Fleur Cardigan Knitting Pattern

Fleur Cardigan in Rowan Summerlite DK

What is Being Made

The Fleur Cardigan is a knitted cardigan designed by Martin Storey. This garment is constructed as a button-front cardigan with separate front and back pieces, featuring a fitted silhouette with shaped shoulders and a finished neckline. The cardigan is available in nine sizes, ranging from 28-30 inches to 60-62 inches bust measurement, with actual garment bust measurements from 39¼ inches to 66½ inches.

Knitting Techniques

The Fleur Cardigan employs several key knitting techniques to create its finished structure. The garment begins with a garter stitch border worked over 7 rows using smaller needles to create a stable edge. The main body is worked in patterned stockinette stitch, which provides a smooth, refined fabric suitable for the colorwork design. Shoulder shaping is accomplished through strategic cast-off sequences, with varying stitch counts depending on the size being knitted. Neck shaping is worked by casting off stitches at the beginning of rows and decreasing one stitch at the neck edge over consecutive rows to create a smooth, fitted neckline. The pattern utilizes a 192-row repeat that cycles through three distinct color repetitions, creating a continuous patterned design throughout the garment.

Stitches Used

• Garter Stitch (g st): Used for the initial 7-row border on the left front and back pieces, creating a textured, reversible edge that prevents curling and provides structure at the garment opening.
• Stockinette Stitch (st st): The primary stitch used for the main body of the cardigan, worked over patterned rows as indicated by the chart. This stitch creates the smooth, classic fabric base.
• Patterned Stockinette Stitch: The pattern incorporates a charted colorwork design worked in stockinette stitch, with the pattern repeat spanning 192 rows. This technique allows for the integration of multiple yarn colors to create the Fleur design.
• Decreasing: Single stitch decreases are worked at the neck edge to create shaping and a fitted neckline.
• Casting Off: Used throughout the pattern for shoulder shaping and finishing edges, with stitch counts varying by size.

Materials

The Fleur Cardigan is knitted using Rowan Summerlite DK, a lightweight double knitting weight yarn supplied in 50-gram balls. The pattern requires four yarn colors from the Rowan Summerlite DK range: Mushroom (color 454) as the primary color, ranging from 8 to 14 balls depending on size; Silvery Blue (color 468) for accent colorwork, requiring 3 to 4 balls; Seashell (color 466) for additional pattern detail, requiring 2 to 4 balls; and Pink Powder (color 472) for the final color element, requiring 2 to 3 balls.

The cardigan is worked on two different needle sizes to control tension and fabric density. 3¼mm (US 3) needles are used for the initial garter stitch borders and ribbing, creating a tighter gauge that provides structure and prevents stretching at the edges. A 3¾mm (US 5) circular needle at least 100 centimeters long is required for working the main body in patterned stockinette stitch. The pattern is designed to achieve a tension of 26 stitches and 27 rows to 10 centimeters when measured over patterned stockinette stitch using the 3¾mm needles.

Difficulty Level

This pattern is rated as intermediate difficulty. Knitters should be comfortable with reading charts, managing multiple yarn colors in a colorwork pattern, and executing shaping techniques including casting off for shoulders and decreasing for neckline shaping. The 192-row pattern repeat requires attention to detail and the ability to track pattern progression across multiple color repetitions.