Valley Yarns WEBS Emerging Designer Got You Covered Vest

Valley Yarns WEBS Emerging Designer Got You Covered Vest

Garment Overview

The Got You Covered Vest, designed by Marcy Vandale for the WEBS Emerging Designer Series, is a long layering vest ideal for colder months. This knitted waistcoat features a sophisticated lace cable panel on the front while maintaining a simple stockinette stitch back, creating visual interest without overwhelming complexity. The vest is available in five sizes to fit bust measurements from 32–34 inches up to 48–50 inches, with finished measurements ranging from 34 to 50 inches. The design includes an optional hidden smartphone pocket integrated into the front, making it both stylish and functional for everyday wear with jeans, leggings, and boots.

Knitting Techniques

This advanced beginner project employs several intermediate knitting techniques that build essential skills. The vest is worked flat on circular needles, meaning the pieces are knitted in flat rows rather than in the round, allowing for easier cable work and shaping. The construction follows a bottom-up approach, where the garment is knitted starting from the lower edge and progressing upward toward the shoulders and neckline. The finished pieces are then seamed together using mattress stitch or a similar seaming technique to create clean, professional-looking side and shoulder seams.

Stitches and Cable Work

The Got You Covered Vest showcases cable stitches as its primary decorative element. The front features a 13-stitch cable panel that combines right cable crosses (1/1 RC), left cable crosses (1/1 LC), and left purl crosses (1/1 LPC) to create an intricate textured design. The cable panel incorporates lace elements through yarn overs (yo) and decreases (k2tog, ssk), adding an elegant openwork quality to the cables. The foundation of the garment is worked in stockinette stitch, which creates a smooth, classic fabric on the back and body. The cable panel repeats across multiple rows, with the pattern alternating between cable rows and purl rows to allow the cables to develop their characteristic twisted appearance.

Materials and Yarn Specifications

The Got You Covered Vest is designed to be knitted with Valley Yarns Deerfield, a luxury blend yarn composed of 80% baby alpaca and 20% silk. This fiber combination creates a soft, lustrous fabric with excellent drape and warmth. The yarn is available in the color Eggplant, a deep purple tone shown in the pattern photography. Yardage requirements range from 8 skeins for the smallest size (32–34 inches) to 12 skeins for the largest size (48–50 inches), with each skein containing 50 grams and 109 yards. This generous yardage allows for the long length of the vest and the textured cable panels.

Needles and Gauge

The pattern calls for US size 4 (3.50mm) and US size 5 (3.75mm) circular needles, each measuring 32 inches in length. The larger needles are used for the main body to achieve the correct gauge, while the smaller needles are typically used for ribbed edgings and finishing details. A cable needle is required for manipulating stitches during cable crosses. Optional US size 5 (3.75mm) double-pointed needles may be used if knitting the smartphone pocket. The pattern specifies a gauge of 5.25 stitches and 7 rows per inch when working stockinette stitch with the larger needles, which is essential for achieving the correct finished measurements.

Finishing Details

The vest is completed with two small buttons, each measuring between 0.5 and 1 inch in diameter, which provide both functional and decorative closure. The optional pocket detail is nearly invisible when not in use, offering a practical feature for modern wearers while maintaining the clean aesthetic of the design. The seamed construction creates defined shoulder lines and allows for precise shaping through strategic bind-offs at the neckline and armholes.