New knitting pattern: Winchester sweater

Winchester sweater

The Knitter magazine has just published Winchester, my latest men’s sweater pattern.

Inspired by Gothic architecture

At Winchester Cathedral there is much stunning medieval Gothic architecture, characterised by pointed arches, ribbed vaults, and flying buttresses. Inside, the sculptural decoration is intricate and ornate.

For the Winchester sweater, I’ve used an all-over pattern created by using the cable technique to give an impression of the decorative effect of Gothic architecture.

The sweater starts with a wide ribbed welt which flows into the main stitch pattern on the body, then back to the wide rib for the neckline. The sleeves also start with the wide rib, then change to a single, centred cabled band, set in stocking stitch.

You knit the front, back, and sleeves flat. Then, after you join the shoulders, you pick up stitches around the neck for the neckband. Finally, you set in the sleeves and stitch the underarm seams to complete the sweater.

Squishy yarn

I chose to knit this sweater using Knit by Numbers DK from John Arbon Textiles. They spin this beautifully squishy yarn from 100% organically farmed Merino wool. It comes in 17 colours, each of which comes in six shades going from dark to light. Colour KBN83, a mid-blue, was used for the sweater in the photos. Knit by Numbers DK comes in 100 g hanks, so depending on the size you choose to knit you’ll need between seven to eleven hanks.

Winchester sweater pattern details

The pattern is written for seven chest sizes: 88 [94.5: 101.5: 108; 114; 120.5; 127.5] cm | 34.5  [37.25: 40; 42.5; 44.75; 47.5; 50.25] inches. The finished sweater chest sizes are: 98.5 [105: 111.5; 118; 124.5; 131; 137.5] cm | 38.75 [41.25: 44; 46.5; 49; 51.5; 54.25] inches, so you wear it with approximately 10 cm positive ease. The finished length is 64.5 [66.5: 67.5: 69.5: 70.5: 72.5: 73.5 cm | 25.5 [26.25: 26.5: 27.25: 27.75: 28.5: 29] inches, but of course you can adjust that easily.

You’ll need 3.25 mm | UK 10 | US 3 and 4.0 mm | UK 8| US 6 of your preferred type for knitting rows. You’ll also need a cable needle, stitch markers, and stitch holders.

The pattern for the Winchester sweater is published by The Knitter in Issue 116.