Girls' Weekend pullover

THIS KNITTING PATTERN IS A DIGITAL DOWNLOAD IN PDF FORMAT AND IN ENGLISH ONLY!

The Girls’ Weekend pullover is the kind of knit you'd pack for a few days away with your favourite people: easy to wear, easy to love, with just enough detail to make it feel special. Classic cables, but not quite as expected: each cable is flanked by easy lace stripes, giving the whole pattern an airy, slightly whimsical feel that keeps it from taking itself too seriously.

The Girls' Weekend pullover has a boxy fit and dropped shoulders, worked in an allover cable and lace pattern. It is started at the back neck and increased to the full width of the back, with the increases over the cable pattern fully charted. Stitches are then picked up for the shoulders and worked as the front. The front and back are joined at the underarm and the body is worked in the round. Sleeve and neckband stitches are picked up from the body afterward, with the sleeves continuing in the same cable pattern. The hem and cuffs are finished with a tubular bind off, giving you that beautiful, stretchy edge where the stitches seem to roll gently over to the other side of the ribbing. The neckband is folded double for a neat and durable finish.

For the stitch pattern to really show, choose a unicolor or slightly tonal colorway. For a lighter, summer version, look to cotton, silk, viscose, or linen blends. For something warmer, a yarn with a high wool content will do the trick. The pullover is designed for sport weight yarn, but you can also knit it by holding a strand of light fingering weight yarn together with suri or silk mohair.

The length of the body and sleeves is easily adjusted to suit your own measurements, I recommend trying the pullover on as you go to find your perfect length. For a cropped version, work the body to just 15–20 cm / 6–8 inches.

Due to the lace pattern repeat and keeping it continuous across all sizes, the Girls' Weekend pullover comes in 5 sizes rather than my usual 9. That said, you can fine-tune the fit by adjusting your gauge, so there are actually 10 different sizes. The recommended ease is 10–20 cm / 4–8 inches, but choose a smaller size or tighter gauge for a slimmer fit with 5–10 cm / 2–4 inches of ease, or size up for a more oversized look with 20–30 cm / 8–12 inches of ease.

Sizes

When choosing a size, measure your bust and add the intended ease, then choose the size that is closest to that measurement. You can also measure the bust circumference of your favorite sweater and choose a size that is closest to that.

• 1 (2, 3, 4, 5)

• Finished bust circumference with gauge A: 94 (110, 125, 141, 157) cm / 35.5 (43.25, 51.25, 55, 63) inches including the positive ease of 10–20 cm / 4–8 inches 

• Finished bust circumference with gauge B: 98 (115, 131, 147, 164) cm / 39.25 47.25, 53.25, 59, 67) inches including the intended ease of 10–20 cm / 4–8 inches

• Length from hem to underarm (adjustable): 33 (33, 33, 33, 35) cm / 13 (13, 13, 13, 13.75) inches

• Sleeve length from cuff to underarm (adjustable): 42 cm / 16.5 inches

• Upper arm circumference with gauge A: 31 (39, 39, 47, 55) cm / 12.25 (15.25, 15.25, 18.5, 21.75) inches

• Upper arm circumference with gauge B: 33 (41, 41, 49, 57) cm / 13 (16.25, 16.25, 19.25, 22.5) 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

Gauge A: 1180 (1430, 1730, 1900, 2090) m / 1290 (1560, 1890, 2080, 2510) yards of sport weight yarn.

Gauge B: 1300 (1570, 1900, 2090, 2420) m / 1420 (1720, 2080, 2290, 2640) yards of sport weight yarn.

Sample: De Rerum Natura Candide (70% Organic merino d'Arles, 28% recycled cotton, 2% of others recycled fibres; 185 meters / 202 yards per 50 g), shown in the colorway Sucre Glace.

• 7 (8, 10, 11, 12) skeins for gauge A

• 8 (9, 11, 12, 14) skeins for gauge B

Needles

Ribbing: 3 mm / US 2.5 

• circular needles with a cable of 40 cm / 16 inches for the neck ribbing

• DPNs or circular needles with a cable suitable for small circumference knitting for the cuffs

• circular needles with a cable of at least 80 cm / 32 inches for the hem

Gauge A: 3.25 mm / US 3 

• DPNs or circular needles with a cable suitable for small circumference knitting for the sleeves

• circular needles with a cable of at least 80 cm / 32 inches for the body

Gauge B: 3.5 mm / US 4

• DPNs or circular needles with a cable suitable for small circumference knitting for the sleeves

• circular needles with a cable of at least 80 cm / 32 inches for the body

Gauge

There are two alternative gauges for this design, depending on the finished bust circumference you are aiming for. Check the sizing information for more details on how the gauge affects the size of your pullover.

Gauge A: 23 sts and 34 rounds = 10 cm / 4 inches of Chart 1 or Chart 2, on larger needles, after blocking

Gauge B: 22 sts and 30 rounds = 10 cm / 4 inches of Chart 1 or Chart 2, on larger needles, after blocking

Note: Always use the needle size that gets you the right gauge!

Notions

• stitch markers
• locking markers
• waste yarn
• tapestry needle
• blocking tools
• cable needle (if using)