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Inspired by my Wispy Haze shawl, Whisper After Dark is a fun elegant evening top that introduces you to short row wispy bursts interspersed between rounds of fingering and mohair yarns. Its romantic, light and airy yoke exudes femininity.

Whisper After Dark is worked top-down, in the round seamlessly using two strands of yarn held together. It has many features allowing for a very custom fit.

The double-knit neck, cuffs and hem give an elegant, polished finish without the bulk of a turned down equivalent.

Wear it with short sleeves for a dressy party this coming season or, have full length sleeves to wear with your jean and boots. It’s up to you whether to dress up or down!

CONSTRUCTION NOTES:
Before you start to think about yarn, please read the important notes in YARN and SWATCHING below.

• Whisper After Dark is worked seamlessly using two strands of yarn held together. It is worked in one piece, in the round, from the top down. The EOR marker is placed at the back centre.
• Some short rows occur straight away for a higher back neck area, followed by some stocking stitch before commencing the lace and short row wispy bursts.
• I recommend steaming or wet blocking your yoke after the wispy bursts are worked to allow the lace to open to its correct length. Instructions and guideline measurements for this are given in Appendix 1.
• The yoke is then divided for the sleeves and body. There are two options for sleeves – short and full length. Of course, if you wish to do a ¾ length sleeve, just work the cuff a few rounds after a decrease round.
• The body can be worked straight or there are instructions for some subtle waist shaping.
• Finally, the neck is worked by picking up stitches from the cast on edge.

You can shorten/ lengthen this garment by knitting less/ more body length before commencing the hem. Try on as you go and adjust accordingly. Please note that extra yarn will be required if you knit the body length longer than the measurement in the schematic. I have provided a matrix in Appendix 2 to help you work out your extra yarn quantities.

There are several video tutorials linked to this pattern.
1) German Short rowing.
2) M1b – a different version of make one below – so please watch!
3) 1 x 1 Tubular bind off.
Links to all these Techniques can be found on page 5.

EXPERIENCE LEVEL: Intermediate.

SIZES:
1 (2, 3, 4, 5) (6, 7, 8, 9)
Finished chest circumference:
80 (90, 102 ,110, 119.5) (129.5, 139.5, 148.5, 156.5)cm
32 (36, 40.75, 44, 47.75) (51.75, 55.75, 59.25, 62.5)”

See Schematic on page 6 for more detailed measurements. Suggested fit approx. 2.5 – 8.75cm (1 – 3.5”) positive ease. Sample shown in size 4 with 7.5cm (3”) ease. Finished garment measurements are taken with relaxed fabric after blocking, so please knit a gauge swatch.

YARN
Yarn A: Emma’s Yarn, Super Silky 100g (366m/ 400 yds, 80% superwash Merino, 20% silk).
Fingering weight.
Yarn B: Marvelous Mohair lace 50g (420m/ 459yds, 72% Mohair, 18% Silk).
Cream sample colourway in Whisper.
Charcoal grey sample in colourway After Dark.
Note: When selecting yarn colours I recommend using the same colour way for both yarns. See note below on Yarn & Swatching.

Short Sleeves
Yarn A:
140 (157, 179, 196, 219) (239, 262, 285, 309) g
512 (576, 656, 716, 803) (875, 959, 1042, 1134) m
560 (629, 717, 783, 877) (956, 1049, 1139, 1240) yds
Yarn B:
64 (72, 83, 90, 101) (110, 121, 131, 143) g
542 (608, 693, 758, 849) (925, 1014, 1102, 1199) m
592 (665, 758, 828, 928) (1011, 1108, 1204, 1311) yds

Long Sleeves
Yarn A:
202 (224, 255, 277, 310) (335, 366, 394, 429) g
741 (819, 934, 1015, 1133) (1227, 1339, 1444, 1570) m
809 (895, 1021, 1110, 1238) (1341, 1463, 1578, 1716) yds
Yarn B:
93 (103, 118, 128, 143) (154, 169, 182, 198) g
783 (866, 988, 1074, 1198) (1297, 1416, 1526, 1660) m
856 (946, 1097, 1173, 1309) (1418, 1547, 1668, 1814) yds
Please note that a 10% yarn contingency is incorporated into these quantities.

Extra Yarn for Body lengthening
Yarn A g/2.5cm(1”) 6.5(7.5, 8.5, 9, 10) (10.5, 11.5, 12.5, 13)
Yarn B g/2.5cm(1”) 3(3.5, 4, 4, 4.5) (5, 5, 5.5, 6)
Approximate grams per 2.5cm/ 1” (7 rounds) figures based on stocking stitch worked in the round.

TOOLS:
Needles
Needle A: Size 3.75mm / US 5 circular needle, 80cm /32” length (or 0.5mm / 1 US size smaller than Needle B) to knit the neck and cuffs. If not using magic loop for sleeves or neck, then a set of double pointed needles will be required, or shorter cable.
Needle B: Size 4mm / US 6 circular needle, 80cm / 32” length (or size needed to obtain gauge) to knit the yoke, body, sleeves and hem. If not using magic loop for sleeves, then a set of double pointed needles will be required, or shorter cable.
Needle C: Size 4.5mm / US 7 circular needle, 80cm / 32” & 40cm / 16” length (or 0.5mm / 1 US size larger than Needle B) to knit yarn B in yoke.
Spare needle or smooth waste yarn for holding live sts.
Tapestry/Darning needle
Stitch markers: 8. One unique.

GAUGE
Both yarns held together:
20 sts x 29 rnds = 10cm x 10cm (4”x 4”) in stocking stitch worked in the round after blocking on Needle B. Tip: Block and pin swatch as suggested.

YARN & SWATCHING:
Mohair – Yarn B.
The testing of this sweater revealed a lot to the testers and I about Silk Mohair! Yes that lovely airy light fibre threaded through silk.

If your Mohair % is 75% or above it might be too dense or “hairy” for the yoke transparency element to really come through in your sweater.
So how do you check if it will work for you? You SWATCH (see below).

It turns out there are many different formulae for the mohair to silk concentration across the many brands on the market. Here are just a few of them, and several were used in this test.

Emma’s Yarn, Marvelous Mohair, 72% Mohair, 28% Silk
Sandnes Garn, Tynn Silk Mohair, 57% Mohair, 28% Silk, 15% Wool
Rowan, Kidsilk Haze, 70% Mohair, 30% Silk
Drops, Kid Silk, 75% Mohair, 25% Silk
Lana Grossa, Silk Hair, 70% Mohair, 30% Silk
Debbie Bliss, Angel, 76% Mohair, 24% Silk
Shibui, Silk Cloud, 60% Mohair, 40% Silk
Annell, Kid Annell, 80% Mohair, 0% Silk, 20% Polyester.

As you can see there’s quite the spread. You might think that this is not important but for this design, it is.
A 75% Mohair yarn did work for one tester and not for another (different brands). Everyone will have a different result.

What you need to do before casting on?
SWATCH! Please swatch as suggested below.

BUT, before we SWATCH let’s talk colours!
For this pattern I recommend using the same yarn colours for both yarns to really highlight the yoke design element.
If you choose darker yarns they may have less transparency against the skin. If you want to have more transparency, then choose a lighter shade (not a contrasting shade) for Yarn B.
Using contrasting yarns will give you a marled effect when you work both together, and if you are using a lighter shade for Yarn B, your overall sweater will be lighter in colour than your Yarn A shade, and vice versa if Yarn B is darker. And remember, a darker Yarn B may be less transparent.

In order to see how your yarns will work for this design, you need to SWATCH to save you heart ache later. Be sure to check out the tester’s projects. They will help you choose!

Alternatives to Mohair
Suri Alpaca can be used an alternative to Silk Mohair, however, the same rule applies - check the Alpaca % on the label, and SWATCH..

SWATCH as follows:
With both yarns held together and Needle B, cast on 26 sts.

• Work approx 10cm / 4” in the round (so this can be your gauge swatch too!).
• With Needle C, drop Yarn A and work 5 rounds with Yarn B only.
• With Needle B, both Yarns held together - work 1 round.
• With Needle C, drop Yarn A and work 5 rounds with Yarn B only.

Bind off.
Wet block and pin out.
After it’s dry, hold it up to your skin and see if you’re happy with its transparency and the look of the two yarns held together.