Lace Raglan Tee Top Knitting Pattern

Lace Raglan Tee in Noro Akari

What is Being Made

The Lace Raglan Tee is a sophisticated knitted garment featuring a classic raglan sleeve construction. This top is designed in five size options—Small, Medium, Large, X-Large, and XX-Large—with finished bust measurements ranging from 35 to 45 inches (89 to 114 centimeters) and center back lengths from 23 to 26 inches (58.5 to 66 centimeters). The upper arm circumference varies from 11¾ to 16½ inches (30 to 42 centimeters) across the size range. The garment showcases lace patterning as a design element, making it an elegant layering piece or standalone top.

Techniques Used

This advanced-level knitting project employs several sophisticated techniques that require experience and attention to detail. The construction includes raglan shaping, a method where sleeves are increased gradually from the wrist upward, meeting the body at diagonal seams that run from the underarm to the neckline. The pattern incorporates lace work, which involves strategic yarn overs and decreases to create openwork designs throughout the fabric. The project uses stitch markers to help track pattern repeats and shaping points. Additionally, the pattern includes pick up and knit techniques for adding stitches along edges, and selvage stitches are worked at edges to facilitate seaming. The construction method involves working flat on straight needles rather than in the round.

Stitches Used

The Lace Raglan Tee utilizes a range of fundamental and decorative knitting stitches. Knit and purl stitches form the foundation of the fabric. Yarn overs are used to create the openwork lace effects characteristic of the design. Decreases are worked using slip, slip, knit (SSK) and slip, slip, purl (SSP) techniques, where two stitches are slipped knitwise or purlwise and then worked together to decrease one stitch. Make one increases are employed for shaping, worked both knitwise (inserting the needle from front to back under the strand between stitches and knitting into the back loop) and purlwise (lifting the strand and purling it). The pattern includes slip stitches for edge work. Charts are used to indicate pattern placement, with no stitch spaces shown as shaded areas where stitches have been decreased or not yet made, requiring the knitter to skip over these spaces while working the remaining stitches.

Materials

The Lace Raglan Tee is designed to be knitted with Noro Akari yarn in colorway #7. The yardage requirements vary by size: Small and Medium sizes require 2 balls of 200 grams each, while Large and X-Large require 3 balls, and XX-Large requires 4 balls. The project is worked on two pairs of needles in different sizes: size US 6 (4mm) needles and size US 7 (4.5mm) needles. The use of two needle sizes allows for different gauges in different sections of the garment, a common technique for achieving proper fit and fabric characteristics in lace knitting.