Yorlin

Good morning! When I sketched this yellow cardigan in my notebook towards the beginning of the year, it was with the thought that I might get to wear it, with a favourite dress, at the wedding of my friends, Briony and Will.

Like many couples in similar situations, Will and Briony have had to change their plans. But there are still thoughts of them, and their delayed celebration, knitted into this design – named Yorlin.

When creating Yorlin I wanted a light, airy, classic cardigan, that worked well with my posh frock, but whose simple style meant it could also be thrown on everyday.

Yorlin is worked top-down, with raglan shaping, a crew neck, and two lace panels travelling down each front.

I’m really enjoying this kind of structured lace at the moment, with well-defined lines that work really well in Milarrochy Tweed. The repeating ‘V’s make it similar to the panel I featured on Con Alma, a design to which Yorlin definitely speaks.

I’ve been working on a few top-down designs of late, and have really enjoyed developing a style of pattern writing for this construction that is (I hope) really clear and easy to follow.

Once you have set up the panels and the raglans, everything just flows!

There are lengths specified in the pattern, but you can of course just knit away to create a body length that you prefer.

And you can also choose whichever buttons suit your fancy!

As you now know, I chose the tiny yellows because they were nicely unobtrusive, and because I felt they didn’t draw the eye too much from the panels. They weren’t my first choice, but once I’d stitched them on, I really liked how they worked with the garment.

Yorlin is finished with twisted rib, and an i-cord button band.

And the fabric is very light and comfortable – just right for Spring and Summer!

I graded this pattern across a range of 12 sizes, extending to 153.5cm / 60½ ins

I’m wearing Yorlin in the second size, with around 4 inches of positive ease. You could knit the size closest to your actual measurements if you prefer a neater fit, but I find I’m rather enjoying an inch or two of extra ease in my knits right now.

And before you ask, yes I did paint my nails yellow just for these photographs, and no, these are not false nails. Having been completely indifferent to varnishes and polishes throughout most of my adult life, my renewed enjoyment of colour since reverting to my natural grey hair has extended to my nails – as, I suppose, a kind of jewellery. I’m especially pleased by discovering rock-hard varieties of polish that last a week remaining largely unaffected by gardening, and other routine handiwork!

To continue the yellow theme, the name of this yellow cardigan is an old Scots term for the yellowhammer – a bird whose distinctive, contrapuntal disco song I’ve always rather enjoyed.

Yorlin is the fifth new design I’ve produced and released since the last weeks of March, and the fourth pattern for a garment. I’ve really been enjoying my design work with Milarrochy Tweed of late, and though I’m now developing the collection with which we’ll launch our new (DK) yarn in the Autumn, I might well have a couple more lightweight summery designs somewhere up my cardigan sleeve, for June and July.

The Yorlin pattern is now available on Ravelry

And there are kits in all 12 sizes in the KDD shop.