The old Scandinavian “twined knitting” technique. Gauge 3 mm (US 2½): 4/cm, 10.2/inch.

The pattern shapes change gradually from small circles (top) to bigger and increasingly denser pattern shapes. They’re all fitted into a grid to keep all the shapes together visually - and to make it easier to knit! I also wanted the patterns to blend with the raglan shape.

A friend says the photos make him think of marzipan, which I love. I had some other names in mind:

Globetrotter, since I bought the wool and learnt the technique in Sweden, cast on in the Middle East and cast off in California.

Underwear sweater, since Nili (a friend’s daughter, 4 1/2) at one point thought I was knitting underwear… “Kanske det ska bli kalsonger.”

Hold kæft (“shut up” in Danish), since a Swedish-Danish woman’s spontaneous - and absolutely wonderful - reaction when she saw it was Hold kæft, hvad flot! (Literally “Shut up, how beautiful!” I love Danish, it’s such an expressive language!)

Swatch sweater, since I was testing and learning so many things:
1) the “twined knitting” technique;
2) knitting a sweater top down (never done that before);
3) creating a pattern to follow the raglan “seams”;
4) trying to create a pattern that changed gradually from airy (top) to more dense (bottom) but still looked harmonious;
5) creating patterns for the edges that blended with the body and sleeve pattern shapes.

The design is my own, but I used Anne-Maj Ling’s “Tvåändssticka” for general guidelines like how to shape the neck using twined short rows.

There are gussets under the arms, one with my initials and one with 08 for the year I knitted it.

I found inspiration for some of the pattern shapes in Tröjan från Unskijposad in Fiskartröjor by Uuve Snidare.