Yarn: a bag of DK I picked up from Yarndale (from Laxton’s) for a tenner - it’s unmarked and hence its price, but I’m assured I’ve got a genuine steal! Wool looks very much like Wendy Ramsdale DK to me - I’ve marked as Ramsdale for yardage info. Colour is a soft mint colour.
Contrast Colours: a mix of stash oddments. I’ve used a leftover Cascade 220 skein and an odd ball of Gotland DK + two strands of light fingering (to be held together).
- I’ve only worked with three colours throughout the yoke section and used the MC throughout. I’ve switched the dark and light colours for the colourwork to get slightly different motifs and ‘cut short’ some of the larger motifs to reduce the depth of the yoke, just a little, for a better fit.
Needles: 3.25mm for ribbing. 4mm for colourwork and 3.5mm for body/sleeves.
Pattern: After several non-starts, I’ve opted for the Marrakech pattern as it’s in-the-round and top-down. I only have a limited amount of MC and it seemed sensible to opt for a familar construction, which I can easily adapt.
Mods: the smallest size offered is a 36” bust and whilst I’m happy for some ease, I measure a good 6” smaller than this in bust as well as shoulder measurements - I’ve thus modified sizing so that I lose approx 5- 6” and hopefully, get a pullover that fits me snug.
Yoke: I skipped the 3rd set of increases on section 3 and instead, continued this set on round 30 (section 4). On section 5, I did the 4th set; section 6, the 5th set and so on. My stitch count prior to sleeve separation was 294 (and so I lost 30 sts - approx 5-6” according to gauge). Worth noting: that bypassing 3rd set of decreases really does alter the fit across the shoulders.
Sleeve separation: based on what I read on other FOs, it appears that the sleeves are generally considered a very generous fit and so I divided my work roughly as follows: 98 sts front and back and 47 sts per sleeve. I cast on 8 sts for the underarm gusset (+2 sts from front and back). I then reduced the gusset sts every other row until 2 sts remained between gusset markers. I chose not to move markers but decreased as follows: k to 2sts before M, ssk, k2, SM K2tog.
Waist decreases: I’ve decreased by 4 sts every 5 rounds and decreased until I had 152 body sts in total.
Waist increases: I’ve increased 4 sts every 7th round 2 times (160sts). Work measures 11” at this point (approx).
- this creates a very fitted body, which Is just the style I prefer.
Hem motif worked at around 11-12” and hem ribbing worked for 2” in 2x2 ribbing (in MC).
BODY length measures just over 16” from underarm.
Sleeves: starting with 47 sts and 6 sts from gusset. I’ve decreased by 2 sts at 4” and then every 2” 3 times. I then had to decrease 1 st so that I ended up with 44, for the 2x2 ribbing. Sleeves sit just past the elbow at about 12” from underarm.
Overall: A lot of modification in terms of sizing and somehow I’ve pulled it off! I tried on the garment continually throughout knitting and perhaps why I’ve managed to create a sweater that fits just perfectly for odd-bodied me. Really LOVE the deep yoke - this is a superb winter sweater!