Valley Yarns Lumia Knitting Pattern

Valley Yarns Lumia Pullover Sweater

What Is Being Made

The Lumia is an oversized pullover sweater designed by Marykate Fleming. This garment features a contemporary silhouette with positive ease of 2 to 6 inches, available in seven sizes from Small through 4XL with finished bust measurements ranging from 37¾ inches to 60½ inches. The sweater showcases a distinctive design element where the reverse stockinette side serves as the public-facing surface, creating a textured appearance that contrasts with traditional stockinette presentation.

Techniques Used

The Lumia employs several advanced knitting techniques that work together to create a seamless, professional-quality garment:

• Top-Down Construction: The sweater is knit from the neck downward, allowing for try-on adjustments to body and sleeve length according to individual preferences before completing the piece.
• Worked in the Round: The entire sweater is knit in the round in one continuous piece, eliminating the need for seaming and creating a seamless construction.
• Raglan Shaping: The yoke features raglan increase shaping from the neckline down to the underarm, creating the characteristic diagonal lines that define the shoulder and upper arm area.
• Marled Fade Pattern: The design incorporates a marled fade effect, created by holding two different colored yarns together throughout the knitting process, producing a blended, multi-tonal appearance.
• Seamless Sleeves: Sleeve stitches are placed on hold during body construction, then worked in the round downward from the dividing point to the cuffs, minimizing finishing work and maintaining the seamless aesthetic.
• Inside-Out Construction: The sweater is deliberately worked inside out to minimize purling, with the reverse stockinette texture intentionally positioned as the public side of the finished garment.

Stitches Used

The Lumia is primarily constructed using fundamental stockinette stitch variations:

• Stockinette Stitch: The main stitch used throughout the body and sleeves, worked in the round to create smooth, V-shaped columns of knit stitches.
• Reverse Stockinette Stitch: Created by working the reverse side of stockinette stitch as the public surface, producing the characteristic bumpy texture that defines the sweater's aesthetic.
• Slip Stitch Details: Edge stitches are worked using slip stitches with yarn held in front (wyif), creating neat, finished edges on the ribbed sections.

Materials and Yarn Specifications

The Lumia pattern calls for a sophisticated blend of premium fibers worked in combination:

• Main Color 1 (MC1): Valley Yarns Berkshire Bulky in Natural (01), an 85% wool and 15% alpaca blend with 108 yards per 100-gram skein. Yardage requirements range from 3 skeins for size Small to 5 skeins for sizes 3XL and 4XL.
• Main Color 2 (MC2): Valley Yarns Berkshire Bulky in Dark Teal (31), the same fiber content and yardage as MC1. Yardage requirements range from 2 skeins for size Small to 4 skeins for the largest sizes.
• Contrast Color 1 (CC1): Valley Yarns Southampton in Natural (014), a luxurious blend of 72% kid mohair and 28% mulberry silk with 230 yards per 25-gram ball. Requirements range from 2 balls for sizes Small and Medium to 4 balls for size 4XL.
• Contrast Color 2 (CC2): Valley Yarns Southampton in North Sea (028), with identical fiber content and yardage to CC1. Ball requirements range from 2 balls for size Small to 3 balls for most larger sizes.
• Needle Requirements: US size 10 (6.0 mm) circular needles in 16-inch, 24-inch, and 32-inch lengths, plus matching double-pointed needles for working small circumferences. US size 8 (5.0 mm) circular needles in 16-inch length and double-pointed needles for ribbed sections.
• Additional Materials: Stitch markers for tracking increases and pattern repeats, a tapestry needle for weaving in yarn ends, and smooth waste yarn