Fenton Dress Knitting Pattern

Fenton Dress in Juniper Moon Sabine

What is Being Made

The Fenton Dress is a knitted garment designed by Pamela Wynne as part of the Downtown Collection by Juniper Moon Farm. This dress features a fitted silhouette with structured pleating details and is available in seven sizes ranging from XS to 4X, with finished bust measurements from 32½ inches (83 cm) to 56½ inches (144 cm) and a length of approximately 35¼ to 37 inches (89.5 to 94 cm).

Techniques Used

The Fenton Dress employs several intermediate to advanced knitting techniques to create its distinctive design. Pleating is a primary structural technique, achieved through a specialized method using a cable needle to decrease stitches while creating decorative folds in the fabric. The pattern uses both left pleats and right pleats, which involve slipping stitches onto a cable needle and knitting them together with corresponding stitches on the main needle to create a 5-stitch decrease with visual impact.

The dress is constructed using circular needles and worked in the round, allowing for seamless construction. The pattern incorporates increases and decreases (including ssk and k2tog techniques) to shape the garment and create fitted shaping. Garter stitch sections provide textural contrast, while the main body is worked in Stockinette stitch for a smooth, classic finish.

Stitches Used

• Stockinette Stitch (St st): The primary stitch used throughout the main body of the dress, creating a smooth V-pattern fabric on the right side
• Garter Stitch: Used in specific sections to provide textural variation and definition
• Knit (k) and Purl (p): The fundamental stitches that form the foundation of all knitted fabric
• Knit 2 Together (k2tog): A right-leaning decrease used for shaping
• Slip, Slip, Knit (ssk): A left-leaning decrease used for balanced shaping
• Purl 2 Together (p2tog): A decrease worked on wrong-side rows
• Make One Increases (m1L and m1R): Left-leaning and right-leaning increases used to add stitches while maintaining stitch definition
• Pleat Stitches: Specialized decreases using cable needle techniques to create the dress's signature pleated details

Materials and Gauge

The Fenton Dress is designed to be knitted with Juniper Moon Farm Sabine yarn in color #28 Classic Cherry. The yardage requirement varies by size, requiring 5 hanks for XS through 10 hanks for the largest 4X size.

Three sizes of circular needles are used throughout the construction: US 6 (4 mm) needles serve as the main needles for the body, US 5 (3.75 mm) needles (one size smaller) are used for ribbing and transitional sections, and US 4 (3.5 mm) needles are employed for more delicate areas. The pattern specifies a gauge of 20 stitches and 26 rows over 4 inches (10 cm) in Stockinette stitch on the larger needles, which is essential for achieving the correct finished measurements.

Additional notions required include a tapestry needle for weaving in yarn ends and finishing, and stitch markers to track pattern repeats and construction sections during the knitting process.