Days of Beauty is a top-down, colourwork yoke sweater featuring stranded colourwork. The colourwork design is inspired by a piece of music by Ola Gjeilo, also called Days of Beauty. It features an undulating, repeated phrase on the piano, surrounded by swells of atmospheric vocals.

I encourage you to look through the photographs of some of the test knitters’ versions of this pattern, as they have truly outdone themselves with some stunning colour combinations.

CONSTRUCTION
This garment is worked top-down, in the round. After the neckband, short row shaping is incorporated to optimise fit. The majority of the yoke features a stranded colourwork pattern. Once the yoke is completed, stitches are separated into body and sleeves, which are each worked separately and in the round.

SIZING GUIDE
This garment is graded into sizes 1 (2, 3, 4, 5) (6, 7, 8, 9, 10). Recommended positive ease is 2+” / 5+ cm of positive ease at the chest circumference.

Finished Garment Chest Circumference:
34.5 (37, 41.75, 44.25, 49.25) (54.25, 56.5, 61.5, 66.5, 69)“
86 (92.5, 104.5, 111, 123) (135.5, 141.5, 154, 166, 172.5) cm

SAMPLE
The wearer is 5’10” / 178 cm with a 37” / 92.5 cm chest circumference. The sample has been worked in size 4, giving the wearer 7.25” / 18 cm of positive ease at the chest. To accommodate the height of the wearer, an extra 0.5” / 1.5 cm of depth has been added to the yoke, and an extra 2” / 5 cm of length has been added to the body and sleeve lengths.

GAUGE
Using 3.25 mm / US size 3 needles, or needle size required to meet gauge, 26 stitches over 34 rounds in both stockinette stitch and colourwork, wet blocked, creates a 4x4” / 10x10 cm square.
Neckband, waistband and cuff circumferences assume you are working 7 sts per 1” / 2.5 cm.

YARN
The Main Colour is Pigment and Ply’s Single Ply Fingering base (65% Superwash Merino / 20% Silk / 15% Yak; 480 m / 525 yds per 120 g) in colourway Plaid Shirt Days.
The Contrast Colour is Pigment and Ply’s Sock base (100% Superwash Merino; 400 m / 438 yds per 100 g) in colourway Day and Dawnstar.

YARDAGE (includes ~10% excess)

Main Colour:
839 (881, 1020, 1066, 1290) (1384, 1428, 1566, 1652, 1692) metres
918 (964, 1116, 1167, 1411) (1514, 1562, 1713, 1808, 1851) yards
210 (220, 255, 267, 323) (346, 357, 391, 413, 423) grams

Contrast Colour:
156 (163, 191, 198, 224) (235, 238, 266, 280, 287) metres
171 (179, 209, 217, 246) (257, 260, 291, 307, 314) yards
39 (41, 48, 50, 56) (59, 59, 66, 70, 72) grams

Please note that, although the yardages listed above for the main colour yarn are accurate for that specific yarn, feedback from test knitters was that if substituting a different yarn blend for the main colour, a higher yardage was required, by up to ~50 g.

TOOLS & NOTIONS
2.75 mm / US size 2 circular needles (to work neckband, cuffs and waistband; varying cable lengths would be helpful)
3.25 mm / US size 3 circular needles (to work yoke, body and sleeves; varying cable lengths would be helpful)
1 marker
scrap yarn
tapestry needle to weave in ends