Kerry Bogert - The Art of Circular Yokes: A Timeless Technique for 15 Modern Sweaters

MERRIAM-WEBSTERS DICTIONARY defines art form as an undertaking or activity enhanced by a high level of skill or refinement. Thus, even though some consider it humble, knitting is an art form. Whether sitting at an elders knee or in a designers classroom, we can spend a lifetime refining our techniques and conquering a variety of skills.

As we practice our craft with yarn and needles, we work on canvases of stitches to create knitted masterpieces. One of the most iconic canvases is the circular yoke. Designers, with their boundless ingenuity, give us garments with painterly colorwork, illustrative lace, beautifully chiseled cables, and so much more.

Have you ever stopped to wonder just how they do it? How do knitting masters design the nearly seamless sweaters that frame our faces and drape across our shoulders so beautifully? We explore the answers to these questions in The Art of Circular Yokes. Our instructor in the math behind circular yokes and the nuances of shaping is designer Holli Yeoh. Whether you seek to design this style of sweater or to simply feed your knitterly curiosity, deepening your understanding will be fascinating.

From there, walk through the halls of our sweater gallery, a curated collection of 15 unique and stunning patterns to expand your handknitted wardrobe while honing your skills in a variety of techniques. Top down or bottom up, with colorwork, lace, cables, or slipped stitches, this collection acts as your master class to knitting the finest circular yoke pullovers and cardigans our designers have to offer. They act as our tutors, giving us new lessons with each pattern they create.

Grab your yarn and needles, choose your next cast-on, and knit your way to a new design that shows your love of this art form.

Kerry Bogert, Knitter and Editorial Director, Books

There are many approaches to calculating a circular yoke, and the rules can easily be bent. The patterns in this book give examples of several different approaches, yet they all share the same basic principles. | BY HOLLI YEOH

WHETHER WORKING BOTTOM UP or top down, the same calculations are required. You need to decide on your neckline stitches and determine the lower yoke stitches where the sleeves meet the body and the distance over which youll work your shaping rounds. Circular yoke sweaters can be worked in the round or flat (sometimes, in the case of cardigans). All references to rounds/rows throughout this section will be stated more simply as rounds, but rows may be substituted.

The circular yoke sweater is composed of three cylinders (one for the body and two for the sleeves), plus a funnel for the yoke (). Where the body and sleeves joinor separate, depending on which direction youre workingtheres an underarm span of stitches that are set aside or added to each of those cylinders where they meet.

FIGURE 1: The cylinders and funnel shapes that make up a sweater with a circular yoke.

The yoke is shaped throughout its depth to create a funnel shape. It can be further shaped by raising the back neck so the front sits more comfortably on the wearer. This is achieved by working short-row shaping at the back, adding height to the back of the sweater but not the front. The short-rows can be added anywhere on the back of the yoke, often just below the neckline or below the yoke motif (or both).

Before you begin your calculations, youll need accurate body measurements and the stitch and round gauges for your chosen yarn and stitch pattern(s).

Taking accurate body measurements is a two-person job. Take the following measurements () over basic undergarments and, at most, a close-fitting T-shirt, while standing straight and looking forward.

FIGURE 2: Body measurements, viewed from back.

Neck Circumference: Measure around the base of the neck, crossing over the prominent bone at the back of the neck and the hollow at the front of the neck. Its easier to place a length of yarn or string around the neck and then measure the yarn.

Cross-Back Width: About halfway between the top of the shoulder and the underarm, beginning and ending directly above the underarm crease, measure across the back. This is the distance between armhole seams on a well-fitting T-shirt.

Yoke Depth: Tie a piece of elastic or string around the body just below the armpits (this is shown in the figure with a horizontal broken line). Make sure the arms can be raised above the head and that the string is tied snugly. It should be about 1" (2.5 cm) below where the arm meets the body. Measure from the prominent bone at the back of the neck straight down the back to the string.

Bust Circumference: Measure around the fullest part of the bust, making sure the measuring tape is parallel to the floor and not sagging in the back.

Upper Arm Circumference: Measure around the fullest part of the upper arm.

One of the swatches Jennifer made for the Morris sweater.

I calculated the yoke-pattern gauge along with the Stockinette stitch gauge. I had to take care that the neck circumference didnt get too small, because there was a significant difference between the two gauges." JENNIFER WOOD

Swatching is a necessity when designing a sweater. Knit a large-enough swatch to get a good sense of the drape and feel of the fabric youre creating with your chosen yarn. Measure the gauge both before and after washing and blocking. Large swatches also give a better representation of the gauge. At a minimum, work a 6" (15 cm) square plus additional edging stitches and rows. If your sweater will be worked in the round, then you need to knit the swatch in the round for accuracy, as working flat versus in the round can affect your gauge (see note on ). If the sweater contains more than one stitch pattern, they all need to be swatched.

FIGURE 3: Make a swatch at least 6" (15 cm) square and measure the 4-inch (10 cm) sectionor the increment given in the patternat the center of the swatch.