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Jewelled Bolero (Vintage)

Jewelled Bolero

This pattern uses old UK needle sizes and fingering weight yarn.

Jewelled Bolero

Materials

3 skeins (2 oz. ea) of Lincoln Mills “Spira” Wool (or any similar fingering weight yarn)
1 pair Size 2/2.75 mm needles (old UK No. 12 needles)
75 pearls
6 packets bugle beads (about 900 total)

Measurements

Fits 34-35 in bust
Length from top of shoulder – 14 inches
Sleeve seam – 4 inches

Tension/Gauge

8 stitches by 11 rows per square inch
[edit]Abbreviations:
kfb – knit through the front and back of the same stitch, increasing by one.
skp – slip 1, knit 1, pass the slipped stitch over the knit stitch.
k2tog – knit two stitches together. (Makes a right-leaning decrease.)

Pattern

Back
Cast on 125 st.
1st row – (k1, p1) to last stitch, knit 1
Repeat 1st row 7 times. Change to stocking stitch and continue until 14th row is complete.
15th row – Kfb in 1st stitch, k13, (p1, k31)x3, p1, k13, kfb in last stitch. (Note that the purl stitches mark the positions in which to sew the pearl beads.)
Continue in stocking stitch for 21 rows, increasing one stitch with kfb at the beginning and end of the 23rd and 31st rows.
37th row – k1, (p1, k31)x4, p1, k1.
Continue in stocking stitch for 21 rows, increasing with kfb at the beginning and end of rows, 39th, 47th, and 55th rows.
59th row – k20, (p1, k31)x3, p1, k20.
Continue in stocking stitch for 11 rows, increasing with kfb at the beginning and end of row 63. [139 stitches at 70 rows]

Armhole shaping
1st row – Cast off 8 stitches, knit to end.
2nd row – Cast off 8 stitches, purl to end.
Continue in stocking stitch, decreasing 1 stitch at beginning and end of the 3rd, then every following row until 107 stitches remain [10th row].
11th row – k2tog, k19, (p1, k31)x2, p1, k19, k2tog
Continue in stocking stitch without further shaping for 21 rows.
33rd row – k4, (p1, k31)x3, p1, k4
Continue in stocking stitch for 21 rows.
55th row – k20, (p1, k31)x2, p1, k20.
Continue in stocking stitch for 19 rows. [74 rows]

Shoulder shaping
Cast off 11 stitches, knit to end.
2nd row – Cast off 11 stitches, purl to end.
3rd row – Cast off 11 stitches, k14, p1, k31, p1, k25.
4th row – As 2nd row.
5th row – As 1st row.
6th row – As 2nd row.
Cast off remainder.

Right front
Cast on 69 st.
1st row – (k1, p1) to last stitch, knit 1.
Repeat 1st row 7 times.
9th row – (k1, p1)x3, knit to end.
10th row – Purl to last 6 stitches, (p1, k1)x3.
Repeat 9th and 10th rows twice.
15th row – (k1, p1)x3, p1, k31, p1, k29, kfb last stitch.
Repeat 10th row once, then 9th and 10th rows 10 times, kfb last stitch of 23rd and 31st rows.
37th row – (k1, p1)x3, k16, p1, k31, p1, k17.
Repeat 10th row once, then 9th and 10th rows 10 times, kfb last stitch of 39th, 47th, and 55th rows.
59th row – (k1, p1)x3, (p1, k31)x2, p1, k4. [75 stitches]
Repeat 10th row once, then 9th and 10th rows 5 times, kfb last stitch of 63rd row. [76 stitches at 70th row]
71st row – (k1, p1)x3, k2tog, knit to end.

Armhole shaping
Cast off 8 stitches, purl to last 6 stitches, (p1, k1)x3
2nd row – (k1, p1)x3, knit to last 2 stitches, k2tog
3rd row – p2tog, purl to last 6 stitches, (p1, k1)x3
4th row – (k1, p1)x3, k2tog, knit to last 2 stitches, k2tog
5th row – As 3rd row.
Repeat 2nd through 5th rows once.
10th row – (k1, p1)x3, k13, p1, k31, p1, k3, k2tog. [56 stitches]
11th row – Purl to last 6 stitches, (p1, k1)x3
12th row – (k1, p1)x3, k2tog, knit to end.
13th row – As 11th row.
14th row – (k1, p1)x3, knit to end.
Repeat 11th to 14th rows until 31st row of armhole is complete.
32nd row – (k1, p1)x3, k2tog, k22, p1, k20.
Repeat 13th and 14th rows once, then from 11th through 14th rows until 53rd row is complete.
54th row – (k1, p1)x3, k2, p1, k31, p1, k4.
Repeat 11th to 14th rows until 74th is complete.

Shoulder shaping
1st row – Cast off 11 stitches, purl to last 6 stitches, (p1, k1)x3
2nd row – (k1, p1)x3, k2tog, k11, p1, k9.
3rd row – as 1st row
4th row – (k1, p1) x3, knit to end
5th row – Cast off 11 stitches, (p1, k1)x3.
Continue in moss stitch for 22 rows, leave on spare needle.

Left front
Cast on 69 stitches.
1st row – (k1, p1) to last stich, knit 1
Repeat 1st row 7 times.
9th row – knit to last 6 stitches, (p1, k1)x3
10th row – (k1, p1)x3, purl to end
Repeat rows 9 and 10 twice.
15th row – Kfb in 1st stitch, k29, p1, k31, p1, (p1, k1)x3
Repeat 10th row once, then 9th and 10th rows 10 times, kfb in first stitch of 23rd and 31st rows.
37th row – k17, p1, k31, p1, k16, (p1, k1)x3
Repeat 10th row once, then 9th and 10th rows 10 times, kfb in first stitch of 39th, 47th, and 55th rows.
59th row – k4, p1, (k31, p1)x2, (p1, k1)x3.
Repeat 10th row once, then 9th and 10th rows 5 times, kfb in first stitch of 63rd row. [76 stitches at the 70th row]

Armhole shaping
1st row – Cast off 8 stitches, knit to last 8 stitches, skp, (p1, k1)x3
2nd row – (k1, p1)x3, purl to last 2 stitches, p2tog
3rd row – k2tog, knit to last 6 stitches, (p1, k1)x3
4th row – as 2nd row.
5th row – k2tog, knit to last 8 stitches, skp, (p1, k1)x3
Repeat 2nd to 5th rows once, then 2nd row once.
11th row – k4, p1, k31, p1, k13, (p1, k1)x3 [56 stitches]
12th row – (k1, p1)x3, purl to end.
13th row – knit to last 8 stitches, skp, (p1, k1)x3
14th row – as 12th row
15th row – knit to last 6 stitches, (p1, k1)x3
Repeat from 12th to 15th rows until 32nd row is complete.
33rd row – k20, p1, k22, skp, (p1, k1)x3
Repeat 14th and 15th rows once, then from 12th through 15th rows until the 54th row is complete.
55th row – k4, p1, k31, p1, k2, (p1, k1)x3
Repeat 12th to 15th rows until 74th row is complete.

Shoulder shaping
Cast off 11 stitches, knit to last 6 stitches, (p1, k1)x3
2nd row – (k1, p1)x3, purl to end of row
3rd row – Cast off 11 stitches, kni to last 8 stitches, skp, (p1, k1)x3
4th row – As 2nd row.
5th row – Cast off 11 stitches, (p1, k1)x3.
Continue in moss stitch for 22 rows.
Graft together 22 stitches from each band.

Sleeves
Cast on 89 stitches.
1st row – (k1, p1) to the last stitch, knit 1.
Repeat 1st row 7 times.
9th row – kfb, knit to last stitch, kfb
10th row – purl
Continue in stocking stitch until 16th row is complete, kfb at beginning and end of 15th row. [93 stitches]
17th row – k14, (p1, k31)x2, p1, k14
Continue in stocking stitch for 21 rows, kfb at beginning and end of 21st, 27th, and 33rd rows.
39th row – kfb, (p1, k31)x3, p1, kfb
Continue in stocking stitch for 11 rows, kfb at beginning and end of 45th row. [103 stitches at 50 rows]

Armhole shaping
1st row – Cast off 8 stitches, knit to end.
2nd row – Cast off 8 stitches, purl to end.
Work in stocking stitch until 10th row is complete, decreasing at the beginning and end of the 3rd and 7th rows.
11th row – k2tog, k7, (p1, k31)x2, p1, k7, k2tog
Continue in stocking stitch, decreasing at the beginning and end of the 15th, 19th, and 23rd rows, then every alternate row until 67 stitches remain and the 32nd row is complete.
33rd row – k2tog, k15, p1, k31, p1, k15, k2tog.
Continue in stocking stitch, decreasing at the beginning and end of every alternate row until 53 stitches remain, then every row until 35 stitches remain. [54th row]
55th row – k2tog, k15, p1, k15, k2tog.
Continue in stocking stitch, decreasing at the beginning and end of every row until 27 stitches remain.
Cast off.

To make up

Join side, shoulder, and sleeve seams.
Set in sleeves.
Sew band across back of neck.
Press all sections carefully.
Sew a pearl bead over the purl stitches, then sew the bugle beads in rays as show in the illustration (two bugles each at North, South, East, and West cardinal point, and one bugle each at NW, NE, SW, and SE interim points – 12 bugles per pearl bead).
Where two purl stitches come close together as at the ends of 39th row of sleeves, use only one pearl bead and set of rays.