Poole Harbor

Poole Harbor Hooded Pullover by Julliana Lund

What Is Being Made

The Poole Harbor is a hooded pullover sweater designed as a versatile summer garment. This piece functions beautifully as a swimsuit cover-up or lightweight layering piece, making it ideal for warm weather wear. The pullover features a modern Henley neckline with decorative side vents that showcase functional buttons, adding both style and practicality to the design. The hood is a distinctive design element that is picked up from the provisional neck cast-on and worked last in the construction process.

Construction Method and Techniques

The Poole Harbor is worked as a top-down raglan sweater, a construction method that begins at the neckline and progresses downward toward the hem. This approach offers several advantages: it allows for easy fitting adjustments, enables seamless integration of the hood, and provides flexibility in customizing the final length. The top-down raglan construction creates natural shaping through strategic increases that form the characteristic diagonal raglan lines from the neckline to the underarms.

A provisional cast-on is used at the neckline, which allows the designer to return to those stitches later to pick up and work the hood. This technique eliminates the need for seaming at the neckline and creates a clean, professional finish. The hood is worked last, after the body of the sweater is complete, making it easy to customize the hood depth if desired.

Stitch Patterns and Details

The primary stitch pattern features zigzagging lace stripes that run throughout the body of the sweater. These lace elements are central to the design's aesthetic and function—the openwork created by the lace stitches allows warm summer breezes to flow through the fabric, making this an exceptionally breathable garment perfect for hot weather. The lace stripes create visual interest while maintaining the sweater's lightweight, airy quality.

The base fabric is worked in stockinette stitch, which provides a smooth, classic knit surface that showcases the lace pattern details. The combination of stockinette and lace creates excellent stitch definition and visual contrast.

Yarn and Materials

The Poole Harbor is designed to be knit in DK weight yarn, a lightweight yarn category that contributes to the sweater's breathability and drape. The pattern specifies Knit Picks CotLin DK, a blend of 70% Tanguis Cotton and 30% Linen. This fiber composition is ideal for summer wear: cotton provides breathability and moisture-wicking properties, while linen adds structure, durability, and a subtle texture. The yarn is shown in the colorway "Clementine."

Yarn requirements range from approximately 1000 yards for the smallest size (33-inch bust) to 2150 yards for the largest size (57-inch bust), depending on the finished bust measurement selected. The pattern offers nine size options with finished bust measurements of 33, 36, 39, 42, 45, 48, 51, 54, and 57 inches, with suggested ease of 2–4 inches.

Tools and Notions

Construction requires US 6 / 4 mm circular needles throughout the project, worked at a gauge of 18 stitches over 4 inches in stockinette stitch. Circular needles are used for the top-down raglan method, allowing stitches to be distributed around the needle as the sweater grows.

Additional materials needed include:

• 12–14 buttons in size 5/8" or 7/8" for the Henley neckline and side vents
• Tapestry needle for weaving in ends and any finishing work
• Stitch holders or scrap yarn for holding stitches during construction
• 4 stitch markers for tracking raglan increases and pattern repeats

Difficulty Level

The Poole Harbor is classified as an advanced knitting project. This difficulty level reflects the combination of techniques required: top-down raglan construction, lace stitch pattern work, provisional cast-on methods, and the coordination of multiple design elements. Knitters should be comfortable reading lace charts, managing increases for raglan shaping, and picking up stitches for the hood. The advanced classification ensures that crafters undertaking this project have solid foundational skills and experience with intermediate to complex knitting techniques.