Berroco Champlain Cardigan Knitting Pattern

Berroco Champlain Cardigan

What Is Being Made

The Berroco Champlain is a seamless cardigan designed by Amy Christoffers, featured in Berroco Booklet #367. This intermediate-level knitting project creates a sophisticated cardigan with a forgiving fit, featuring substantial front overlap for a wrap-style closure. The cardigan is available in six sizes with finished bust measurements ranging from 32" to 52" and lengths from 24" to 27½", accommodating a variety of body types and style preferences.

Techniques Used

The Champlain cardigan employs several advanced knitting techniques to create its polished appearance:

• Bottom-up construction: The garment is knitted from the lower edge upward, allowing for easy length adjustments and a natural progression through the pattern.
• Seamless construction: The cardigan is worked without seams, creating a smooth, professional finish and eliminating the need for finishing work.
• Worked flat: Despite being seamless, the main body is knitted flat on circular needles rather than in the round, providing flexibility in shaping and stitch placement.
• Cable patterns: Decorative cables are incorporated into the design, adding visual interest and textural depth to the finished garment.

Stitches and Stitch Patterns

The Champlain cardigan combines fundamental and decorative stitches to achieve its refined aesthetic. Stockinette stitch (St st) forms the primary fabric base, providing a smooth, classic canvas. Charted cable patterns are worked throughout the design, requiring careful attention to stitch placement and cable crossings using a cable needle. The pattern includes specific gauge information for both stockinette stitch (15 stitches and 22 rows over 4 inches) and the charted pattern (34 stitches over 6 inches), emphasizing the importance of gauge checking before beginning the project.

Materials and Tools

The Champlain cardigan is designed to be worked in Berroco Inca Tweed yarn in the colorway #8958 Tierra. Yardage requirements range from 7 to 12 hanks depending on size, with each hank weighing 100 grams. The project requires size 10 (6.00 mm) circular knitting needles in both 29" and 16" lengths for the main body and ribbing sections, along with size 9 (5.50 mm) and size 10 (6.00 mm) double-pointed needles (dpns) for working smaller circumferences. Additional supplies include a cable needle for managing cable stitches, six stitch markers for tracking pattern repeats and shaping points, waste yarn for holding stitches, and a tapestry needle for weaving in ends and any necessary seaming.

Skill Level and Fit Considerations

Rated as an intermediate skill level project, the Champlain cardigan requires competency with cable techniques, circular needle work, and garment shaping. The pattern is designed with approximately 0–4" of ease, meaning the finished measurements are close to body measurements for a fitted silhouette. However, the generous front overlap creates a forgiving fit that accommodates a range of body shapes, making size selection flexible for those between standard measurements.