Designing for handspun is a delightful challenge. Knowing that the handspinner has already put a great deal of time and effort into crafting the perfect yarn makes me want to create a design that is fun to knit but doesn’t overwhelm the yarn. The yarn itself needs to be the star of the finished piece, and the pattern is there to allow it to shine.

With bulky weight, I wanted to highlight the amazing texture and “floof” of the yarn, so I made sure to work at a loose gauge which allows the yarn to bloom to its full fluffy potential. The variegated yarn brings so much to the party that it just needed a little twist to change the angle of the marled plies to create a fabric a wee bit more dynamic than plain stockinette. When the solid and variegated play together, the marled yarn gets yet another angle by highlighting the horizontal nature of a purl bump popping out of a field of rolling hills.

At the end of the pattern, I have provided suggestions on how to modify the pattern based on the yarn you have created: a version without colorwork, a version that is all colorwork, and how to modify for different yardage.

Finished measurements
Neck circumference: 26 inches (66 cm)
Hem circumference: 66 inches (168 cm)
Depth: 15 inches (38 cm)

Materials

• 290 yards/265 m bulky weight yarn (6-8 WPI, 4-ply, 100% Rambouillet wool)
• Main Color (MC): 199 yards/182 m in Smith Rock colorway
• Contrast Color (CC): 91 yards/83 m in Mango colorway
• 1 US 13 (9 mm) 24-inch/60 cm circular needle
• 1 US 13 (9 mm) 32-inch/80 cm circular needle
• Tapestry needle, waste yarn, 5 stitch markers (one unique for start-of-round marker)

Gauge
11 stitches and 15 rounds to 4 inches (10 cm) over Half Twisted Stockinette, blocked, in the round.