MillaMia Spela Cardigan Knitting Pattern

MillaMia Spela Cardigan: Advanced Fair Isle Knit Pattern

What is Being Made

The MillaMia Spela Cardigan is a folk-inspired Fair Isle cardigan designed for children aged 2-11 years. This garment features a high-impact stranded colorwork design that creates a visually striking pattern while remaining accessible to advanced knitters. The cardigan is available in five different size options, with chest measurements ranging from 68cm to 84cm, and includes button closures for easy dressing.

Techniques Used

This advanced knitting project employs several key techniques that define its construction and visual appeal:

• Fair Isle Stranded Colorwork: The cardigan features a two-color Fair Isle pattern at any given stage, simplifying the stranded knitting process despite the complex overall design. The pattern instructions emphasize holding floating yarn loosely on the back to prevent puckering or fabric contraction.
• Worked Flat: The pieces are knitted flat on straight needles rather than in the round, allowing for easier colorwork management and seaming.
• Bottom-Up Construction: The cardigan is knitted from the bottom edge upward, a method that allows for easy length adjustments and straightforward increases for shaping.
• Seamed Assembly: Individual pieces are knitted separately and then seamed together, providing clean, professional finishing.
• Buttonholes: The pattern includes functional buttonholes worked into the front band, with three buttons required for closure.

Stitches Used

The Spela Cardigan utilizes fundamental knitting stitches combined with stranded colorwork techniques. The pattern is worked primarily over stockinette stitch as the base fabric, with garter stitch used for edgings and finishing details. The Fair Isle pattern itself is created through alternating knit stitches in two colors, with careful yarn management to maintain even tension and prevent distortion of the finished fabric.

Materials and Gauge

The Spela Cardigan is designed to be knitted using MillaMia Naturally Soft Merino yarn, available exclusively through Love Knitting. The pattern provides two complete colorway options:

First Colorway: Scarlet (A), Haze Grey (B), Berry (C), Fuchsia (D), Butterscotch (E), and Peacock (F)

Second Colorway: Midnight (A), Ice (B), Berry (C), Fuchsia (D), Butterscotch (E), and Scarlet (F)

Yarn quantities vary by size, ranging from 3 to 5 balls of the main color (50g balls) and 1 to 2 balls each of the contrasting colors. Knitters will need a pair each of 2.75mm (US 2) and 3.25mm (US 3) knitting needles, plus three buttons for closure.

The recommended tension is 29 stitches and 33 rows to a 10cm square when working the pattern on 3.25mm (US 3) needles. Achieving the correct gauge is essential for proper fit across the five size options.

Difficulty Level

This pattern is classified as Advanced, making it suitable for experienced knitters who are comfortable with stranded colorwork techniques and garment construction. The Fair Isle method employed here is designed to be manageable, using only two colors at any stage, but the overall construction involving multiple pieces, seaming, and buttonhole placement requires confident knitting skills.