Truro Tank - Slipover Knitting Pattern for Women in Tahki Yarns Cotton Classic by Tahki Yarns

Truro Tank - Slipover Knitting Pattern for Women

What is Being Made

The Truro Tank is a women's slipover tank top designed by Therese Chynoweth for Tahki Yarns. This intermediate-level knitting pattern produces a fitted sleeveless garment available in six sizes ranging from Small to 3XL, with finished bust measurements from 36 inches (91.5cm) to 56 inches (142cm). The tank is designed to fit with 2–4 inches of positive ease and features a length ranging from 21½ inches (54.6cm) in the smallest size to 26 inches (66cm) in the largest size, making it suitable for various body types and proportions.

Techniques Used

This pattern employs several key knitting techniques to create a polished, professional-looking garment. The Truro Tank is worked flat on straight needles, meaning pieces are knitted in rows rather than in the round, allowing for straightforward construction and shaping. The garment uses seamed construction, where individual pieces are knitted separately and then sewn together using a yarn needle to create clean, finished seams. The design also incorporates stranded colorwork, a technique where two yarn colors are carried across the back of the work to create patterned sections, adding visual interest and sophistication to the design. Finishing details include crochet edging applied with a crochet hook to create polished trim edges.

Stitches Used

The Truro Tank utilizes several fundamental and decorative stitch patterns to achieve its finished appearance. Stockinette Stitch forms the primary fabric base, created by alternating knit rows on the right side with purl rows on the wrong side, producing the classic smooth, V-textured knit fabric. Sand Rib is used as an additional stitch pattern, creating subtle vertical texture and elasticity in specific sections of the garment. Two-Color stranded knitting appears in the pattern, where two contrasting yarn colors are worked together to create colorwork motifs. The pattern also includes ribbed edgings and trims that provide structure and a professional finish to necklines, armholes, and hem edges.

Materials and Yarn Specifications

The Truro Tank is designed to be knitted using Tahki Yarns Cotton Classic, a 100% mercerized cotton yarn that provides a cool, breathable fabric ideal for warm-weather wear. Each skein contains 1.75 ounces (50 grams) and measures 108 yards (100 meters), classifying this as a DK weight yarn—a medium-light yarn weight that creates fabric with good drape and definition. The pattern requires 4 to 7 skeins of the main color (MC) #3928 light lavender, depending on size, and 2 to 4 skeins of the contrast color (CC) #3932 amethyst for the stranded colorwork sections.

Knitting needles required include US size 6 (4mm) straight needles for the main garment construction and US size 6 (4mm) circular needles in both 16-inch (40cm) and 32-inch (80cm) lengths for applying trims and finishing edges. A size F/5 (3.75mm) crochet hook is needed for crochet edging details. Additional materials include stitch markers for tracking pattern repeats, four small stitch holders for securing stitches during construction, scrap yarn for temporary stitch holders, a yarn needle for seaming and weaving in ends, and one button for a decorative or functional closure detail.

Gauge Information

Achieving proper gauge is essential for the garment to fit correctly. The pattern specifies three different gauges depending on the stitch pattern being worked: 19 stitches and 26 rows over 4 inches (10cm) in Stockinette Stitch, 19½ stitches and 27 rows over 4 inches (10cm) in Sand Rib, and 19½ stitches and 35 rows over 4 inches (10cm) in Two-Color stranded knitting. Knitters should swatch each stitch pattern used in the garment to ensure their tension matches these specifications, as variations in gauge will directly affect the finished dimensions of the tank top.