Barra Jumper - Knitting Pattern For Women in Debbie Bliss Cotton DK

Barra Jumper – Knitting Pattern for Women in Debbie Bliss Cotton DK

The Barra Jumper is a beautifully crafted women's pullover sweater designed by Debbie Bliss and worked in Debbie Bliss Cotton DK. Rated as an advanced knitting project, this pattern combines elegant lace detailing with classic textured stitch patterns to create a sophisticated garment with real visual interest. The design is available as a downloadable PDF and is suitable for knitters who are confident with lace charts, colour management, and garment construction techniques.

What Is Being Made

The Barra is a women's pullover jumper featuring a structured body and set-in sleeves. It is worked in two colours: White 01 (M) as the main colour and Putty 19 (C) as the contrast colour. The finished garment has a relaxed but shaped silhouette with a ribbed hem and cuffs, a lace yoke panel, and a distinctive textured body. The pattern is offered in four sizes, fitting bust measurements of 82–87 cm, 92–97 cm, 102–107 cm, and 112–117 cm (32–34 in to 44–46 in). Finished bust measurements range from 103 cm to 139 cm (40½ in to 54¾ in), and the length to shoulder is 62–63 cm (approximately 24½–24¾ in). Sleeve length is a consistent 44 cm (17¼ in) across all sizes.

Construction and Techniques

The Barra Jumper is worked flat in separate pieces — back, front, and sleeves — and then seamed together to complete the garment. This traditional construction method gives the finished jumper excellent structure and shape retention. Knitters will need to wind small separate balls of the contrast colour Putty 19 to manage the colourwork sections neatly, with the pattern specifying four small balls of contrast and three small balls of main colour for the front yoke section.

The pattern makes use of lace knitting techniques, which are charted in a clearly presented 18-stitch repeat chart spanning 28 rows. This lace chart forms the decorative yoke panel and incorporates yarn-forward increases, decreases, and a distinctive make knot stitch that adds a bobble-like textural accent. Working from a lace chart is an essential skill for this pattern, and knitters should be comfortable reading both right-side and wrong-side rows from a grid format.

Stitches Used

• Irish Moss Stitch – the primary body stitch, worked over the main sections of the back, front, and sleeves. Tension is measured over this stitch: 20 stitches and 30 rows to 10 cm using 4 mm needles.
• Rib (1×1 Rib) – used for the welts and cuffs, worked on smaller 3.75 mm needles for a neat, elastic edge. The back and front ribs are worked slightly differently to create a subtle variation at the cast-on edge.
• Make Knot (mk) – a decorative stitch created by working [k1, p1, k1, p1, k1] all into the next stitch, then passing the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th stitches over the 1st stitch and off the needle. This produces a small, tight bobble-like knot used as an accent in the contrast colour ribbing and lace sections.
• k2tog – a standard right-leaning decrease used within the lace chart.
• skpo (slip one, knit one, pass slipped stitch over) – a left-leaning decrease used to pair with k2tog in the lace pattern, creating balanced shaping within the lace motifs.
• yf (yarn forward) – used to create new stitches within the lace chart, forming the characteristic open eyelets of the lace design.
• Knit and Purl – fundamental stitches used throughout, with the Irish moss stitch alternating knit and purl stitches in a specific sequence to build the textured fabric.

Materials