Striation Vest

Description

Please note that the Striation Vest is available as a custom-gauge, custom-size pattern via my CustomFit custom pattern generator. Upon purchase, you’ll receive a credit for a custom version of Striation and instructions on how to create it.

Striation is a classic sweater vest that works for anyone, with fun stripes to help you use up those bits of leftover yarn from much-loved projects. I’ve shown it here on my son Dan, but the classic shape is easy to adapt for anyone you’d like to knit for, of whatever age. (And CustomFit will build the pattern in whatever gauge you like.)

As shown, you’ll need 3 colors of yarn – the MC, and two alternate colors. However, the stripe pattern is flexible, and you should definitely feel free to mix things up however you like – make all the stripes the same color, each stripe a different color, or whatever else your preferences and available yarn dictate.

Sizing

The Striation Vest is available as a custom-gauge, custom-size pattern for the yarn and measurements of your choice via CustomFit. It’s shown here on Dan in a “child’s average fit” and straight silhouette, but is available with a-line, hourglass, and tapered silhouettes and other fits as well. (I’ve been meaning to make one for myself for ages!)

Gauge

Your own customized version of the Striation Vest pattern will be written to your gauge, whatever it may be. This vest works well at any gauge above a sport (lighter than that, and you may want to adjust the stripe pattern to make the stripes a bit wider).

Materials

At Dan’s insistent request, I worked this sample in the soft, stretchy, luscious Rowan Lima (now available as Valley Yarns Peru in colors 888 Lima (MC), 891 La Paz (CC1), and 885 Machu Picchu (CC2). This yarn comes in a lovely array of complementary colors, and is both warm and soft – a great set of choices for any sweater.

I like to work the Lima at a gauge of 22 stitches and 26 rows to 4” (10 cm). At that gauge, to make a standard-size 30 (32, 34, 36, 38, 40, 42, 44, 48, 52, 56, 60)’’ / 76 (81.5, 86.5, 91.5, 96.5, 101.5, 106.5, 112, 122, 132, 142, 152.5) cm vest, you’ll need approximately 5 (5, 6, 7, 7, 8, 8, 9, 9, 10, 11, 12) balls of Peru total.

Construction

The Striation Vest is worked in pieces from the bottom up and then seamed. Armholes are trimmed after seaming.