Rubik Top Pattern Release
I've just self published the Rubik Top.
Wear it back to front and even upside down. Sleeves on or off. Maybe one sleeve at a time?
Rubik is a great garment for transitional months when the weather’s still a bit confused.
Made with a gorgeous cotton and bamboo yarn, Rubik is soft to the touch with plenty of drape.
Without the sleeves, Rubik is a modern, sporty, color block mesh top. With the sleeves, this top becomes a romantic batwing sweater with a hint of glamour.
The Rubik pattern originally appeared in Crochet Foundry Magazine (April 2025). The brief asked for transforming garments and that immediately made me think of the Rubik's Cube.
I wanted to create a top that could be turned round and have different colour blocks in different places.
My first attempt was a bit of a disaster and not exactly the flattering look I had envisioned!
Rubik Prototype Disaster! Rubik Prototype Disaster! Rubik Prototype Disaster!
I realised I couldn't make a top that could be fully turned and worn in every direction this way. The ribbing on all 4 corners looked too bunched up, and unflattering, for what I wanted. I refer to this version as the Mouldy Batternburg!
I went back to the drawing board and kept the ribbing on the top and bottom. I also made it so the sleeves that could be laced on and off.
Rubik could still be turned upside down and turned back to front.
Each of the 4 contrast colours came in large and small versions so the wearer could decide the orientation.
The colours used were the magazine issue colours which, although not very reminiscent of a Rubik's cube, were beautiful for the Spring issue.
Below: My one-sleeved prototype.
Opposite: This was the version of Rubik that ended up in Crochet Foundry Magazine.
Yarn was kindly given by Cascade Yarns. I used Cascade Yarns Pandamonium: (55% cotton/45% viscose), size 3/dk, 273yds/250m, 3.5oz/100g per skein, in colours Eggshell, Fuchsia Pink, Lilac, Blue Topaz and Herb.
Originally I had planned to use a different colour for the sleeves and ribbing but it was out of stock. I was kindly sent 2 alternatives and the top ended up looking stunning with the Eggshell colour.
I like to test my pattern with my testers. It gives me more insight into what my testers are doing and helps me catch a few errors I might have missed the first time around.
I used this opportunity to get my hands on some traditional Rubik's cube colours.
This yarn was acrylic dk and a bit thicker than my original yarn so my top was a bit bigger!
I had a fabulous bunch of pattern testers helping me out with the Rubik Top.
First up is my fabulous friend @ixanicreations.
Sam made a Size 1 and used Premier Fair Bamboo and Cotton.
Love this! Perfection! Completely captures the vibe I was looking for in the original design.
The always immaculate @make.knots.with.dee also made a Size 1.
I can't remember what yarn Dee used but it came out so pretty and cosy looking.
I'm thinking that Dee may have used a dk yarn, that's a little thicker than the suggested yarn, which gave it a little bit more bulk.
The sleeves look so perfect here!
My dear friend @tortietreblemakerdesigns made a size 2.
Emma used Stylecraft Naturals Bamboo and Cotton.
I just love the way Emma used a lighter yarn to make the lacing detail on those sleeves stand out. This makes me want to experiment with making little X's all over the top.
Faster than the speed of light, @nikitadoomcrochets' hooks are on fire!
I love the variegated yarn Nikita used for this top. The colour pooling is fabulous and reminds me of Tetris!
Nikita kept her Rubik Top sleeveless and made cords to cinch her ribbing in tighter.
Wonderful @starflower_art_and_design used a much thicker weight yarn than suggested and sized down several sizes to make this Rubik Top.
Joy used Scheepjes Chunky Monkey in 9 different colours.
The original idea for Rubik was to use 5 colours but I love this option to use even more colours which can be switched around.
With the rights reverting back to me, I started work on self publishing the pattern.
I like all my patterns to have step by step photos so I began work on a new Rubik Top.
I, unfortunately, couldn't get hold of Pandamonium in the UK, so I chose to use Drops Safran which is a sport weight cotton and similar in feel weight-wise to Pandamonium.
I made a bit of a mistake with the sizing and made a Size 4 when I should have made a Size 5 but I actually liked the smaller version a lot more.
So, I made my new Rubik Top, got all my step by step photos taken and added to the pattern. Then I realised it would be so fun to play around with the pattern.
I'm a huge fan of made to measure patterns and customizations.
The pattern already includes some tips for customizing the top, but I wanted to add notes for how to make a Rubik Top using any yarn.
I made a whole new top so I could work out what calculations needed to be added to the pattern.
I decided to go with bulky weight yarn and a 10mm hook as I loved the idea of huge mesh boxes.
This version ended up being so squishy and cosy.
So now the pattern includes the original graded pattern (graded for bust sizes 32"-66"), step by step photos, a link to a printer friendly version and notes to help you make it to measure.
Find the link below!
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