Web-Letter, Issue 99 – Allegoro Scoop Neck Pullover Someday I’ll write an ode to stockinette stitch. It may be humble and plain, but its pleasures are many: it’s easy to work, and its smooth surface draws attention to knitterly details and shows off a good yarn. Carrie Bostick Hoge's neat Scoop Neck Pullover is a case in point. Worked in stockinette, her sweater makes the most of a graceful neckline, forgiving silhouette, and a smooth yarn in summer’s favorite fibers—organic cotton and linen. Creative Director
The Story: Three factors contributed to this design: color, style, and simplicity. (Well, four, if you consider that I was anxious to use Allegoro). Originally, I had a cardigan in mind, and I chose the Best Berry color to liven things up. But after swatching, I realized that this color, for some reason, wanted to be a pullover instead. So, okay, I listened. And this led me to the second factor—I wanted to create a garment that would fit into my wardrobe. I wear very few pullovers, so I took a close look at my meager summer attire. I decided a scoop neck top that I could dress up or down was just the ticket. With the basics determined it was time to think stitches, which brought me to my last motivation—simplicity. My summer has been a busy one with tending to the garden, caring for our animals, and helping with home renovations. So for the love of summer simplicity, it seemed that stockinette stitch would be most appropriate and comforting. Violà! I happlily cast-on. Visit Carrie's blog. The Yarns: Allegoro 70% organic cotton, 30% linen Allegoro is a blend of organically grown cotton and linen. In keeping with its mostly earth-friendly fiber content, Allegoro is dyed using GOTS certified non-toxic dyes. (You can find out more about GOTS standards here: www.global-standard.org.) These dyes yield beautiful soft colors, the kind of colors that are easy to wear and you’ll never tire of. Allegoro is great for transitional garments — little cardigans and tops. If you’re inclined to make something outright summery, like a tank top or camisole, Allegoro will keep you cool and comfortable — in the knitting and wearing. It comes in 10 enticing colors. (Allegoro is included in the “Living Green” article in the Fall 09 issue of Knit Simple magazine)	more photos The Pattern: Here is the free downloadable Allegoro Scoop Neck Pullover pattern. If you have difficulty downloading or printing the PDF pattern above, try these: page 1, page 2 The Stitches: Carrie’s Allegoro Scoop Neck Pullover is worked from the bottom up. It begins with 1 x 1 ribbing, then changes to Stockinette Stitch for the body. Using the Backward Loop and Cable Cast On methods, stitches are cast on at the end of many rows to form the sleeves. The neck shaping is worked using right and left slanting decreases and short rows are used to shape the shoulders. Front and back are identical and joined along the shoulder and sleeve using the Three-Needle Bind off method.
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