Classic Elite Yarns Cornucopia Cardigan Knitting Pattern

Classic Elite Yarns Cornucopia Cardigan

Project Overview

The Cornucopia cardigan is a sophisticated knit design originally published in Autumn Leaf 1408, a printed collection from Classic Elite Yarns. This seamed cardigan features elegant lace patterning worked flat in pieces, making it an ideal project for knitters seeking to combine classic construction techniques with decorative stitch work.

What Is Being Made

This pattern produces a women's cardigan with raglan sleeves and a fitted yoke. The design incorporates lace detailing throughout, with particular emphasis on the Fern Lace pattern featured prominently on the back and sleeves. The cardigan is constructed using a traditional seamed method, with separate pieces for the back, front panels, and sleeves that are later joined together.

Construction Techniques

The Cornucopia cardigan employs several key knitting techniques:

• Worked Flat: All pieces are knitted back and forth in rows rather than in the round, allowing for traditional seamed construction
• Raglan Shaping: The yoke features raglan decreases worked on both right-side and wrong-side rows to create a smooth, fitted shoulder line
• Seamed Assembly: Individual pieces are completed separately and then seamed together, providing structure and a polished finish
• Lace Integration: Fern Lace patterning is strategically incorporated throughout the garment, with special attention given to working yarn overs and their accompanying decreases in alignment
• Edging Details: The pattern includes a decorative edging worked at the lower edge using yarn overs and decreases to create a refined border

Stitches Used

The Cornucopia cardigan utilizes a variety of fundamental and decorative knitting stitches:

• Stockinette Stitch: Forms the base fabric in areas where lace patterning is not worked
• Fern Lace Pattern: A charted lace pattern worked over multiple rows on both the back and sleeves, creating an intricate openwork design
• Yarn Overs (yo): Essential to the lace pattern, creating decorative holes and increasing stitch count
• Knit Two Together (k2tog): A right-leaning decrease used throughout the yoke and sleeve shaping
• Slip, Slip, Knit (ssk): A left-leaning decrease paired with k2tog for balanced raglan decreases
• Purl Two Together Through Back Loop (p2tog-tbl): A left-leaning decrease worked on wrong-side rows
• Purl Two Together (p2tog): A right-leaning decrease on wrong-side rows
• Knit Three Together (k3tog) and Slip, Slip, Slip, Knit (sssk): Double decreases used for accelerated shaping on sleeves
• Ribbing: Worked as knit-purl combinations for edging and structural elements
• Garter Stitch: Knit rows create texture in the edging section

Shaping and Decreases

The pattern employs sophisticated shaping strategies. Yoke decreases are worked symmetrically on both right-side and wrong-side rows, with four stitches decreased per row using paired decreases on either side of markers. Sleeve shaping includes both standard decreases (two stitches per row) and double decreases (four stitches per row) for varied fit options. The pattern specifically notes that when decreasing at armhole edges, knitters should work stitches into the Fern Lace pattern whenever possible, ensuring that yarn overs are paired with their corresponding decreases for proper lace construction.

Materials and Yarn

This pattern is designed for use with Classic Elite Yarns products, known for their quality and vibrant colorways. The specific yarn weight and yardage requirements are detailed in the complete pattern documentation. Knitters will require appropriate needles for their chosen yarn weight, as well as stitch markers to denote raglan decrease lines and pattern repeats.

Sizing and Fit

The Cornucopia cardigan is offered in multiple sizes, with the pattern showing stitch counts for different sizing options. For example, the back piece begins with either 99 or 129 cast-on stitches depending