Soca Top Knitting Pattern

Soca Top in Berroco Estiva

What is Being Made

The Soca Top is a women's knitted pullover garment designed by Amy Christoffers from Berroco Booklet #406. This intermediate-level knitting project creates a fitted top with a yoke construction and set-in sleeves. The finished garment is available in six sizes ranging from 36 inches to 56 inches bust measurement, with corresponding lengths from approximately 20 to 25 inches. The sample shown features a 36-inch bust with approximately 1 inch of ease for comfortable wear.

Construction Technique

The Soca Top employs a distinctive yoke-first construction method that differs from traditional top-down or bottom-up approaches. The front and back yokes are worked separately as semi-circles, beginning from the center bottom and expanding outward. This modular approach allows for precise shaping of the shoulder and upper body area. After the yokes are completed, sleeves are knitted separately and then sewn to the yoke pieces. Once the sleeves are attached, a neckband is picked up from the neck opening and worked in ribbing for a finished edge. The lower body of the garment is subsequently picked up from the cast-on edges of the yokes and worked downward to complete the top.

Stitches and Stitch Techniques

The primary stitch used throughout most of the Soca Top is stockinette stitch, which creates a smooth, classic fabric with a flat appearance. Shaping is achieved through strategic use of yarn overs and decreases. Yarn overs create decorative eyelet increases that add visual interest while expanding the fabric width. Knit two together (k2tog) and slip, slip, knit (SSK) decreases are used to shape the yoke sections, with decrease rows strategically placed every 4th or 6th row depending on the size being knitted. The neckband is worked in ribbing, which provides elasticity and a professional finished appearance at the neck opening.

Materials and Gauge

The Soca Top is designed to be knitted using Berroco Estiva yarn in the colorway #2612 Curry. Berroco Estiva is a lightweight yarn, with each cake weighing 150 grams. Depending on the size selected, the project requires 2 to 3 cakes of yarn. The pattern calls for 24-inch circular needles in sizes 9 (5.50 mm) and 10 (6.00 mm), allowing knitters to choose the larger needle size to achieve the correct gauge. A stitch marker is also required to track pattern repeats and construction points. The recommended gauge is 14 stitches and 20 rows equaling 4 inches in stockinette stitch when measured on the larger needle in an unstretched state. Checking gauge before beginning is essential to ensure the finished garment matches the intended finished measurements.