The Cariño vest was designed with yarn made from Norwegian Villsau (“wild sheep”), a breed that traces back to the Vikings. Villsau live on Norway’s coast and graze on seaweed as part of their diet. They are one of the rare breeds that can live outside all year in the grim northern climate. Yarns from hardy breeds like Villsau are weather-resistant and incredibly warm, but are scratchier than yarn from warmer-climate sheep. In the Faroe Islands, where sheep are similarly adapted to harsh weather, locals tend to prefer softer imported yarn. The Faroe Islands have little infrastructure to process wool and no economic incentive for farmers to sell their fleeces. Most Faroese wool is actually burned after shearing! I kept in mind all of Villsau’s qualities to design this vest as an outerwear piece, which protects the wearer from nasty weather while not sitting next to the skin. The design is my call to honor local fiber and promote material-first design.

Size & fit
Sizing includes generous positive ease so the vest can layer on top of shirts and sweaters. If your belly is larger than your bust, the pattern includes side panels that you can adjust the size of later in the construction process to fit you best. Depending on the yarn you choose, the vest may stretch considerably. Size down if you are between sizes or want a tighter fit.
Sizes: S (M) L (XL) 2XL (3XL). Some parts of the pattern are worked differently for different sizes. The pattern was tested in sizes S, L, and XL.
Bust circumference: 86 (95.4) 104.8 (114.2) 123.5 (132.9) cm. / 34 (37.6) 41.3 (45.0) 48.6 (52.3) in.

Materials
Worsted weight yarn (10 cm = 18 sts in stockinette, 24 sts in cable heart chart)
900 (1000) 1100 (1200) 1300 (1400) m / 984 (1094) 1203 (1312) 1422 (1531) yds

Construction
The vest is knit seamlessly in one piece. First, a rectangle is knit flat for the back yoke. This yoke is then split into two pieces to create the left and right shoulder, which are later joined to work the front. When the desired underarm length is reached, the back yoke and front are joined in the round. Extra stitches are then cast on at each underarm to create side pieces. Next, to create side slits, the sweater is split into front and back halves to be worked flat while the side pieces are cast off. Finally, the neckline stitches are picked up and a folded ribbed collar is worked in the round.