Norah Gaughan For Purl Soho: Wherefore Art Thou Pullover
Knit-design legend Norah Gaughan is known for her fearless embrace of texture and innovative construction. Often rooted in the mathematics of naturally occurring patterns, Norah’s designs are smart, inspiring, and always special.
We are thrilled to share Norah’s newest design, the Wherefore Art Thou Pullover. The stuff of star-crossed lovers, tragic romance, and soft, billowy sleeves, this sweater calls our name… Oh, Romeo!
Unlike complicated love lives, this pattern is utterly simple. You start at the neckline, work decorative raglan increases, set stitches aside for the sleeves, and then knit down to the bottom hem. Returning to the sleeves, you’ll knit them in the round, increasing for the signature puff, then working in easy broken rib down to the cuff. The last step is picking up for the collar and using German Short Rows for a nice, rounded shape that flatteringly climbs the nape.
A straightforward knit but with details that tell a far richer story, we love the bands of purl stitches around the sleeves, the raglan increases that echo the sleeves’ stitch pattern, and of course, the shaping: romantic but modern, dramatic but sensible.
Knit up in our Linen Quill Worsted, Norah’s Dark Iris version of her Wherefore Art Thou Pullover is a wonderfully moody near-neutral, while ours in Crocus Bud is a lighter take on romance. A blend of fine highland wool, alpaca, and linen, Linen Quill Worsted is rugged enough to withstand a broken heart, but beautiful enough to ignite a passion!
Designed for Purl Soho by Norah Gaughan.
Share your progress + connect with the community by tagging your pics with #PurlSoho, #PurlSohoBusyHands, #PurlSohoWhereforeArtThouPullover, and #PurlSohoLinenQuillWorsted. We can’t wait to see what you make!
Materials
- 6 (7, 7, 8) (9, 9, 10, 11) skeins of Purl Soho’s Linen Quill Worsted, 50% fine highland wool, 35% alpaca, 15% linen. Each skein is approximately 164 yards/100 grams; approximately 950 (1020, 1130, 1230) (1360, 1465, 1575, 1685) yards required. We used the colors Crocus Bud and Dark Iris. (NOTE: We no longer offer Linen Quill Worsted, but choose from one of our other worsted weight yarns.)
- US 8 (5 mm), 16- and 24-inch circular needles
- US 6 (4 mm), 16- and 24-inch circular needles
- Set of US 8 double pointed needles
- Set of US 6 double pointed needles
- Stitch markers, including one unique
- Smooth scrap yarn
Sizes
NOTE For help picking a size, please check out our Understanding Ease + Selecting Size Tutorial!
38¼ (41¾, 45¼, 49) (54¼, 57¾, 62¼, 65¾)
To fit actual chest circumference of approximately 30-34 (34-38, 38-42 42-46) (46-50, 50-54, 54-58, 58-62) inches with 4-6 inches of ease.
- Finished Chest Circumference: 38¼ (41¾, 45¼, 49¾) (54¼, 57¾, 62¼, 65¾) inches
- Finished Length From Shoulder To Bottom Edge: 19 (19¼, 20, 20¼) (21, 21¾, 22¼, 23) inches
- Finished Sleeve Length From Underarm: 14½ inches
Samples: The sweaters pictured here are sizes 41¾ (in Crocus Bud) and 45¼ (in Dark Iris). Crocus Bud version worn with 5¾ inches of ease.
Gauge
18 stitches and 24 rows = 4 inches in stockinette stitch, after blocking
Pattern
Please Note: The Wherefore Art Thou Pullover Pattern is no longer available for purchase. For assistance, please contact us at customerservice@purlsoho.com.
I have lots of linen quill yarn left over from making the gorgeous Nature’s Palette blanket and I was thinking I might be able to use for this fun sweater, perhaps multi the bell part of the sleeves mult-colored and the top and bodice one color.
Could you please share your opinion on this idea and also, if you think it’s might work, roughly how many skeins would be needed for the bodice and upper sleeves so I could make sure I have enough of one color?
Thanks as always,
Amanda
Hi Amanda,
Thanks for reaching out! Unfortunately this pattern is made in our Linen Quill Worsted and not our Linen Quill like we use in the Natures Palette blanket. You could use Linen Quill for this but you would have to adjust the pattern quite a bit since it is a fingering weight and the pattern is written for a worsted weight!
I hope this helps!
All the best,
Gianna
Hi,
Could you please let me know that difficulty of this pattern as I’m not an advanced knitter…yet?
Thank you,
Amanda
Hi Amanda,
Thanks for writing in! This pattern is very simple, straight forward and easy to follow! I would say it is a beginner/intermediate pattern with a few more advanced techniques like German Short-rows, luckily we have many tutorials available to help you along the way!
Please feel free to reach out with any more questions!
All the best,
Gianna
How do I apply the discount please?
Hi Hilary,
Thanks for reaching out! the discount should apply automatically when you check out!
All the best,
Gianna
Nightmare! Just had this yarn in my basket ready to pay then looked again on PayPal and the 10% off had disappeared and was back to full price 🙁 🙁
Hi Janet,
Thanks for writing in! Please email us at customerservice@purlsoho.com and we can help you further from there.
All the best,
Gianna
Hi:
I love this pattern. Since I have not worked with this yarn before could you tell me if it is soft.
Hi Judy,
Thanks for reaching out! Linen Quill Worsted is a blend of fine wool, alpaca, and linen. It is windswept and elegant, hearty and beautiful. It is a bit more rugged than a 100% merino yarn is but still soft and lovely to work with and wear!
All the best,
Gianna
Would you be able to suggest a softer wool to be used for this pattern?
Hi Rebecca,
Thanks for reaching out! I would recommend our Worsted Twist in place of our Linen Quill Worsted! Be sure to double check your gauge to insure that it is consistent with the pattern!
All the best,
Gianna
Hi Soho Team–A question about the pattern. The needles referenced are called “larger 16-inch circular needles” and “smaller 16-inch circular needles” etc. Does this mean that the “larger” ones are the US 8’s and the “smaller” ones are the US 6’s OR does “larger” vs “small” refer to the inch length?
Thank you!!
Hi Hannah,
Thanks for reaching out! Yes, that is correct! The smaller 16-inch circular needles refers to the US 6 and the larger 16-inch circular needles refer to the US 8!
Warmly,
Gianna
Thank you for such a quick response, Gianna!! Happy holidays!
Hi! I love this pattern, and the dramatic sleeves. How would you go about making the neckline a little tighter/higher on the neck?
Hi Alexandra,
Thanks for writing in! Unfortunately, we don’t have ways to modify the neckline of this pattern, but thank you for expressing your interest! I will be sure to pass this along to the rest of the team!
Happy knitting!
Gianna