The Abies Alba sweater is a sweater knitted with fingering yarn and lace yarn with a circular yoke.
You will need a pullover quantity of DK weight yarn to knit this sweater or a pullover quantity of fingering and lace weight yarn to knit this sweater in the fashionable blend: aline and mohair and silk.
The pattern is available here in the shop, on Ravelry, on Loveecrafts and on Makerist
Abies Alba, a fluffy sweater
1. The story of Abies Alba, this fluffy sweater
If you subscribe to my newsletter and read my blog regularly, you know that a week ago, I unveiled the project I've been working on for 3 years: Peregrine, a local and ethical wool.
So I had to knit a sweater with this wool!
After making a pass that will soon come out while Peregrine, I thought it would be interesting to mix it with another fiber to see what the result would be.
This is how Abies Alba was born.
2. The construction of this sweater
This is a top-down sweater, starting with a few rows of circular yoke cable ribbing*. It is then finished with a cross-stitch pattern and bobbles which flares out throughout the yoke.
Once this part is finished, you will attack the body which is knitted in stockinette stitch.
You will finish the body with a large ribbing in twisted ribs
The sleeves are then taken up and finished with the same pattern as the body and also end with twisted ribbing.
*If you want to know a little more about circular inserts, I posted a video on YouTube about a year ago.
3. What level should I knit Abies Alba for?
This pattern is not complicated to knit but it is not intended for complete beginners.
The most difficult points you might encounter are:
- to do the bobbles which require knowing how to use a crochet hook and what's more with mohair and silk wool.
- possibly having to undo it if you make a mistake. Mohair is very difficult to unravel, so it's best to secure your rows with a lifeline if you're not too sure.
4. Where to buy the pattern?
The pattern is for sale here in my shop, on the site Ravelry in French and English, available for immediate download. It is also available on the website Lovecrafts and on Makerist.
5. Sizes available for this stylish sweater
Sizes
1 [2, 3] [4, 5] [6, 7, 8]
The pattern is therefore available from 93 cm to 162 cm chest measurement (finished knitting) and the expected ease is 15 to 20 cm.
To understand the ease, I suggest you watch the video below:
It can be worn with more or less ease (in the photos shown, the ease is 15 cm for a size 3).
6. The wool and materials needed to knit this sweater
The suggested wool is CLK Peregrine 400 m / 100 g (100% Est A Merino Wool) 1003 [1106, 1189] [1299, 1384]
[1672, 1781, 1933] m or 3 [3, 3] [4, 4] [5, 5, 5] skeins in Ivory color for fingering yarn and Knitting For Olive Soft Silk Mohair 225 m / 25 g (70% mohair, 30% silk) 1122 [1237, 1328] [1453, 1548] [1870, 1993, 2162] m or 5 [6, 6]
[7, 7] [9, 9, 10] Cloud color balls for lace.
You can of course use another composition such as twisted merino, a mixture of cotton and acrylic like Scheepjes Stone Washed (you will then have to consider reducing the number of throws of the bobbles so that they are not too big). But you can also consider doubling a merino fingering yarn with an alpaca lace yarn instead of mohair.
The necessary equipment is as follows:
- 3.5 mm circ. needle 100cm long
- 3.75 mm circ. needle 100cm long
- 5 double-pointed needles 3.5 mm for small circumferences (sleeves or collar) if necessary.
- 5 double-pointed needles 3.75 mm for small circumferences (sleeves or collar) if necessary.
- 1 tapestry needle
- 15 [16, 17] [18, 19] [20, 21, 22] markers if necessary.
7. Why Abies Alba?
Finally, why was it named Abies Alba?
Abies Alba is the scientific name for the white fir and when I drew the pattern, I thought of the Ardennes forest which is a few steps from the house and which is composed mainly of fir trees, which in winter are covered in a white coat.
I hope you'll love this sweater and that this article will make you want to knit it.
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See you soon,
Christelle
