Sweater Traditions from Finland: Vora-Inspired Arm Warmers

The blue-and-white-patterned sweaters from Vörå Finland, that I examined at the Myrbergsgården Museum were all finely knitted with cotton yarn at 8½ to 10 stitches per inch (3½ to 4 stitches per cm). The tightness of the gauge would help maintain the shaping of the sweater as cotton has no natural elasticity. The cotton/wool yarn that I recommend for this project is a practical compromise for accessories that need some elasticity. Since the few instructions for these sweaters consist simply of general guidelines, these arm warmers can serve as a wearable gauge swatch. They are shaped down the arm and easily can be made longer or shorter by adding or subtracting simple geometric motifs.
Finished Size: 7¼ inches (18.4 cm) long and 7¾ inches (19.7 cm) circumference, tapering to 6¾ inches (17.1 cm) at wrist; woman's medium
Yarn: Geilsk Cotton/Wool, 55% lamb's wool/45% cotton yarn, fingering weight, 250 yards (228.6 m)/50 gram (1.8 oz) ball, 1 ball each of #C2 Blue (MC) and #C8 Natural White (CC)
Needles: Inox Needles, set of 4 or 5 double pointed, size 0 (2mm) or size needed to obtain gauge, Hint: Use Takumi bamboo size 1 (2.25mm) needles for two-color stranded rounds; if working with two sizes of needles, use a different color or material for each size so you don't get the sets mixed up.
Notions: Tapestry needle
Gauge: 33 sts and 41 rnds = 4 inches (10.2 cm) in 2-color stranded knitting
Originally Published: PieceWork, January-February 2015.