I am a lover of simplicity. I find myself drawn to sweaters that gracefully balance minimalism with visual interest, and embrace simple lines… sweaters you can live in. As a designer, and a hand dyer, I find inspiration in my surroundings. Bayou found its inspiration in the stillness of the bayous, in their mossy tones, and their striking pops of natural color.
For Bayou, I chose a natural, undyed yarn for the body of the sweater, and I dyed three glorious coordinating colors using magical natural dyes. The natural, undyed colors, are the perfect still water canvas to showcase the beauty of the yoke. The fingering weight yarns make this sweater as light as air with a touch of warmth.
Bayou’s construction matches the simplicity of its design. It is knitted top-down, in the round, mostly in stockinette stitch. The sleeves are knitted in the round from held stitches. Bayou is seamless. The yoke design is a beautiful old shale pattern in three colors, framed by two rows of bobbles. The yoke design sits at mid chest, highlighting the beauty of the neckline, sitting gently on the shoulders. The body and the sleeves have minimal shaping, just a few short rows at the top of the back. Tubular cast on and bind offs contribute to the fluidity of the sweater.
Bayou includes cropped and full length options, as well as three sleeve options: cap, three-quarter and wrist length. Bayou includes sizes ranging from 35” to 69” bust circumference. An arm circumference worksheet is included so you can fit the sleeves perfectly!
The Bayou kits are hand dyed using natural dyes only. The body is knitted in a natural, machine washable yak/Merino/nylon blend, and for the yoke, we chose a machine washable Merino/nylon blend, which we dyed in a range of natural colors.
Visit our website to get the pattern, which will be free for the first 24 hours after its release, and to purchase your kit.
Happy knitting to all!