When I published a post back in May, I mentioned the amount of rain and overcast skies that we were experiencing in Helsinki. Two months later and I can report that we’ve hardly seen those grey skies since. It’s been all sun and it is starting to show in the parks where these naturally green spaces have turned yellow. I’m surprised my garden box hasn’t turned to ash yet. I am finding it hard to focus on knitting, especially when that project is a wool and mohair sweater sitting on your lap. We’re due for some badly needed rain this week and I’m sure I’ll pick up my project soon. If it wasn’t so hot and humid, I’d be thinking of more knitting projects. This latest design is something I see myself living in this autumn and winter and hopefully I can get it on the needles when it cools down.
Original sketches.
This latest design was proposed to The Knitter, a UK based knitting magazine. I’ve worked with them before, publishing Metrolla in Issue 133, January 2019, and Ilma in Issue 151, June 2020. Kallio is my new piece for The Knitter and I thought I would start off with some background information on the name. I don’t always name my designs when submitting them. Often magazines or yarn companies already have predetermined ideas for their current theme. When this one came back with the name Kallio, I couldn’t help but laugh since this name feels very fitting for me right now.
Many of you know that I have been taking Finnish language courses on and off since moving to Helsinki. Kallio, in the Finnish language, means rock or a hill with hardly any vegetation, mostly solid rock. It is also a popular last name in Finland. However, the most meaningful term to me is the neighbourhood of Kallio, a small eastern district in Helsinki and very close to where I actually live. What are the chances that The Knitter would pick out a name of where I spend most of my time? I live in Sörnainen, very close to where it intersects with Kallio. Since the beginning of the pandemic most of my daily life has been limited to where I can walk or bike and that means visiting Kallio every day. Most of my favourite restaurants and cafes are located there, plus my garden box and I do daily trips to water it, making sure it doesn’t burn up in this heat!
Original swatch.
When swatching for Kallio, I wanted to have a natural wool blend for this project so the pleats would keep their shape. Plus, I thought the natural texture of a wool blend would add some interest to the sweater since it is mostly knit in Stocking Stitch. When The Knitter suggested using Sirdar’s Saltaire for Kallio, I was slightly hesitant at first. This was mainly because I hadn’t worked with blends that have such a high content of acrylic and nylon before and I didn’t know how the pleats would react. However, I liked that the Saltaire blend also included alpaca so I decided to give it a try and stared swatching when it arrived.
Saltaire was quick and easy to knit up and over exceeded my expectation for an acrylic blend. The addition of alpaca adds a softness to the finished looks, while feeling good against your skin. I love how the pleats turned out due to the drape of this fabric, they are delicate yet still have some shape and the fabric doesn’t have harsh crease lines from blocking. Plus, this acrylic and alpaca blend creates a lightweight sweater considering the amount of fabric in this design. When choosing yarn for your own Kallio, I would look for something similar or a wool blend that is worsted spun, something light and lofty to give you this affect.
Original Kallio sketch.
This minimal look only includes a few design features. Since the majority of the surface texture is Stocking Stitch, I wanted to play with the shaping. To exaggerate the relaxed look, I added a small pleat into each sleeve for extra volume and one larger pleat in the centre back. Other details include exposed seams where the different sections are joined together. The collar, hem and cuffs are finished in 1x1 ribbing. Kallio is knitted flat, in pieces and then seamed together. The front is one piece while the back is made up of two sections. The back pleat is created before joining the two sections together.
Original Kallio sketch.
From the beginning, I wanted the seams to also be a feature on this sweater. Most pieces I design, I try to hide the seams as much as possible with clever construction or tidy finishing details. These seams are joined together by using the three-needle bind off method. The exposed seams are across the shoulders, back, where the sleeves are joined to the body and where the sleeve meets the cuff. If you’re not interested in the exposed seams, they can be hidden by working them on the wrong side of the fabric.
Since adding pleats into this knitted sweater was a new process for me, I thought I would show you some in-progress photos in case you’re on the fence about how to work them. This is one of the sleeves, knit from the top down, just before adding the pleat. The locking stitch markers come in handy here, as they mark the points where the fabric will be folded. They are added while the stitches are still on the needle. All stitches and markers are then transferred onto a piece of waste yarn.
In the second photo, you’ll carefully knit the stitches back onto the needle, up until the first marker.
The fabric is folded next, the second marker will be brought over to meet the fourth marker and the first and third markers will also line up. The instructions will detail which way the fabric is folded since the pleat is made up of two folds that mirror each other.
The needle is then inserted into three stitches at once, knitting all three together. This is repeated across those stitches to seam the three layers of fabric together.
The second side is then folded in the opposite direction compared to the first. The needle is then carefully inserted into three stitches, knitting them together to close the second side. The remaining stitches are knit back onto the needle. After this point, the stitches remain on the needle until the cuff is finished separately. The cuff and sleeve are then joined together using the three needle bind off method so the seam is exposed on the right side of the fabric.
I'll finish this post off with some of the gorgeous photos from the issue. I’ve also listed Kallio’s details at the very end. Currently, this design is only available in Issue 166. If you’d like more information, Kallio can be found on Ravelry, right here.
Photography by The Knitter.
“Subtle details have been used to bring a contemporary look to this sweater by Fiona Alice. Designed for a loose, comfortable fit, it features a box pleat at the top of the lower back section, along with two little pleats above the cuffs. The sweater is worked in a number of pieces, which are joined using the three-needle cast-off to produce visible seams on the right side of the garment. It’s knitted in Saltaire, an aran-weight yarn from Sirdar.” - The Knitter
Photography by The Knitter.
Photography by The Knitter.
Kallio Detail
Sizes
To Fit Bust: 76 (86, 97, 107, 117) (127, 137, 148, 158)cm / 30 (34, 38, 42, 46) (50, 54, 58, 62)”
Front Bust Width: 51 (56.5, 61, 66.5, 71) (76.5, 81, 86.5, 91)cm / 20 (22¼, 24, 26¼, 28) (30, 32, 34, 35¾)”
Length to Shoulder: 57.5 (58, 59, 60, 60.5) (61.5, 62.5, 63.5, 64)cm / 22½ (22¾, 23¼, 23½, 23¾) (24¼, 24½, 25, 25¼)”
Sleeve Seam: 46.5 (46.5, 46.5, 45.5, 45) (45, 44.5, 44, 43)cm / 18¼ (18¼, 18¼, 18, 17¾) (17¾, 17½, 17¼, 17)”
Yarn
Sirdar’s Saltaire (Aran weight; 55% acrylic, 25% nylon, 20% alpaca; 130m / 142 yds per 50g skein)
8 (9, 10, 11, 12) (13, 14, 15, 17) skeins
Sample is shown in colour Squirrel, 301.
Needles
5mm (UK 6 / US 8) circular needles, 80cm long or longer, for working back and forth
4.5mm (UK 7 / US 7) circular needles, 80cm long
A spare 5mm (UK 6 / US 8) needle, for working three-needle cast-off
Notions
Waste yarn, tapestry needle, 11 locking stitch markers
Gauge18 sts & 24 rows = 10cm / 4” over Stocking Stitch on 5mm needles.
Thank You
Publisher: The Knitter, @theknittermag
Photography: The Shed, @theshed_photostudio
Yarn Support: Sirdar, @knitsirdar
Edit: 13.03.2023
Kallio is now available as a single pattern PDF through Ravelry, and fionaalice.com.
Fiona wearing Kallio, knit in Sandnes Garn’s KOS.
Fiona wearing Kallio, knit in Sandnes Garn’s KOS.