942 Peppercorn - Sweater Knitting Pattern for Women in Valley Yarns Worthington

942 Peppercorn – Women's Stranded Colorwork Pullover Knitting Pattern by Julie Turjoman

The 942 Peppercorn is a beautifully refined long-sleeved pullover knitting pattern designed by Julie Turjoman and published under the Valley Yarns brand. This intermediate-level pattern is available as a downloadable PDF and is worked entirely in Valley Yarns Worthington, a luxurious DK-weight yarn with a tweedy character that lends warmth, texture, and subtle sophistication to the finished garment.

What Is Being Made

Peppercorn is a women's fitted pullover sweater featuring long sleeves and a polished, versatile aesthetic. The design is described as moving effortlessly from office wear to weekend activities, making it a practical yet elegant addition to any handknitted wardrobe. It is offered in a generous size range — XS through 4XL — with finished bust measurements spanning approximately 33¼ to 60 inches, designed to be worn with 1 to 2 inches of positive ease for a comfortable, flattering fit.

Construction Techniques

This pullover is constructed using a bottom-up, seamless, worked-in-the-round method, meaning knitters begin at the lower hem and work upward toward the shoulders without any seaming required. This approach is popular among knitters who prefer a smooth, uninterrupted fabric and wish to avoid sewing pieces together at the end. Working in the round also makes it easier to read colorwork charts from the right side at all times, which is a significant advantage when working stranded patterns.

• Bottom-up construction: The body and sleeves are begun at the cast-on edge and worked upward, giving knitters early feedback on fit and gauge.
• Seamless, in-the-round: No seaming is required, producing a clean and professional finish throughout the garment.
• Stranded colorwork: The pattern incorporates classic Fair Isle peerie colorwork motifs — small, repeating stranded designs traditionally associated with the Fair Isle knitting tradition of Scotland. Peerie patterns are narrow, compact bands of color that add visual interest without overwhelming the overall silhouette.
• Stripes: The colorwork is presented as narrow, 3-color stripes set against a solid-color background, creating a rhythmic, structured visual effect that is both modern and timeless.

Stitches and Colorwork Detail

The primary stitch structure of Peppercorn is standard stockinette stitch, which serves as the backdrop for the stranded colorwork sections. In stranded knitting, two or more yarn colors are carried across each row or round, with the non-working color floated loosely across the back of the fabric. This technique creates a slightly thicker, warmer fabric than single-color knitting — an ideal quality for a pullover intended for cooler weather. The Fair Isle peerie motifs used here are small-scale repeating patterns, traditionally no more than a few stitches wide, making them approachable for knitters who are new to colorwork while still offering a satisfying level of detail and artistry.

The combination of narrow stripe sequences and peerie motifs means that knitters work with up to three colors within the colorwork sections, requiring careful tension management to ensure the floats do not pucker the fabric. This is one of the key skills that places this pattern at the intermediate difficulty level.

Yarn and Materials

The pattern is specifically written for Valley Yarns Worthington, a DK-weight yarn with a fiber composition of 50% Wool, 25% Alpaca, and 25% Viscose, available in 50g skeins of approximately 174 yards each. This blend brings together the elasticity and warmth of wool, the softness and halo of alpaca, and the subtle sheen and drape of viscose — resulting in a yarn with a distinctive tweedy appearance and a refined hand feel.

The pattern uses a main color (MC) and three contrast colors (CC1, CC2, CC3):

• MC – Color 01 Oatmeal: The primary background color, requiring 5 to 10 skeins depending on size.
• CC1 – Color 15 Rhododendron: