you want size inclusive patterns

What matters to me

The most important tenet of my business is inclusivity. I have written here and elsewhere about what you can do to make patterns size inclusive, and so even just professionally, knowingly purchasing patterns that are not size inclusive isn’t the right move for me. Designers who are not interested in size inclusivity or making their patterns more accessible to all sizes of knitters are not my right people.

Supporting designers who are endeavoring to be size inclusive, and supporting and educating those in the industry who want to learn more about it and implement these ideals in their own work is where I belong. It’s something I care about in my work, but supporting these patterns also feels good to me, personally. It is vitally important to large swaths of the population that size inclusive designing is fostered and encouraged and made better, and that matters a lot to me. It doesn’t mean there aren’t gorgeous patterns out there that neglect lots of sizes. There are, gorgeous ones. What matters more to me than the gorgeous part is the neglectful part.

The results

I ran a poll last week, asking all of you if you purchased patterns that were not size inclusive if they worked for your size, and the results were over 60% that yes, you do. I get it. Most of us make choices in life based on what is best for us first, nailing that down, and making secondary choices that are best for others. Often it takes personal experience with something to get us to make a choice that has a greater purpose instead of a simpler one that benefits only us. Without that personal experience, change like this, like supporting only size inclusive patterns, takes a long time.

What’s cool is the over 30% of you who are only purchasing size inclusive patterns! I understand that people reading this are generally interested in size inclusivity and enthusiastic about it, but STILL. Still very cool. Maybe they have personal experiences that lead them to purchase this way, or maybe they have realized that choosing patterns in this way, even if they are mid-sized, is better for them too, better for all of us. Because that’s the truth. This is the case with most things in life that we feel called to support.

The process of individual change

It’s a process, isn’t it? Learning about something, internalizing it, learning more about it, forgetting about it, thinking it doesn’t affect you, learning more about it, sharing about it, considering it, realizing the impact, then the impact you could have, maybe making different decisions around it.

I think we end up making different decisions about it (whatever it is), if we do consider it, because the end of that considering process is usually: “Wow, that is fucked up.” If you don’t have personal experience with something, and you go through this process, this is often the case! You will literally say that, and then you will make different decisions when you have the opportunity to make them.

It's the same way with size inclusivity and supporting those patterns. So many knitters are left out of knitting garments, and you have to remember, they’re already left out of purchasing garments. How devastating to face the injustice of not being able to purchase the clothing you need, then also not have the option to make it. That is real. The only way to change that is how we change anything, by sharing and educating and putting our money where our mouth is.

We all need those patterns

If you are mid-sized and you’re still wondering what it has to do with you, or why you might make a different decision, consider this too: designers who are working hard to make their patterns size inclusive and are sharing measurements are conscientious.

They are already working on making their patterns better. Better than what came before. They are working on making the fit of their items better, more consistent. Better for all knitters. Good fit is good fit. You can bet that if a designer has made sure the pattern will work for the smallest and largest sizes, that they worked hard on that for the middle sizes too.

The best way to make these patterns better, and to have more of them, is to support the people creating them by buying their patterns. And then scores and scores of knitters in the largest and smallest sizes glowing in their beautifully-fitting knits (like mid-sized knitters are all over the place, all the time).

Yeah, but

If you see a pattern you love and it includes your size, but isn’t size inclusive:

1. Check the designer’s other patterns.

2. Are they all limited sizes?

3. Only the older ones?

4. Are the measurements available for their designs?

Can you tell from this information if they are currently making different choices themselves to be more size inclusive?

Don’t hesitate to send them a message:

1. Ask if they are working on it.

2. If they aren’t, ask them why.

Their answers will be all you need to determine whether or not you want to buy their pattern. Your decision will get you thinking even more about it. Independent thought is part of this process of change, so it’s important to know your ‘why’. Because no matter where we spend our money, we want to be sure to do it intentionally.