This sweater falls into the sweet spot on the Venn diagram between things I want to wear on a boat and things that remind me of my fashion paper dolls. I found it in a Google Image search while I was looking for some vintage knitting inspiration and I think I did a reasonable job of recreating it.

Working off of old fashion plates involves some risky measurements. I started off measuring the stripe for the rib off of the illustration’s fingertips – which were not to scale with her head.

From a big picture perspective, some of the components went against my instincts. The 1920s silhouette is long and thin, and the 11-year-old in me that binged What Not to Wear at my grandmother’s beauty shop kept screaming that the length is universally unflattering. It cuts the body in half instead of in thirds! Which I guess matters to me? It’s just my modern sensibilities poking through. That’s my excuse for the missing fourth repeat of the diamond pattern.

The skinniness of the sleeves in the picture bothered me for a slightly more sensible reason. More room in the armpits wears better. It’s both cooler and creates less friction, so the fabric wears longer. I had to rip out the first sleeve I made for being too puffy. The sleeves I ended up with are truer to the drawing, but still with one or two liberties taken.

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My hat here served two purposes – making me look a little more like the model in the drawing, and hiding the dramatic ’60s eye look I had gone for that day.

The full pattern is now available on Ravelry for $2.98, just like the illustration claims. What can I say, advertising works on me.

Size: XS, S, M, L/XL

Size Guide

Materials:

Needles:

US size 4 

US size 4 circular

US size 6 

US size 6 double-pointed needles

Yarn:

MC: Shine Worsted in Black, 6 (7, 8, 10) skeins (75 yards each)

CC: Shine Worsted in Cream, 10 (12, 14, 15) skeins (75 yards each)

Gauge:

10 stitches and 16 rows = 2 inches in stockinette (size 6 needles)