So happy to be testing for Jutta once again. I love her classic, tailored styling. The details are what give her designs that special something.

I’m knitting this cute top for my younger sister. Although Ravelry classifies this yarn as “worsted ?”, it’s actually a DK weight. It’s super soft and machine washable. The yarn construction is extremely unusual. In fact, I’ll say that I’ve never encountered anything like it in all my years of knitting. It contains no elastic fibers, but it has tremendous stretch. A 12-inch piece of this yarn will stretch to 16 inches which means that it has 33% stretch!

Normally, 100% cotton (knitted) garments stretch lengthwise when you wear or hang them. This is why cotton blend yarns are often more popular. I figured that the 25% acrylic in this yarn would help to stabilize the lengthwise stretching. Time will tell about the lengthwise stretch which seems to be quite stable so far. However, the stretch widthwise on this yarn is tremendous.

The stretch in this yarn comes from its 2-ply construction. Each of these two (rather thick) “strands” is actually an intricately braided conglamoration of fibers. I guess this is what gives the yarn its stretch which quickly bounces back if you pull on it. At least it has good “memory”. The yarn looks and feels as thick as any worsted weight yarn. However, the 175 yards per ball tell a different story. So is the 175 yards when it’s stretched or unstretched? Obviously, it’s going to stretch a bit as I knit with it.

This yarn has been discontinued by Rowan. However, it was very popular in its day with lots of it still in Ravelry yarn stashes. I noticed that the label has changed over the years with regard to recommended needle size. My labels say to use a size 7 US needle, but some labels on the identical yarn say to use size 8 US. The stitch gauge has not changed, and seems to be more typical of DK weight yarn: 21 sts x 30 rows = 4” in stockinette. However, this yarn makes a rather heavy sweater, so it’s really more suitable for cool weather wear.

What I did wrong:

On the side panels, I was supposed to do PURL increasing, but somehow I missed the “p” in the instructions. Therefore, I have a staggered line of lifted increases on the sides that doesn’t look great. Fortunately, it’s not too noticeable.

What I did differently:

After the split hem (notch part), I did a KNIT stitch at the end of every row. And I slipped the first stitch of every row PURLWISE with yarn in front. I think this lays flatter than what is called for in the pattern.

What I’d do differently next time:

I’d make sure that the K2, P2 bottom ribbing is centered over the front panel. So in just that one place, I’d do “K2, P1, K2”. Or you could do “P2, K1, P2” depending on your size. I think it would look better. Alternatively, maybe I’d do a purl increase in the front panel prior to starting the ribbing. Then the “K2, P2, K2” could be centered. I think the latter would be a better solution. This may be corrected in the final version of the pattern.

Finished Garment Measurements:

Neckline depth = 6.75”

Armhole depth = 7”

Underarm to bottom = 18”

Shoulder to bottom = 24”

Purled Left Lifted Increase

Purled Right Lifted Increase

Left Leaning Purl Decrease (SSP)

Knitting Backwards (instead of purling)

Combination Knitting

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