to make a particular pattern. The added bonus is that I get to try out the ziggurat construction, knit a pattern by someone I admire and just experiment a […]
I’m about to order yarn for this beautiful sweater. I have a 34.5 bust. Does the 36 inch give me enough ease?
Yes, I would say so! The important measurement and the guiding measurement is the cross-shoulder measurement. As you are knitting top-down you can try the garment on to see/feel how it fits and if it seems too tight, add one or two increases (this is explained in the pattern) to accommodate a bust that is perhaps larger than the shoulder size. But yes, there is ease built into the pattern (Simple Ziggurat and also all otherZiggurats).
Now I’m curious which yarn you are ordering…
å.
[…] Ja is (of course) knitted with the Åsa Tricosa Ziggurat method: all in one go from top to bottom, not a seam in sight. The Ja Ja jacket is also a rather […]
Even after reading through the revelry discussions, I am still completely stuck on step 4 of bambasala. Do you have a video showing how to complete step 4? Thanks!
[…] pleases me no end that Ann features my Ziggurat technique for two designs in her book Lace Knits: Magical Methods for Openwork Knitting — the Springwood […]
I have just started on Stripes Ahoy, but am completely stumped on Step 4 which is the right cap and shoulder seam, I have not knitted for many years and this is a completely new way to knit for me, I have looked at pictures and any info I can, but am really not sure how to proceed, I would really appreciate some help on this please!
Hello there! You are doing well as a beginner knitter to have got past Step 3! It’s difficult for me to know exactly how to help you without more specifics. If you are a member of Ravelry (well, if you’re not, I strongly encourage you to become one – it’s free) you can post questions and, more importantly, photos of what or where you are stumped. There are many helpful knitters on hand to help out and suggest solutions – sometimes better than my own as they have knitted the patterns from the same instructions you are using (whereas I knit from my head…). Here is a link to my Ravelry Group. (And here is a link to the thread dedicated specifically to Stripes Ahoy!)
Hi,
I saw Simple Ziggurat technique and i would like to buy the pdf, I read that there is the Italian version, but when purchasing with paypal in the choices there are only versions in English, French, Spanish and Chinese missing the choice of version in Italian. How can I buy pdf in Italian? Thanks.
Hello there!
From where are you trying to buy the pattern, I wonder!
If it is being sold in Spanish and Chinese it’s certainly a pirate (stolen) copy of my pattern – if you buy via Ravelry (and PayPal) you get download links for English, German, and Italian.
Thanks for writing and knit with abandon!
Asa,
Apologies for not using the accent marks on your name. I have no idea where to find them.
I discovered your new method (well new to me) accidentally. Seamless sweaters are the way to go.
I have knitted a few, three to be exact. I like the look of your sweaters better though.
Can’t wait to purchase some. The yarn you use, can it be found in the US?
Your English is perfect, better than mine. My German is only spoken and very limited at that. I loved my time in Berlin (West at them time)
Thank you,
Maureen Martinek
Hello Maureen!
Some yarns I use can indeed be found in the US – or very similar yarns. If you look at the patterns on Raverly you can find alternative yarn suggestions and many projects by knitters who have used different yarns. In my forthcoming book I offer suggestions for both hand-dyed and more readily available commercial yarns.
Thanks for asking!
åsa
p.s. My English ought to be passable as I lived in the US for more than 20 years. I just wish my German were better (it’s pitiful) now that I live here (I’m Swedish). 😉
How is your method different from Barbara G. Walter’s method in „Knitting from the Top“? To me they look pretty much the same. Not trying to be snippy, just wondering.
Hello Kathi!
The short answer: I don’t know!
For the simple reason that I haven’t knitted with B Walker’s method – unless it is what inspired Tuulia Salmela’s „The Tailored Sweater Method“. The Ziggurat technique is indeed inspired by Tuulia’s method (as mentioned in the web post above and in many of my patterns). I’m delighted to be a knitter and inventor and unventor in a long and clever tradition of knitters. But I also like to figure things out for myself, even as I realise that this doesn’t mean that every little improvement or invention has never been thought of before me. Some haven’t. Some have.
I would guess, for example, that the carefully worked out zigs and zags to achieve symmetry for stripes and stitch patterns, while still knitting everything in one piece and without cutting the yarn may be unique. Or maybe not. But if you want a better answer, you’ll have to try Ziggurating and then report back on differences!
Happy knitting!
Hej Åsa
Any good reason I shouldn’t make „bajads“ in a two- row stripe? Made the swatch that way and really love it. Have not ziggurated before, and don’t want to make it harder.
Vänlig hälsning Marianne
Hej Marianne!
I would have to think… it may be eminently possible – the thing is that I work out the striping sequence in a rather involved diagramme to make sure that the turns happen on rows that create symmetry on both sleeves and all around. (So the turns are made on different rows for a 4-stripe pattern, a 6-stripe pattern, and different again whether it’s a pullover or a cardigan). It’s possible that you can knit a 2-row version of bajads without trouble. Also: there is no law against cutting the yarn to switch to the other colour in certain spots if that helps you keep your 2-row pattern. It’s just that I have this slight obsession with never cutting the yarn if at all possible to avoid… you don’t have to adopt it!
åsa
Just found you today Asa. I was looking forward a short knitting holiday. A pitty the dates don’t match with my agenda. I subscribed on your newsletter and was so glad to Read about the Ziggurat sweater. You’re on my bucketlist of knittingadentures!
Kind regards,
Anke Visser
Nederland
Thank you! I hope to see you at some knitting event or other in the future!
åsa
This is wonderful and so interesting, I should try your method, I will launch my first open cardigan pattern in august and definily I will apply your method on my next designs.
Greetings from Venice!
Lilia Vanini
I would like to try this method. The fit looks great
this give me hope i can make sweaters for myself some day.
Of course you can!
Hej, Asa!
I’m fascinated by your Ziggurat-Method of knitting sweaters and cardigans in one piece top down. I wonder if it would be possible to transfer a common bottom up-pattern to this method? What do you think? I saw a wonderful cardigan in a pattern book which I would like to make but it is bottom up and sewn. I would be happy to knit it in your way.
Besides, I live in Ilmenau, very near to Erfurt!
Best wishes from Manuela
Hello Manuela!
Yes, absolutely. I know several examples of such conversions – some Ziggurateurs knit all their sweaters in this way and happily combine the method with other patterns/designs/methods. For inspiration you might take a look at projects on Ravelry.
Cheerio!
åsa
p.s. You are welcome to join the Erfurt knitters on any of their (our… I don’t always make it) Stricktreffen.
I don’t understand the LOOP to accomodate more stitches. Can you please explain it to me. I found this abbreviation in a pattern for Simple ZiggurHat. Many thanks, Lidia
You pull on the Left Needle tip (stitches slide onto the cable) and the pull out enough of a length of cable to allow you to loop/bend it – the looped cable allows you to continue to knit at 90º angle (to pick up the stitches for the front shoulder).
In every Ziggurat pattern and in the tutorial section of the book there is a photo illustrating the LOOP.
It’s essentially half a Magic Loop (if you do a search you’ll find oodles of tutorials for Magic Loop).
Hi Asa
I am sorry this is not so much to do with knitting details as a query re your eBook. I have asked here cause I cannot find where to otherwise contact you.
I am in Australia, and would love to get your Ziggurat e-Book. Is it possible to get it without the hard copy book, as postage would be HUGE and also time may be an issue?
Thanks for your consideration,
Lucy
Hello there! Yes, I realise postage to Australia can indeed be forbidding. You can purchase and download the eBook via Ravelry (here). Thanks for writing!
There was indications individual patterns will be available. Where can I find the Sweet Laurel pattern?
Sweet Laurel is not yet available as a single pattern. So far only a handful have become avaialable. All should be available before the end of the year. Thank you for asking! (And sorry for the very late reply.)
I love the Tric Sweater. I want to make this for my next project. My only problem is trying to find out what size to make. I usually wear a medium in a sweater. The suggestion for the amount of yarn, needed to buy seems to be less than necessary to make the sweater in the pattern. I think what is suggested is less than 1,000 yards for a medium sweater. I would appreciate suggestions on how to decide on buying enough yarn to make the sweater. I plan to use the Madelinetosh DK. Has anyone had any problems with not having enough yarn to finish the sweater? The yarn requirements on the pattern is 790 to 1100. I posted to the Tric Thread…no response on how much yarn to buy for the project or comments on the yarn requirements. Thanks in advance.
Hello Deborah!
I think someone did reply? Of course, I am not sure whether it was you who posted that same question, but there is anyway a reply here.
I hope that helps.
Cheerio! /Åsa
I have a silly question. I am knitting a size based on my back shoulder width. Based on my bust size, I need to complete 3 additional body increase rows to get me from a 32 to a 36. Once I have completed those increases, I would assume I then follow the rest of the pattern based on size 36 rather than the 32 that I started with. This is my first attempt at Ziggurat and am REALLY enjoying it. The book is exceptionally written and very easy to follow.
It’s not a silly question! I’m just sorry it has taken me so long to find it! Sorry! The answer, belatedly, is yes! 🙂
If you want more speedy responses or wish to show off your since long finished sweater, you are welcome to stop by the Åsa Tricosa Group on Ravelry. We are a friendly and helpful bunch of knitters. Knit with abandon! /åsa
Where can I purchase your book?
Hello Melanie!
The book is available from Shephardess (here). Thank you for asking!
Hallo, guten Tag,
ich schreibe aus München.
Ich bin durch Zufall auf Ihre Strick-„Technik“, TopDown und eingestrickten Ärmel zu stricken.
Ich finde dazu leider keine komplette Anleitung.
Können Sie mir helfen, ich wäre sehr dankbar dafür.
Maria aus München
Hallo Maria!
Sie können die Anleitungen auf Ravelry finden: hier.
(You can find my patterns on Ravelry).
Grüße aus Dänemark
Hej Asa , er nogle af dine kurser på dansk
Hej Helle!
Ja, det sker! I september underviser jeg på den underbare strikkefestivel, Nordby Wooldays Fanø. Det kunne ske at jeg underviser på en strikkebutik her eller der – jeg er åben for forslag! Tak fordi du skrev. Knit with abandon! Åsa
Thank you Åsa for your amazing ziggurat sweater designs! As a dressmaker I appreciate that you address the need to start knitting a top down sweater based on one’s shoulder measurement and then appropriately increase for the bust!! So often designers don’t address this and either the neckline is too big or the chest is too small.
I’ve read many of your patterns and just love to see your attention to the real fit of women’s bodies!
Thank you!!
Hello Kathy!
It pleases me no end that a dressmaker likes my way of knitting sweaters. Thank you!
It is a shame that sewers and knitters often don’t make use of the fantastic advantage we have by making our own garments – we can bypass off-the-shelf unhelpful sizing and create garments that fit. Magic!
Thank you so much for writing!
Åsa