Alpine Everlasting
SAY HELLO TO what just might become your newest favorite sweater! I created this sweater to wear like a sweatshirt yet look like a polished piece that you can easily dress up or down. The colorwork features thoughtfully placed purl stitches that create soft motif outlines and add a bit of texture pop. You can choose to knit your version with a cozy cowl neck (like mine!) or a traditional ribbed crewneck.
For the name, I borrowed from the colorway that Hannah of Circus Tonic Handmade gave to the bright orange yarn featured in this sweater. Alpine everlasting (Ozothamnus alpinus) is an herbaceous flower in the aster family that can be found near Hannah’s home in South Australia. Another species by the same common name (Antennaria alpina) occurs in my own home region of Colorado’s Rocky Mountains. Both species grow in alpine to subalpine environments. While the Australian version is known for its brilliant orange blossoms, the North American version has small white thistle-like flowers. If you’ve knit any of my patterns, you’ve probably noticed that I love a good nature-inspired name! I also love that Alpine Everlasting is a name fitting for the cross-continental collaboration that this sweater represents, as both Hannah and I can each find these beautiful flowers in our own little corners of the world.
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Design: Alpine Everlasting is a raglan sweater with a relaxed fit. The yoke, body, and upper sleeves feature textured stranded colorwork. The sleeves have a traditional tapered shape. The neck can be worked as either a cowl neck or a round neck with 2x2 ribbing.
Construction: This sweater is worked from the top down. Stitches can be cast on at either the top of the neck or provisionally at the bottom of the neck. After the neck is complete, short rows are worked to create back neck shaping. Raglan increases and 2-color stranded colorwork are worked simult-aneously over the yoke before dividing for the body and sleeves. Sleeves are put on hold, and the lower body is worked in a combination of stranded colorwork followed by stockinette. Stitches are then returned to the needles to complete the sleeves. The upper sleeves also feature stranded colorwork followed by stockinette.
Fit: This garment is designed to fit with 5 to 10 in. (12.5 to 25 cm) of positive ease in the body. To pick the best size for you, measure your upper bust circumference and add your preferred ease of between 5 to 10 in. (12.5 to 25 cm). Make the size with a finished chest circumference closest to that number. If you are unfamiliar with choosing garment size based on your upper bust measurement, One Wild Designs has a great blog post about this.
This sweater also includes slightly less ease in the upper arm than some of my previous sweater designs. This was an intentional choice so that the finished garment looks relaxed yet tailored rather than simply looking oversized. This also eliminates extra bulk at the underarm that can make raglan sweaters uncomfortable to wear! All this is to say—when selecting your size, be sure to consider the upper arm circumference provided in the finished measurements table at the end of this pattern.
Stitch Patterns: The stranded colorwork stitch patterns in this sweater are only charted, so you should be confident in your chart reading skills—or be open to learning!
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SIZES
(1, 2, 3)(4, 5, 6)(7, 8, 9)FINISHED CHEST CIRCUMFERENCE
(38, 42, 45.75)(49.5, 53.25, 57.25)(61, 64.75, 68.5) in.
(95, 105, 114.5)(124, 133, 143)(152.5, 162, 171.5) cmUPPER ARM CIRCUMFERENCE
(11.5, 13.25, 13.25)(13.25, 15.25, 17.25)(19, 21, 22.75) in.
(29, 33, 33)(33, 38, 43)(47.5, 52.5, 57) cmThis sweater is intended to be worn with 5 to 10 in. (12.5 to 25 cm) of positive ease in the body. Please see the note above on fit!
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YARN
Fingering weight (woolen spun)
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Sport weight (worsted spun)
MC: (195, 230, 250)(265, 295, 320)(350, 380, 395) g/(850, 1005, 1095)(1160, 1290, 1400)(1530, 1660, 1725) yds or (775, 920, 1000)(1060, 1180, 1280)(1400, 1520, 1575) m
CC1: (45, 55, 60)(60, 70, 75)(80, 90, 95) g/(195, 240, 260)(260, 305, 330)(350, 395, 415) yds or (180, 220, 240)(240, 280, 300)(320, 360, 380) m
CC1: (20, 20, 25)(25, 25, 30)(30, 35, 40) g/(85, 85, 110)(110, 110, 130)(130, 155, 175) yds or (80, 80, 100)(100, 100, 120)(120, 140, 160) mSUGGESTED YARN
Circus Tonic Handmade Merino Possum Woollen Spun (100 g/437 yds (400 m)) – 80% Merino, 20% Possum Fur
MC: (2, 3, 3)(3, 3, 4)(4, 4, 4) skeins
CC1: 1 skein
CC2: 1 skeinThe sample sweater is knit in the colorways Wolf (MC), The Old Jetty (CC1), and Alpine Everlasting (CC2).
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Needle A (body and sleeves): US 5 (3.75 mm)
Needle B (ribbing): US 3 (3.25 mm)For each needle size, you will need 24 in. (60 cm) to 50 in. (125 cm) circular needles and your preferred needles for smaller circumference knitting.
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Measure gauge on Needle A in the round, after blocking.
21 sts and 33 rows = 4 in. (10 cm) in stockinette
21 sts and 21 rows = 4 in. (10 cm) in stranded colorwork -
German twisted cast-on, tubular cast-on, provisional cast-on (optional), German short rows, knit increases and decreases, stranded colorwork, backwards loop cast on, picking up stitches, chart reading, Icelandic bind-off, tubular bind-off