The first color chart I attempted was for Kyojuro Rengoku's kyahan. I've actually thought about how to approach many other characters too, so this would be my suggested route for attempting these costume parts in fiber craft!
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| my result! |
Basic Design
The actual way to make these leg wraps is a rectangle-ish shape of cloth that you tie around your lower leg. But for cosplay, there's something to be said for keeping things simple and not adding more velcro to a piece just to hold it together. Besides, like most animation, they don't put seams on these things. So you GOTTA make a jammin' pair of semi-slouchy leg warmers. Just slide 'em on without a fuss. No buttons, buckles, or bowties.
There are approaches for knitting legwarmers that affect the final look and which color change method works best.
- Knit flat and make it a tube later
- Knit in the round and make it a tube from the get-go
Difficulty may be relative to your skill and preference, but for characters with lots of color changes or designs, flat knitting is more accessible. Intarsia color change in the round is a more advanced technique that I don't really want to deal with in my attempts at the project. I will do fair isle or double knitting, but I would think thrice before attempting intarsia in the round.
Free Pattern Links
- Easy Peasy Leg Warmer (For in the round instructions)
- Classic Leg Warmer (For in the round and flat instructions)
- Dragon Legs or Arms (Tanjiro inspiration)
- Legwarmer Socks (Both a leg warmer AND a sock)
My color chart examples were mostly based on the Easy-Peasy Leg Warmer and Classic Leg warmer pattern/recipes. I will note that in the show the leg wraps fit pretty snug and shapely around the calf before slouching. You can do this with tube legwarmers but you knit them a little smaller than your calf-circumference. This is going to take some mathematical nonsense also known as adjusting the gauge. I'll admit, I am still learning this skill, which would really come from experience. Also you can use other legwarmer patterns if you prefer.
I also suggest using shorter ribbed cuffs. The patterns make the cuffs 4 inches/10 cm. Too big. Reduce the cuffs to be 2 inches/5 cm at MOST. I would probably make them about 1 inch/2.5cm.
Legwarmer Sock Side Note: I really like how this pattern looks on the leg. Very close to in the characters. The pattern starts top down with a 1x1 ribbing tube that goes into stockinette at the ankle then changes into a sock pattern in a new color with some 2x2 ribbing. My suggestion to make this work for these characters is to use stockinette instead of the 2x2 ribbing at the sock color change. Also I would stop 2 inches before reaching the toes. Then add the split-toes using the Calculation Tips and Other Weight Yarns tips from Camy's Loft Tabi Sock pattern.
(Another crazy side note you could stop knitting the legwarmer just before the color change. Leaved those stitches on circular needles and go on to knit a tabi sock from the toes up but don't finish the ankle on the tabi. Then graft the two parts of the sock in the round with the Kitchener Stitch technique. 🧙)
Techniques to Know:
- Stockinette Stitch (knit and purl)
- Ribbing Stitch
- Cast on in Rib
- Knitting in the Round
- Magic Loop Knitting
- Flat Knitting
- Intarsia
- Intarsia in the round with provisional joins (advanced)
- Intarsia in the round Float Method: Part 1 - Part 2
- Round Intarsia with invisible join
- NEW: Intarsia in the round Wrap & Turn
- Duplicate Stitch
- Double Knitting
- Fair Isle/Stranding Color Change
- Fading Stripes or Marling Techniques
- Knitting a Gradient: Marling
- Jogless Stripe
- Double Stockinette Stitch
- Pick Up Stitches and Knit
- Knit in Round then Knit Flat (Makes a hole)
- Mattress Stitch
- Kitchener Stitch
Supplies
No weight limitations for yarn. Most of the suggested leg warmer patterns use worsted weight or bulky. There are also no limitations really on the fiber content of your yarn. Since these will not be expected to sit in foot sweat, you can get that affordable acrylic yarn available at any craft store.
Needle size will depend on the weight of the yarn. For flat knitting, you can use straight needles or circular needles. Circular needles or Double Pointed Needles (DPN) are what you need to knit in the round.
You should have a tapestry needle for Duplicate stitches, Mattress stitch, or Kitchener stitch.
Character Suggestions
I've picked a few characters as demonstrations for suggested techniques. I'm listing them from least to most complicated. (Which may be my skewed perception).
- Nezuko: 1 - 2 Colors
- Tanjiro: 2 Colors
- Kyojuro: 2 Colors
- Shinobu: 4 Colors
- Zenitsu: 2 - 4 Colors
I've made color charts for knitting this flat and in the round using the Patterns linked above. I'm playing with knee sock designs as well but that's turning out to be more challenging. Sock patterns are tough. But I'll make that a separate post.
COPYRIGHT NOTE: These color charts I made are free for personal use only! Please do not redistribute as your own or sell the color charts. You are free to edit them as you see fit and offer your edited version.
I do not own the patterns themselves, so please check the license for the pattern you wish to use before trying to sell anything you make with the pattern.
Nezuko
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| So simple! |
Flat Knitting: Just follow the Classic Legwarmer pattern using the flat knitting suggestion. You may want make the length of the tube longer to fit around her foot like the image above.
In-the-Round: Follow the pattern for Easy-Peasy Legwarmers. You need to knit a longer tube to fit over the foot. Alternatively, use the pattern for the Legwarmer Socks. This includes a heel that will make it fit around your foot better.
Notes/Ideas:
- For either of these patterns, once finished you can tie white yarn, ribbon, or a flat elastic band to act as the ties and create the baggy effect.
- If you are knitting the white bands, you can make a sort of baggy effect if you knit the white stripes in Seed stitch or Garter stitch.
- If you use the Legwarmer Socks pattern, you can create the illusion of ties by knitting a few rows in white stockinette within the brown ribbing. This will create that "puff" naturally and still be made to look baggy.
Tanjiro
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| Wrapping tab bullcrap |
For these suggestions, the tabs are added AFTER you finish constructing the main legwarmer. It's the same technique for all versions.
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| Tanjiro Flat Knit Color Chart |
Flat Knit: Follow the Classic Legwarmer pattern, adding grey or a darker color in 3 thin stripes about 1 - 2 rows each. You may include stray lines via Duplicate Stitch to indicate fold lines. Seam with Mattress Stitch after you finish your color work.
Flat Knit Alt: This idea may take some math and measuring but basically, still using the pattern as a guide, knit it in 4 rectangles. The top and bottom will include the ribbing. You will need to add extra rows in each rectangle because the plan is to stitch them together to make a "patchwork" style rectangle. You will overlap pieces and stitch them together with a slip stitch and then make the flat piece into a tube with the Mattress Stitch as normal.
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| This is what I'm trying to explain. |
Round Knit: Follow the Easy-Peasy Legwarmer pattern, adding grey or a darker color in 3 thin stripes about 1 - 2 rows each. You may add more "streaks" using Duplicate Stitch to suggest folds or tension marks.
Knitting the Tabs: For this you can use the Pick Up Stitches and Knit technique. The Dragon Legs pattern offers a nice visual of how to do this on a tube. A double sided square would look nicer, but you can knit a one layer tab. If you use stockinette stitch the one layer tab will have a "wrong side-right side"...unless you use a different stitch like garter stitch.
Alternatively, you could knit the tabs on their own and attach with a tapestry needle later.
Notes/Ideas:
- You can look into shaping the leg warmer so it hugs the leg a bit better. There are other legwarmer patterns that are better at explaining how to make things snug.
- To make the button tab, you could sew in white buttons, glue down a felt circle, or stick on a white dot sticker. Oh...or if you can get blank white button pins you could pin those on the tabs too!
- For any other character that has wrap style kyahan or leg wraps, you can make a color change chart for the folds and overlap points using fair isle techniques or Duplicate Stitch. You can also figure out a patchwork way to do it as long as it fits within your rectangle measurements.
Kyojuro
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| Only 2 colors. Stupid wiggly flame shape GAH! |
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| Suggested Flat Knit Color Chart |
Flat Knit: Follow the Classic Legwarmer pattern Straight needle instructions. But while you are knitting along, use a color chart to change colors (like the one I made linked above). You can use Intarsia which would require the use of a few bobbins.
Don't want to mess with bobbins? Then just knit in yellow for 20 rows or so then switch to red and finish. Once done, get your tapestry needle and gold yarn and use Duplicate Stitch to create the flame pattern. This is suggested in my color chart by using the gold color with dots in them.
Don't want to add the pattern later? You could use Double Knitting for the whole thing which makes it a reversible design but using a LOT more yarn and will make it a very warm leg warmer. Appropriate for the Flame Hashira.
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| How the flat knit looks before seaming. |
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| In the Round Color Chart |
Round Knit: Actually...pretty much the same technique suggestions as flat knitting, except you'll want to punch someone through the gut dealing with the frustration of Intarsia in the round. OH, and use the Easy-Peasy pattern as a guide.
UPDATE: Check out the Intarsia in the round Wrap & Turn technique. It's a bit more accessible.
Double Knitting in the round is less complicated than intarsia, but it uses a lot of yarn and can be tedious.
I think that Intarsia in flat would produce the best results with the least amount of yarn and hair-pulling stress. If you don't like Intarsia, Duplicate Stitch is a close second for beginner friendly methods. But the results of Double Knitting either flat or in the round are very clean...but it does make 2 layers of fabric.
Notes/Ideas:
- Rengoku has a left and right leg wrap/kyahan, so mirror your color chart appropriately.
- Intarsia in the round Wrap & Turn or Intarsia with invisible join would work best for this particular pattern if you want to knit intarsia in the round.
Shinobu
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| Multiple Gradients and veiny designs |
Okay, so you thought Rengoku was hard...well...it still is. Shinobu's is only slightly more complicated because we have multiple gradient color changes. However...it's an easier technique than intarsia in the round. I have a couple ideas for the color change that I will talk about separately from the knitting suggestions.
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| Shinobu Flat Knit Chart |
Flat Knit: Using the Classic Leg Warmer pattern as a guide, implement your preferred color change method. Create the black vein patterns with Duplicate Stitch, then seam up with Mattress Stitch.
Round Knit: Pretty much the same as knitting flat.
Color Change: We see that the colors fade with a soft edge or gradient effect on the leg wrap. This is where your preference comes in. You could just switch the colors and create solid strips in blue and pink, then be done with it. But to create the soft edge you will either use Marling (which is kind of like pixel art gradients) or Fading Stripes.
If you use the Fading Stripes method you'll be using more than 3 colors. You'll need shades of the blue mixed with white and a bit of the blue mixed with pink. You will still be knitting stripes but the transition is more gradual. You could get natural colored yarn and dye your own gradients.
Notes/Ideas:
- There is a little bow on the back cuff of the leg wrap. You could make a bow out of ribbon then sew it to the cuff or glue it to a pin then attach to the cuff. Or use some white yarn, weave through a couple of stitches and tie a bow.
- Instead of buying whole skeins of yarn to only knit what amounts to 2 rows total in the whole project, get undyed yarn and make your own gradient colorway. Put the enough yarn on bobbins put them in your main dye color but take certain bobbins out at different times so they absorb the color in progressively darker shades.
Zenitsu
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| Cute bows...but gradients!!! |
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| Zenitsu flat Knit Chart |
Flat Knit: Using the Classic leg warmer as a guide we have a couple of options.
1. Treat the "holes" as a color change instead of a hole. Use Intarsia or Duplicate Stitch to make ellipse shapes with dark colored yarn.
2. Create the holes by decreasing and increase the rows at key points.
Sadly the triangles are spaced too far apart to work well with fair isle so either knit them with Intarsia or Duplicate Stitch.
When done, seam it up with Mattress Stitch!
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Round Knit: Using Easy-Peasy as a guide start knitting the cuff. After the cuff, knit a round and place a marker. This will be the front of the kyahan. Switch to Knitting Flat. You can add the triangles with Intarsia and decrease then increase the rows to create the ellipse effect. (Similar to the concept of making a thumb hole for fingerless gloves.) Just after the calf, switch back to knitting in the round for a few rows. Go back to Knitting Flat to make the other ellipse. Return to knitting in the round for the cuff. Add any missing triangles with Duplicate Stitch.
The easier method would be to just knit in the round all the way down then add the triangles and dark ellipses with Duplicate Stitch.
Color Changes: At least the color change is in the same color family so the gradient is smoother. This could be done with Marling or with the correct set of yellow yarns you could get a soft edge with Fading Stripes.
If you are going to add the triangles as Duplicate Stitch, you could dye the bottom half of the leg wrap darker before you add the triangles.
Notes/Ideas:
- I think for sanity's sake that focusing on the gradient and shaping is enough. Use Duplicate Stitch for the triangles instead of intarsia.
- You can completely ignore the gradient color shift or do a hard change between them or keep it one color.
- For the bowties, you can tie white yarn bits. For a more "accurate" look, you can make (or purchase premade) bowties out of ribbon loops glued together.
- To attach fabric bows, sew a flat button to the leg warmer then glue the bow to that. The button should be fairly small so the bow covers it up.
- For cartoon-style ribbons, use felt.
Final Thoughts
This was a LOT, but a fun challenge. I'm going to be futzing with the linked color charts. And please feel free to chime in with further suggestions or ideas to make any of these knitting projects easier or more accurate.
So next post in this knitting series will likely be about belts or haori jackets. Then something about the smaller accessories like earrings, head-bands, scarves and birds.
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