Orchard Thieves is knitted top down in the round. Although the yoke looks complicated, it is actually fairly easy to work. At no point are more than 2 colors being worked at the same time.

In putting this design together I have drawn on inspiration from a number of different sources. The overall vibe was inspired by the English Arts and Crafts movement. The birds were inspired by early 20th century crochet patterns as found in “The Priscilla filet crochet book no. 2” from 1914. The foliage patterns are adapted from simplified Ukrainian cross stitch and needlepoint designs. The color scheme draws on the French and Flemish tapestry tradition.

The yoke is generously proportioned, so ideal for larger sizes. But as with any top-down yoked garment, you can try it on as you go and adjust below the yoke for a perfect fit.

Orchard Thieves uses 10 different shades, though you can easily adapt the pattern to use more or fewer colors. Charts are provided in the given scheme and also in black and white so you can adapt the palette easily.

The whole sweater is 2500 yards or around 420 g.

I used 10 different shades - most of which you only need a tiny amount of… but unfortunately it’s mostly sold in cakes of 50g so you will have yarn left over.

The amounts/shades I used are:
Heath 200g
Verbena 50g
Maize 50g
Almond 50g
Jasper 20g
Cranberry 20g
Tobacco 20g
Ember 20g
Dark Apple 20g
Tundra 25g

This pattern is best for M-XXL

UK US Europe
XS 4 1 32
6 2 34
S 8 4 36
10 6 38
M 12 8 40
14 10 42
L 16 12 44
18 14 46
XL 20 16 48
22 18 50
XXL 24 20 52
26 22 54