Striped Silk Dress in BC Garn Soft Silk & Soft Silk Handpaint - 2191BC - Downloadable PDF

Striped Silk Dress in BC Garn Soft Silk & Soft Silk Handpaint

What is Being Made

This is a knitted dress designed by Lene Holme Samsøe, featuring a sophisticated striped pattern created with multiple colorways of silk yarn. The garment is available in four sizes ranging from Small to Extra Large, with bust measurements from 88 cm to 112 cm and finished lengths between 79 cm and 83 cm. The dress combines solid color stripes with hand-painted yarn accents for visual interest and texture variation.

Knitting Techniques Used

The Striped Silk Dress employs fundamental knitting techniques suitable for intermediate-level crafters. The construction utilizes both Stocking stitch (knit on the right side, purl on the wrong side) and Reverse Stocking stitch (purl on the right side, knit on the wrong side) to create dimensional striping effects. The alternating stitch directions produce visual contrast between stripe sections, adding depth to the garment's appearance. The pattern involves working flat pieces on straight needles and joining sections with circular needles, a common approach for dress construction that allows for seamless transitions.

Stitches and Pattern Details

The core stitches used throughout this design are:

• Knit stitch (K) – the foundation stitch worked on wrong-side rows in Stocking stitch sections
• Purl stitch (P) – worked on right-side rows in Stocking stitch sections and on right-side rows in Reverse Stocking stitch sections
• Decreases (dec) – used for shaping the garment to fit the body

The stripe pattern repeats in a two-color sequence: 2 rows of Stocking stitch in one color, followed by 4 rows of Reverse Stocking stitch in an alternate color. This rhythmic pattern creates a distinctive visual texture while maintaining consistent fabric density. Hand-painted yarn (Soft Silk Handpaint) is incorporated as an accent colorway to add subtle color variation and artistic detail.

Yarn and Materials

This dress is knitted using BC Garn Soft Silk, a worsted-weight yarn that provides drape and elegance appropriate for a silk dress design. The yarn requirements vary by size: the largest sizes (L and XL) require 400 grams of the grey colorway (ss32, col. A), while smaller sizes need 300 grams. The natural colorway (ss34, col. B) is used for striping, requiring 100 to 200 grams depending on size. The hand-painted colorway (ss159, col. C) is used as an accent stripe, requiring 100 grams across all sizes. The worsted weight yarn creates a fabric with good stitch definition while maintaining the fluid quality expected from silk fiber content.

Needles and Tension

The pattern calls for both straight needles and circular needles in complementary sizes. Straight needles in sizes 3.5 mm and 4 mm are used for working the main fabric pieces, with the smaller size used for ribbed or edged sections and the larger size for the body of the dress. A circular needle in size 3.5 mm (40 cm length) is used for joining and finishing sections. The tension is set at 20 stitches over 10 centimeters when working Stocking stitch on the 4 mm needles, which is essential for achieving the correct finished measurements and garment fit.

Difficulty Level

This design is rated as intermediate difficulty, making it suitable for knitters with foundational skills who are ready to tackle garment construction. The techniques involved—basic stitches, simple shaping with decreases, and stripe pattern work—are accessible to experienced beginners, while the overall garment construction and sizing considerations provide appropriate challenge for skill development.