L & B Yarn Co. | The Spin

Leslie’s Summer Vest

Spring is in the air and all of us at L & B are busily unpacking our shipments of spring and summer yarns, which are so sunny and light that we can’t help but dream about the long summer evenings ahead, and the garments we can start preparing for the prevailing season in Oklahoma: summer.  While woolen accessories are a great way to keep warm during the cold months, knitwear proves its endless versatility by being just as useful in the summertime–you just have to change your materials up a little bit!  Our newest cotton tape yarn, “Sol Degrade” by Lang Yarns, is a light combed cotton ribbon yarn that features long color changes.  The yarn is ombre dyed to cause a gradual change from light to dark colors.  The yarn is 100% cotton, but unlike so many cotton yarns, it is very lightweight and easy on the hands.  This is due to the yarn’s structure–instead of being plied strands of cotton, the strands have been knitted into a light fabric, resulting in naturally stretchy yarn.

Leslie decided to make a lightweight vest that would be easy to wear over a tank top or t-shirt when the temperature starts to rise.  She chose a free pattern on Ravelry called “Summer Vest” for its cute racerback detail and otherwise simple, easygoing shape.  The pattern is designed by Julie Beatty, who was inspired by another Raveler’s take on “Coachella,” a very popular racerback tanktop that is available on Knitty.com.  Having selected her pattern, Leslie cast on with size 9 needles to ensure that her fabric wouldn’t be too dense.  After a few evenings of knitting, the vest was ready!  All in all, it required a little less than 3 skeins.

The pattern is written for one size, but if you wanted to make yours bigger or smaller, it’s as easy as adjusting the beginning stitch count (we’re always here to help you customize your project and do knitting math).  For those that prefer solids, we think that this vest would lay very nicely if knit out of Sprout by Classic Elite, a supersoft organic yarn that comes in an array of pretty colors.  The vest is all stockinette stitch, which causes the front edges to curl gently, and showcases the color-changing yarn beautifully.  This vest is knit from the top down and requires no seaming.

What kinds of summer projects do you all have in mind?  We hope the shop serves as a source of inspiration, and wish you all luck with your summer knits!

-Elizabeth