Frowsery

I have been eying yoked sweater patterns with radiating ribs, but I haven’t seen a pattern that wouldn’t make me look like a squat circle. At first I thought that Radiate was no exception, but I think that with a few modifications that the pattern could yield something quite flattering.

I wonder if the sample sweater wouldn’t have photographed better in a darker color. I have a feeling that the spring green would look bright and cheerful in person, but in the pattern the ribs look washed out and undefined. I’d make the sweater in a sunny yellow, keeping with the theme of the sun’s rays.

I’d move the neckline up a smidge, and instead of having it roll, I’d start with a 1×1 rib, extending the beam farther up the neck. This would help give my shoulders some definition and prevent the sweater from falling off to one side.

The flare on the pattern as written is cute, but with the radiating rib detailing over my (large) chest and no defined waist, this sweater would look like a potato sack on me.

My modification would be to end the radiating ribs a few inches above the largest part of my chest and switch to plain stockinette stitch. This would minimize the widest part of my bust and provide me with a more flattering line. I’d also include some significant waist shaping, pulling the sweater in under my bust before starting the flared bottom.

The sleeves would end up being 3/4 length, I think. I’m not a fan of sleeves that hit my elbow and I am terrible at knitting short sleeves to a flattering length.

I’m not sure that this will jump up to the top of my queue immediately, but the next time I have an itch to start a sweater with this kind of yoke, I’ll know where to start.