Knitting in no time

The bouclé yarn used for this jacket makes a dense, springy fabric with a fashionable felted look. What’s more, it’s easy to handle: The loops in the yarn are big enough to create a texture but small enough not to catch on the needles. The jacket is worked in stockinette stitch, so the cuffs and edging make a nice neat roll; and because of the all-in-one construction, there are only two seams to join.

ESTIMATED TIME TO COMPLETE

The 1st size jacket took 37 hours to make.

ABOUT THIS YARN

Yo-yo is an ultra-lightweight bouclé yarn that’s a mix of 74% acrylic, 14% wool, and 12% polyester. The yarn is dyed to shade from dark to light to dark again within one extra-large, 400 g (approx. 14 oz.) ball. Each ball has approximately 960 yds. (880 m).

SIZES

To fit: bust 34 to 38[40 to 44] in. (86 to 97[101.5 to 112] cm).

Actual measurements: bust 47[52½] in (119[133] cm); length 23½[24½] in. (60[62] cm); sleeve 18 in. (46 cm). Figures in square brackets refer to larger size; where there is only one figure, it refers to both sizes.

YOU WILL NEED

• 1 x 400 g ball (approx. 14 oz) of Sirdar Yo-yo in Midnight Mood, shade 0016

• pair of size US 7 (4½ mm) knitting needles

• 32-in. (81-cm)- long size US 7 (4½ mm) circular needle

GAUGE

15 sts and 24 rows to 4 in. (10 cm) over st-st on size US 7 (4½ mm) needles. Change needle size, if necessary, to obtain this gauge.

ABBREVIATIONS

beg = beginning; cont = continue; dec = decrease; foll = following; k = knit; kfb = k into front and back of st; p = purl; pfb = purl into front and back of st; RS = right side; skpo = slip one, k1, pass slipped st over; st(s) = stitch(es); st-st = stockinette st; tog = together; WS = wrong side.

TIPS

• The jacket is knitted in one piece from cuff to cuff. Use the pair of needles for the sleeves, and change to the circular needle to accommodate the extra stitches for the back and front, working back and forth in the usual way.

• Take the yarn from the center of the ball. Although you need to fish to find the end, once you start knitting, it will unwind smoothly, instead of flopping around as it does when the yarn is pulled from the outside.

• Yo-yo makes such a textured fabric that it is hard to see the stitches. When working your gauge swatch, cast on 19 stitches and work in stockinette stitch for 28 rows. For the stitch gauge, place markers on the right side, 2 stitches in from each edge, and measure between markers. For the row gauge, place markers 2 rows in from each edge and measure between markers on the wrong side.