Brise soleil by Paola Albergamo

Brise soleil

Knitting
January 2019
Fingering (14 wpi) ?
22 stitches and 32 rows = 4 inches
in Stockinette stitch
US 3 - 3.25 mm
1422 - 1589 yards (1300 - 1453 m)
32 [34, 36, 38] (40, 42, 44) [46, 48, 50]
English Italian
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Brise-soleil is a double-breasted, asymmetrical cardigan with textured elements.
The textured lines, that form rays diverging from the point of each side, remind me of rays of light passing through a sun shading architectural structure.
A  brise-soleil (from French, “sun breaker”), is an architectural feature of a building that reduces heat gain within it by deflecting sunlight,
but it is not only a functional but also a decorative element that allows unusual plays of light and shadows.

This cardigan is versatile: it can be worn in many different ways, giving the piece a very different flavor.
It can be worn open, as a waterfall cardigan or closed on the front tips,
making it look like a boxy sweater or completely closed, with a fitted, elegant result.



Brise-soleil is worked seamlessly top-down in one piece, starting from the back of the collar. The back stitches are then picked up and shoulders are shaped with short rows. The back is worked to the underarms, then stitches are left on a holder to work the fronts.
The fronts are worked together with the textured collar, with dramatic increases to form a semicircular shape.
Immediately after the underarms, fronts and back are joined together.

Decreases for waist shaping are worked only on the back of the piece, giving the cardigan a gentle shaping even when worn open.
A textured stripe worked in the same stitch of the collar is used to underline the waist, the denser stitch pattern contributing to the general shaping. The waistline stripe is higher on the back than on the fronts, forming a curved line from one side to the other of the cardigan.

After the waistline, hips are shaped and the body is finished with an attached rounded border worked in the same stitch of the collar.
The collar, the waist line and the bottom borders form three dynamically curved lines converging on the front tips of the cardigan.

Finally, the bracelet-length set-in sleeves are picked up and shaped with short rows and worked in the round down to their textured border with a nice slit.



Sizes: 32 [34, 36, 38] (40, 42, 44) [46, 48, 50].
Finished Bust measurements:
94 [98, 102, 105] (110, 114, 118) [122, 124, 128] cm.
37.75 [39.25, 40.75, 42] (44, 45.75, 47.25) [48.75, 49.75, 51.25]”.

Recommended ease: approx 10 cm (4”).
Gauge:
22 sts and 32 rows= 10x10 cm (4”) in stockinette stitch.
Materials
Yarn
Snailyarns BFL+Masham (75% BFL, 25% Masham; 400 m [437.45 yds]/100g), 1422-1859 yards (1300-1700 m).
Needles
US 4/3.5mm * circular needle with 80 cm (32”) cord.
US 4/3.5mm * DPNs for the sleeves or circular needle with long cord for magic loop.
* or size needed to obtain gauge.
Notions
2 markers A (for the Neck).
2 markers B (for Waist Shaping).
4 markers C (for Neck Increases).
2 markers D (to mark the sides and for Hip Shaping).
2 markers E (for decreases inside the Border).
Cable needle or spare dpn for the sleeve slit.
2 buttons with 1cm/0,5” diam (+ 2 optional buttons if you want to close the cardigan with button instead of a brooch).
Tapestry needle.