Valley Yarns Hidden Hills Pullover Knitting Pattern

Valley Yarns Hidden Hills Pullover

What Is Being Made

The Hidden Hills Pullover is a fitted, round-yoke colorwork sweater designed by Elisabeth Parker. This pullover features a seamless construction worked in the round from the bottom up, with a classic crew neckline and set-in sleeves. The garment showcases a round yoke with simple Fair Isle colorwork and gentle runching around the neckline. Available in six sizes ranging from 32" to 52" finished bust measurements, this pullover is an excellent project for displaying the heathered colorway options of Valley Yarns Northampton Sport yarn.

Techniques Used

The Hidden Hills Pullover employs several intermediate-level knitting techniques:

• Bottom-up construction: The body and sleeves are knit separately from the bottom upward, then joined at the yoke.
• Seamless knitting in the round: The body and sleeves are worked circularly using circular needles and double-pointed needles to eliminate seaming.
• Stranded colorwork (Fair Isle): The round yoke features simple Fair Isle colorwork using multiple colors held simultaneously to create the pattern.
• Turned hems: Contrasting color hems are created on the inside of the garment using a turning round (purl round) to create a neat fold line.
• Fitted shaping: Sleeve increases are worked using make-one increases (m1) to achieve a fitted silhouette.
• Underarm bind-offs: Stitches are bound off at the underarm to create armholes before joining the body and sleeves at the yoke.

Stitches Used

The Hidden Hills Pullover uses fundamental knitting stitches appropriate for intermediate crafters:

• Stockinette stitch (St st): The primary stitch used throughout the body and sleeves, creating a smooth, classic fabric.
• Knit (k): The basic knit stitch worked in the round.
• Purl (p): Used for turning rounds to create the hem fold lines.
• Knit two together (k2tog): A basic decrease stitch used for shaping.
• Make-one (m1): An increase stitch used to shape the sleeves gradually.
• Fair Isle colorwork: The yoke features simple Fair Isle patterning using three colors: Color A (Dark Olive Heather), Color B (Chestnut Heather), and Color C (Fawn), with individual stitches worked in different colors as indicated by the pattern abbreviations A1, B1, and C1.

Materials: Yarn and Needles

Yarn: Valley Yarns Northampton Sport is used for this project. This yarn is 100% wool with a yardage of 164 yards per 50-gram skein, making it a sport-weight yarn suitable for fitted garments. The pattern requires multiple skeins depending on size: 5 to 11 skeins of Color A (Dark Olive Heather) for the main body color, 1 to 2 skeins of Color B (Chestnut Heather) for the contrasting hem and yoke colorwork, and 1 skein of Color C (Fawn) for additional yoke patterning.

Needles: The pattern calls for US size 5 (3.75 mm) circular needles in both 32" and 16" lengths, along with double-pointed needles in the same size. The 32" circular needle is used for casting on and working the body in the round, while the shorter 16" circular needle and double-pointed needles are used for the sleeves and yoke work as the stitch count decreases. Knitters should verify their needle size by checking gauge before beginning the project.

Gauge and Finished Measurements

The pattern is worked to a gauge of 6 stitches and 8 rows per 1 inch in stockinette stitch. The finished bust measurements are available in six sizes: 32", 36", 40", 44", 48", and 52". The body length is approximately 17 to 21.5 inches depending on size, measured from the turning round hem.