Spotlight On…Cumberland.
Believe it or not, this lacy summer pullover was inspired by good ol’ Southern grits! If you look closely at the lace motif in the Cumberland Pullover, you’ll find it resembles a little ear of corn!
The Inspiration
Standing at the cornerstone of all Southern food are humble grits. More subtle and delicate than the name implies, this simple corn staple comes from hominy which is related yet distinct from the common yellow corn used to make corn bread or polenta. Hominy is soaked in alkali to remove the yellow husk and germ giving it a delicate flavor and a silkiness when cooked. At its best, hominy is scented with herbs like rosemary, lavender or herbes de provence and simmered slowly in cream rather than the commonly used water.
It is this silkiness and delicate color and flavor that I hoped to evoke with this lacy summer pullover. Cumberland is simple, soft and tender with classic raglan shaping and features an all-over lace motif that represents tiny ears of corn. It is humble in its restrained form and feminine in its details such as a wide neckline and naive garter edging.
The Method
Cumberland is worked from the bottom up and features an intuitive lace motif. Because of its bottom-up construction, Cumberland makes for great travel knitting. Take along a sleeve or two or toss the simple body section into a project bag and go! There’s a little “pay attention” knitting when the pieces are joined and the yoke begins, but just enough to keep things interesting. This lacy summer pullover is an awful lot of fun to knit and a pleasure to wear in the late summer!
