Purplesweater

The Purple Sweater

Š 2006 Jenifer Stark http://www.bluealvarez.com

Gauzey cotton raglan with excellent drape. Great over a tank or t-shirt.

Yarn: Kertzer Butterfly Super 10 mercerized cotton yarn in 3940 Purple Iris, 3[3,4,4,5] skeins (250 yds/125 g, 100% mercerized cotton) Note: You can see this yarn on the Kertzer website: http://www.kertzer.com/products/yarns/yarn-super-super10s.html It is available at many online stores, and I bought it at Circles in Jamaica Plain, MA (http://www.circles-salon.com).

Gauge: 14 St/18 rows = 4” in St st. on size #10.5 US (6.5 mm) circular needles. (See Designer Notes at the end of this pattern for more information on options for circular needles.)

Size: women’s XS[S,M, L,XL] (30-35”[36-39”, 40-43”, 44-48”, 49-53”] bust) Note: Finished sweater stretches a lot and has a drapey fit that follows your natural curves. However, it should not bind or cling tightly. If you want a draped fit that does not stretch when worn, make one size larger than you think your size actually is.

CO 60[60,60,64,68] st, pm, and join in round. K 3 rounds St st.

On next round, K10[10,10,10,12], pm, K20[20,20,22,22], pm, K10[10,10,10,12], pm, K20[20,20,22,22].

This should be the end of your round, where the marker placed when you first CO should be. I will refer to this marker has “end of round” or “4th marker” throughout the pattern.

On next round, begin the following pattern and repeat within brackets 15[18,25,30,34] times: [R1: K around in stockinette stitch, but YO one stitch before and one stitch after every marker (8 increases total).

R2: K around in St st.]

On next round, begin the following pattern and repeat within brackets 5[4,0,0,0] times: [R1: K from beginning of round to 1st marker, slip marker, K1, YO, K to one before 2nd marker, YO, K1, slip marker, K to 3rd marker, slip marker, K1, YO, K to one before end of round, YO, K1.

R2: K around in St st.]

You should now have 200[220,260,300,340] stitches and 44[46,54,64,72] rows total.

On next round, place the first 40 [46,60,70,80] stitches on a stitch holder or scrap yarn, removing 1st marker. Join yarn from beginning of round to next stitch and K across next 60 [64,70,80,90] stitches. Slip 2nd marker onto right hand needle, place next 40 2

[46,60,70,80] stitches on stitch holder or scrap yarn, and remove 3rd marker. Join yarn to next stitch and K across remaining 60 [64,70,80,90] stitches to end of round.

You should now have one marker at the beginning and one marker at the midpoint of your round. Your round should have 120 [128,140] stitches, and there should be 40 [46,60] stitches at either side of your round on holders.

K around in St. st. for 6”[6”,7”,7.5”,8”] from holders.

On next round, begin the following 6-round pattern and repeat within brackets 3 times: [R1: K2tog, K to 2 before 1st marker, SSK, slip marker, K2tog, K to 2 before end of round, SSK. R2-R6: K around.]

K 11 rounds. On 12th round, K1, M1, K to one before 1st marker, M1, K1, slip marker, K1, M1, K to one before end of round, M1, K1.

K 5 rounds. On 6th round, K1, M1, K to one before 1st marker, M1, K1, slip marker, K1, M1, K to one before end of round, M1, K1.

FOR MEDIUM, LARGE & XL: After K 5 more rounds, repeat paired increases as described above on 6th round.

FOR XL ONLY: After K 5 additional rounds, repeat paired increases as described above on 6th round.

Continue to K around in St.st. until body measures 17” from holders or desired length.

BO loosely.

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Sleeves (one each side): Place the 40 [46,60,70,80] held stitches on your needle. Pick up 4 stitches along the side of the body, where the underarm will be. PM, join, and K 6 rounds.

Repeat the following pattern for your size only, as many times as indicated under each size: X-Small: [R1: K2tog, K to 2 before end of round, SSK. R2-9: K around] - repeat within brackets 8 times.

Small: [R1: K2tog, K to 2 before end of round, SSK. R2-8: K around] - repeat within brackets 9 times.

Medium: [R1: K2tog, K to 2 before end of round, SSK. R2-5: K around] - repeat within brackets 14 times.

Large: [R1: K2tog, K to 2 before end of round, SSK. R2-5: K around] - repeat within brackets 16 times.

X-Large: [R1: K2tog, K to 2 before end of round, SSK. R2-4: K around] - repeat within brackets 19 times.

On next round, K around for 6[6,9,2,6] more rounds. BO loosely.

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Finishing: Work in any loose ends. Iron with steam iron if necessary. Finished measurements are approx. 33”[35”, 38”] at bust (unstretched), 19” length for sleeves (cuff to underarm), 11”[13”,15”] at widest point of arm, and 8”[8”,9”] at cuff.

Note: This sweater is symmetric - front is identical to back. Also, weaving in the ends on a loosely knit, mercerized cotton can be a bit of a challenge. A suggestion for making sure ends don’t unravel is to weave in as your normally would, but then use a regular sewing needle and thread to sew down the ends to the inside of the sweater. This way you can throw it in the washer and dryer with confidence. There is no seaming in this sweater, which is why I love the top-down raglan design so much.

Re: Needles: I actually use the Magic Loop method in all the circular work I do, which requires a 40" - 47" needle on most occasions. I think the smallest you can get away with is a 36", comfortably.

However, you can use two circulars at a time, or using a single 24" circular would be perfect for the body. Then you will want to switch to DPNs for the sleeves, since they get down to an 8" - 9" circumference at the cuff.

If you want to learn more about Magic Loop or knitting with two circulars, check out this excellent set of tutorials: http://www.az.com/~andrade/knit/index.html

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