Birch Pullover (Test Knit)
Finished
May 7, 2021
May 31, 2021

Birch Pullover (Test Knit)

Project info
Birch by Jessica McDonald
Knitting
SweaterPullover
Abby Rose (my grandniece, 13 years old on 7/1/21)
12 years (finished chest = 36")
Needles & yarn
US 3 - 3.25 mm
US 4 - 3.5 mm
24 stitches and 48 rows = 4 inches
in stockinette
Knit Picks Stroll Fingering Tonal
2.78 skeins = 1284.4 yards (1174.4 meters), 278 grams
304
Green
Knit Picks
March 22, 2017
Notes

This is my second test for Jessica. Very fun project. You won’t be bored with these stitches. The double seed and double moss stitches take some time, but the interesting texture is well worth it. These vertical sections set the cables off nicely. I really enjoyed this project, and the Knit Picks Stroll Tonal fingering yarn was a perfect choice. Finished pullover didn’t even need blocking. Knit Picks has discontinued this gorgeous “Cucumber” colorway. However, they have a similar color currently called “Eucalyptus”. The latter appears to have slightly more blue tones, but is quite close.

Although I used hand dyed yarn, it wasn’t necessary to alternate skeins because the soft colors didn’t have too much contrast, and the moss and seed stitches tend to hide any minor color pooling.

What I did differently:

  • I did not go down 2 needle sizes for the bottom ribbing. I only went down 1 needle size. If I made this again, I would not use a smaller needle for the bottom ribbing. I don’t like the ribbing to pull in at the bottom.

  • I did not use a smaller needle for the sleeve cuff ribbing. I seldom change needle sizes for ribbing unless I increase the number of stitches before starting the ribbing.

  • I made the armhole depth 7 inches rather than 6.5 inches in order to fit the recipient. Even though this resulted in more sleeve stitches picked up, the sleeves were still quite fitted.

  • I picked up a total of 72 stitches for each sleeve with a ratio of 1:2 (1 stitch every other row). I decreased 2 sts on every 9th round (15 times) until I got to 42 sts. Then I knit 8 more rounds straight stockinette before starting the cuff ribbing. I did 23 rounds of 1 x 1 ribbing before doing Jeny’s Surprisingly Stretchy Bind-Off with size 2 US needle.

Needles Used:

  • Body, sleeves and sleeve ribbing: Size 4 US

  • Lower ribbing and neckband: Size 3 US

I picked up stitches for the neckband using size 7 US needle. After knitting the neckband with size 3 US needle, I bound off using size 7 US needle. Turn neckband to inside and tack down using a tapestry needle. (Link below shows how to do this neatly.)

Pullover Measurements:

Width measurements were per the pattern. Length measurements were:

  • Underarm to bottom edge = 13” (11” + 2” ribbing)

  • Sleeve length (from where stockinette starts to end of cuff) = 20” (17” + 3” ribbing). I ran short of yarn for longer ribbing, but there’s still plenty of cuff to turn back, if needed.

Finished pullover weighs 9.8 oz. - 1,283 yards / 1,173 meters

How to do the folded neckline on the inside.

Test Knit Forum

viewed 222 times | helped 2 people
Finished
May 7, 2021
May 31, 2021
 
About this pattern
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About this yarn
by Knit Picks
Light Fingering
75% Merino, 25% Nylon
462 yards / 100 grams

38248 projects

stashed 27790 times

kimmyz's star rating
kimmyz's adjectives for this yarn
  1. Soft. Machine wash, delicate cycle. Dry flat.
  2. Mix of both cool and warm grays.
  3. Close to sport weight.
  • Project created: April 14, 2021
  • Finished: May 31, 2021
  • Updated: October 26, 2021
  • Progress updates: 7 updates