What you need
| Sizes | XS, S, M, L, XL, 2XL · To fit bust 30, 34, 38, 42, 46, 50 inches · Finished chest 36, 40, 44, 48, 52, 56 inches - about 6 inches of positive ease. Total length 19 to 30 ¼ inches. The sample is size S. The boat neck is wide on purpose and sits on the shoulder points. |
|---|---|
| Yarn | Yarn A: super bulky thick-and-thin art yarn (about 85 yd per 100 g), 325 to 700 yd - a hand-spun single with slubs gives the clusters their character. Yarn B: lace-weight brushed mohair (about 230 yd per 25 g) held double, 650 to 1400 yd. Both held together throughout, except the three bands in Yarn A alone. |
| Needles & notions | US 19 / 15 mm circulars (32 in and 16 in) for the body; US 17 / 12.75 mm (16 in) for the bands. Four stitch markers, two holders or waste yarn, optional cable needle, tapestry needle. |
| Gauge (tension) | 8 sts and 10 rounds = 4 in / 10 cm in the cluster pattern on US 19, both yarns held, relaxed after blocking. Measure across the clusters, not between them, and work at least 24 rounds first - the pattern does not settle until the second or third repeat. |
Skills you’ll use
- Knit
- Purl
- K2tog
- Ssk
- M1
- Knitting in the round
- Dropping extra wraps
- The cluster itself is four long loops gathered and knitted as a bundle - the pattern walks through one cluster step by step before the first round of them. No shaping below the underarm, no sewing beyond the ends.
What’s in the PDF
- 13-page professionally laid out PDF, written in English, US terms
- Six sizes, fully graded - every number for every size
- The 8-round cluster repeat drawn as a lattice chart AND written out round by round, with a step-by-step walk through working a single cluster
- A yoke map, a construction diagram and a full schematic
- A table of safe changes: longer, cropped, three-quarter sleeves, deeper bands
- Every count on every round tested to be a multiple of four, so the cluster pattern never breaks - not even mid-yoke
Questions about this pattern
Is the cluster stitch hard to learn?
It is one simple idea repeated: every fourth round is knitted with two wraps, and on the next round the long loops are gathered four at a time and cinched into a cluster. The pattern walks you through a single cluster step by step before you work the first round of them, and the repeat is also drawn as a chart.
Do I have to use an art yarn?
The thick-and-thin art yarn is what gives the clusters their character - a smooth super bulky works too, it just looks flatter. The mohair held alongside is what makes the haze between the clusters, so keep that part if you can.
How fast does this knit up?
Very fast - at 2 stitches per inch on US 19 needles, the whole sweater is about 250 rounds. There are no seams, no pieces to join, and no shaping below the underarm; most of it is simply going round and round.
