Measurements: Approx width at bust/chest: 130cm. Approx length (not including waist band): 61.5cm. Approx sleeve length (not including wrist band): 42cm. This is a loose-fitting garment. Materials: 8-ply yarn (50g): Main Colour (MC): 8 balls (black); 1st Contrast (C1): 6 balls (blue); 2nd Contrast (C2): 5 balls (white); 3rd Contrast (C3): 2 balls (red). One pair each 3.75mm (No. 9) and 5mm (No. 6) knitting needles. Two stitch-holders. Bobbins.
Tension: 20 sts and 26 rows to 10cm over st st using 5mm needles. If you have more sts, use larger needles, if you have fewer sts, use smaller needles.
Abbreviations: alt: alternate; beg: begin/beginning; cont: continue/continuing; dec: decrease/decreasing; foll: following/follows; inc: increase/increasing; incl: including; patt: pattern; rem: remain/remaining; rep: repeat; sl: slip; st/sts: stitch/stitches; st st: stocking stitch (knit all sts on right side of work, purl all sts on wrong side of work); tog: together.
Note: When changing colours in the middle of a row, twist the colour to be used (on wrong side) underneath and to the right of the colour just used, making sure that both of the yarns are worked firmly at joins. Use a separate ball of yarn for each section of colour; wind yarn on bobbins or into smaller balls where necessary.
Back Using MC and 3.75mm needles, cast on 110 sts. Work in K1, P1 rib for 20 rows. Change to 5mm needles. Work in patt from Graph, inc one st at each end of first and foll 5th rows until there are 124 sts, then in foll 10th rows until there are 130 sts. Cont straight in patt from Graph until 160th row has been worked. Keeping colours correct as in last row, cast off 43 sts at beg of next 2 rows. Leave rem 44 sts on a stitch-holder.
Front Work as for Back until 144th row of Graph has been worked. Shape neck. 145th row: Patt 48 sts, turn. Cont in patt from Graph on these 48 sts, dec one st at neck edge in foll alt rows until 43 sts rem. Cont straight in patt until 160th row has been worked. Cast off. With right side facing, sl next 34 sts on a stitch-holder and leave. Join yarn to rem 48 sts and work to correspond with side just completed, reversing shapings and working from Graph for right side of neck.
Neckband Using back-stitch, join right shoulder seam. With right side facing, using MC and 3.75 mm needles, knit up 108 sts evenly around neck, incl sts from stitch-holders. Next row. Knit. Work in K1, P1 rib for 21 rows. Cast off loosely. Using back-stitch, join left shoulder and Neckband seam.
Sleeves (beg at armhole) Tie a coloured thread 79 rows down from each shoulder seam on Back and Front side edges. With right side facing, using C1 and 3.75 mm needles, knit up 158 sts evenly across armhole edge between the coloured threads. Change to 5mm needles. Next row. P2tog, P3; rep from to last 3 sts, P1, P2tog 126 sts. Cont in patt from Graph, ending with 108th row, at the same time, dec one st at each end of every 3rd row until 56 sts rem. 109th row. Using C1, knit, dec one st at each end 54 sts. 110th row. Using C1, P1, P2tog, (P15, P2tog) twice, P14, P2tog, P1 à50 sts. Change to MC and 3.75 mm needles. Work in K1, P1 rib for 18 rows. Cast off.
To make up Tie yarn ends tog then sew in all ends. Using back-stitch, join side and Sleeve seams. Fold Neckband in half to wrong side and slip-stitch in place.
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