Kaarina is a Finnish female given name and it was also my grandmother’s middle name. Kaarina can also be translated into meaning “in arches” or “as arches”.

The Kaarina tee is a boxy summer tee with a cable pattern on the front and back, and 2x2 rib on the sides and the sleeves. The tee is started at the back neck and increased to the full width of the back, first in the cable pattern, then in 2x2 ribbing. The increases over the cable pattern are fully charted. Then stitches are picked over the shoulders and worked as the front of the tee. The front and back are joined at underarm and the body is then worked in the round. Stitches are then picked up from the body for the sleeves and the neckband, which are knitted in 2x2 ribbing. The hem and neckband are finished with a tubular bind off, which provides a beautiful and stretchy edge that looks like the stitches roll over the edge to the other side of the ribbing.

For a summer version I would recommend cotton, viscose or linen blend yarns that have a lot of drape. If you wish to make a warmer wintery version, choose yarn with high wool content. For the cables to show best, I recommend choosing unicolor or slightly tonal colorways. The Kaarina tee is worked by holding two strands of fingering weight yarn together, but you can also work it in a single strand of DK weight yarn.

The length of the body and sleeves are easily modified to suit your own body measurements. I recommend trying the sweater on every now and then while working on it to make sure you get the perfect length for your style. Note: You can easily modify the body shorter for a cropped look. For a cropped tee I would only work 15-20 cm / 6-8 inches for the body.

Sizes
1 (2, 3, 4, 5) (6, 7, 8, 9)
Finished bust circumference: 105 (114, 122, 131, 147) (156, 164, 173, 181) cm / 41.25 (45, 48, 51.5, 57.75) (61.5, 64.5, 68, 71.25) inches including the intended positive ease of 25-30 cm / 10-12 inches
Length from hem to underarm (adjustable): 30 (30, 30, 33, 33) (33, 35, 35, 3) cm / 11.75 (11.75, 11.75, 13, 13) (13, 13.75, 13.75, 13.75) inches
Sleeve length from cuff to underarm (adjustable): 12 cm / 4.75 inches
Upper arm circumference: 38 (40, 44, 46, 48) (50, 52, 54, 56) cm / 15 (15.75, 17.25, 18, 19) (19.75, 20.5, 21.25, 22) inches
Note: Please be aware that adjusting the lengths of the garment will also affect the amount of yarn needed to finish the project.

Yarn
Note: The pattern uses two strands of light fingering weight yarn held together, but they can be substituted for a single strand of DK weight yarn. If you wish to work a DK weight version, omit all the instructions where it says “hold the yarns together”. For the DK weight version, you will only need half the yarn amounts listed below.

1490 (1640, 1810, 1990, 2180) (2400, 2640, 2910, 3200) m / 1630 (1790, 1970, 2170, 2380) (2620, 2890, 3170, 3490) yards of light fingering weight yarn held double.

Sample: 6 (7, 8, 8, 9) (10, 11, 12, 13) skeins of Knitting For Olive Pure Silk (100% silk; 250 meters / 273 yards per 50 g) shown in the colorway Cardamom.

Needles
3.5 mm / US 4 circular needles with a cable of 40 cm / 16 inches for the neck ribbing
3.5 mm / US 4 DPNs or circular needles with a cable suitable for small circumference knitting for the cuffs
3.5 mm / US 4 circular needles with a cable of at least 80 cm / 32 inches for the hem

4 mm / US 6 DPNs or circular needles with a cable suitable for small circumference knitting for the sleeves
4 mm / US 6 circular needles with a cable of at least 80 cm / 32 inches for the body

Gauge
20 sts and 29 rows = 10 cm / 4 inches of 2x2 rib and charted pattern on larger needles, after blocking

Notions
4 stitch markers
4 locking markers
cable needle, if using
waste yarn
sewing needle
blocking tools