While I was designing my Celtic Palace blanket, I fell in love with the feel of one of the slip-stitch patterns. It was so smooth, drapey, substantial and warm! I immediately decided that it needed another outing, this time in something that could be worn. The result is this cold-weather raglan jumper, which I named after a favourite session tune, a little Shetland reel.

The fit is a man’s, but being a top-down knit, you could easily adapt the pattern to fit a woman - simply add some waist decreases and hip increases, or knit straight down for a more sportive shape.

Collar and neck opening, cuffs and bottom edge sport that extra bit of finesse: facings and hems. If you’ve never made a garment with lined parts, you’ll be surprised at how much stability, shape and comfort they add. The collar and front opening are neatly finished with an applied i-cord edging. To make up for this little extra bit of work, the jumper itself is worked seamlessly, in one piece.

The slip-stitch pattern (only one colour worked per row, no stranding required!) produces a double thickness, ideal for an outdoor garment that will keep the wind out.

The simple snood that comes with the pattern can be made in any colour and worn tucked into the neck as extra protection against chill winds.

You will need:

• Drops Lima (or other smooth DK yarn): 400-500 g in Colour A, 350-400 g in Colour B, 100 g in Colour C; for the snood, 100 g in any colour
• two 4 mm (US 6) circular knitting needles
• two 3 mm (US 2 1/2) circular knitting needles
• two 4 mm (US 6) double-pointed needles
• scissors, sewing and tapestry needle, basting thread
• optional: neck fastening, e.g. Norwegian clasp or dufflecoat toggle

Skills required: basic knitting prodecures (k, p, k2tog, ssk, m1, PUK); reading charts; grafting live stitches together (kitchener stitch - a few stitches only for the i-cord edging); very basic hand-sewing skills (basting, mattress stitch, whip stitch). The applied i-cord procedure is explained in the pattern, but it’s helpful if you already know how to make an ordinary i-cord.

Have a listen to this harp version of Willafjord which captures the bouncy, good-humoured mood of the tune perfectly.

Many thanks to my lovely friends Paul and John for modelling.