Venla is a lacy and fitted summer top that suits women of many shapes. The cotton and viscose blend has a silky sheen, so Venla is easily styleable to a festive look but it’s just as useable as casual summer wear.
If you can’t find the original yarn, try substituting with a light bamboo or a silk blend.
Sizes
Finished Bust Size and to fit bust 36 (40, 44, 48, 52)”
0-1” negative ease recommended.
Shown in size 48”
Yarn
Garnstudio Drops Cotton Viscose (54% mercerized cotton, 46% viscose; 120 yards [110 meters]/50 grams): 010 Dark Green, 9 (10, 11, 12, 13) balls
Needles
US#3 (3.25 mm): straight and circular
Gauge
22 sts and 40 rows = 4” [10 cm] in lace ribbing after wet blocking
Approximately 20 sts and 36 rows = 4” [10 cm] in St st on same size needles
Gauge recommended on the ball band for Cotton Viscose is 23 sts and 30 rows in St st = 4”.
Notions
Tapestry needle
Pattern Notes
All pieces include an extra stitch for seaming at both sides. Always knit first and last stitch of row for this purpose. If you modify pattern for knitting in the round, remove these seam stitches.
When measuring the length of a piece, lay work flat and stretch slightly to get blocked gauge. The lacy ribbing draws the work together and makes it look narrower and longer than it will be when worn.
Lace Rib Chart
Back
CO 97 (108, 120, 130, 141) sts.
Setup Row (WS): K edge stitch, p1 (3, 2, 0, 2), *k2, p5*, repeat until 4 (6, 5, 3, 5) sts rem, k2, p1 (3, 2, 0, 2), k edge stitch. Continue in lace rib pattern as established.
When work measures 2.25 (2.5, 2.75, 3, 3.25)” and you have last worked a WS row, begin waist shaping.
Next Row (waist dec):*K1, p2tog, work in patt until 3 sts rem, p2tog, k1. Work 5 (5, 7, 7, 7) rows in patt without further decreases.* Repeat between *s another 3 times. 89 (100, 112, 122, 133) sts rem.
Begin waist increases. *K1, m1, work in patt until 1 st remain, m1, k1. Work 5 (5, 7, 7, 7) rows in patt without further increases, knitting or purling the added st to fit pattern.* Repeat *–* another 3 times; 97 (108, 120, 130, 141) sts.
When work measures 12.25 (12.5, 13, 13.5, 13.75)”, begin armhole shaping. BO 7 (8, 9, 10, 11) sts at beg of next 2 rows. Next, BO 1 st at beginning of each row a total of 14 (16, 18, 20, 22) times. Continue without further increases until armhole measures 8 (8.5, 9, 9.5, 10.25)”; 69 (76, 84, 90, 97) sts rem.
Next, shape shoulders and neckline. BO 9 (10, 11, 12, 13) sts, work 8 (9, 10, 11, 12), BO 35 (38, 42, 44, 47) sts, work to end of row. Turn work. BO 9 (10, 11, 12, 13) sts, work to neckline edge. Turn work and BO remaining shoulder sts. Break yarn and join at opposite neckline edge. Work remaining sts once, then turn work and BO sts.
Front
Work as back until piece measures 7.5 (8, 8.5, 9, 9.5)”. Note: If you are attaining row gauge this will be after all waist increases are done and before any armhole shaping is worked. On next RS row, BO neckline sts as foll: work 39 (44, 49, 54, 59) sts in patt as est, BO 19 (20, 22, 22, 23) sts, work to end of row. Both sides are now worked separately.
Right Front
Continue in patt as est for 4.25 (4.5, 4.75, 5, 5.25)”, ending with a WS row. *K1, ssk, work to end as est. Continue in patt as est for 5 (5, 7, 7, 9) rows.* Repeat *–* another 7 (8, 9, 10, 12) times. At the same time work armhole decreases on WS when work measures 12.25 (12.5, 13, 13.5, 13.75)”, or at same height as on back piece.
Armhole Decs (WS): BO 7 (8, 9, 10, 11) sts at beg of next row. Next, BO 1 st at beginning of each WS row a total of 7 (8, 9, 10, 11) times. Continue without further decreases until armhole measures 8 (8.5, 9, 9.5, 10.25)”.
When all neckline and armhole decs are worked you will have 17 (19, 21, 23, 25) sts rem
BO shoulder sts at same height as on back: BO 9 (10, 11, 12, 13) sts, work 8 (9, 10, 11, 12), to neckline edge. Turn work and BO remaining shoulder sts.
Left Front
Join yarn at other half of neckline edge.
Continue in patt as est for 4.25 (4.5, 4.75, 5, 5.25)”, ending with a WS row. *P1, p2tog, work to end as est. Continue in patt as est for 5 (5, 7, 7, 9) rows.* Repeat *–* another 7 (8, 9, 10, 12) times. At the same time work armhole decreases on RS when work measures 12.25 (12.5, 13, 13.5, 13.75)”, or at same height as on back piece.
Armhole Decs (RS): BO 7 (8, 9, 10, 11) sts at beg of next row. Next, BO 1 st at beginning of each WS row a total of 7 (8, 9, 10, 11) times. Continue without further decreases until armhole measures 8 (8.5, 9, 9.5, 10.25)”.
When all neckline and armhole decs are worked you will have 17 (19, 21, 23, 25) sts sts rem
Sleeves – Make 2
CO 88 (95, 102, 109, 116) sts. Work first row (WS) to establish pattern: K1, *k2, p5*, repeat until 3 sts rem on row, k3, turn work. Continue in lace rib pattern as est. When sleeve measures 7 (7.25, 7.5, 8, 8.25)”, or desired length to underarm, start sleeve cap.
BO 7 (8, 9, 10, 10) sts at the beg of the next 2 rows. Next, decrease 1 st at each end of every RS row a total of 18 (20, 22, 24, 26) times. Then decrease 1 st at each end of every 3rd row a total of 4 times. BO 4 sts each at the beg of the 4 foll rows. Then BO rem 6 (7, 8, 9, 12) sts.
Finishing
Soak pieces and lay flat to dry. The cotton blend is not as elastic as wool, so take care not to stretch out the ribbing too much.
Sew shouder seams. Pick up sts around neckline. Start at the bottom, but leave the originally bound off 19 (20, 22, 22, 23) sts at neckline bottom alone. With RS facing and starting with the right front, pick up 74 (79, 84, 89, 94) sts along neckline edge up to shoulder seam. Pick up 37 (40, 43, 46, 49) sts along back of neck. Pick up 74 (79, 84, 89, 94) sts along left front neckline edge back down on opposite side. If the stitch count seems wrong for your knitting style, pick a number that feels right to you, but take care to pick up same amount at both sides of front neckline edge.
Next Row (WS): Purl.
Shape neckline by working short rows.
Next Row (RS): Work 7 (7, 8, 9, 9) sts in k1, p1 ribbing. Turn work and work back to edge. On following row work 14 (14, 16, 18, 18) sts in ribbing, turn work and work back to edge. On each following RS row add another 7 (7, 8, 9, 9) sts before you turn work and work back. Repeat the short rows a total of 9 times, for a total of 63 (63, 72, 81, 81) sts worked. Work one full row of ribbing. When you reach the other end of the neckline, repeat the short rows on that side. After you have worked short rows on both sides of neckline, continue in k1, p1 ribbing without further shaping until lower edge of neckline ribbing is as long as the bound off stitches at beginning of neckline. NOTE: If in doubt, knit a couple of more rows, as the neckline lower edge will pull if the ribbing is stretched when sewn in place. BO ribbing loosely.
Sew side seams and sleeve seams. Set in sleeves. Start at shoulder seam and sew down to underarm. Cut yarn and start again at shoulder seam. This way the sleeve will look neat at the shoulder, and it’s easier to distribute the fabric evenly.
Weave in ends. Block collar lightly if needed.
About the Designer: Kristel Nyberg
About the Designer: Kristel NybergKristel Nyberg keeps her fingers warm in chilly Finland by knitting as fast as is possible while taking care of two children and a cat. Her
other hobbies include hoarding yarn and then knitting some more.
If you read Finnish, her blog can be found at elamanlankaa.blogspot.com, but to read about her knitting in English you should head to Ravelry, where her username is Kristel.
Pattern and images © 2009 Kristel Nyberg.
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