Stacy Charles Fine Yarns Rosewood Cardigan Knitting Pattern

Stacy Charles Fine Yarns Rosewood Cardigan

What Is Being Made

The Rosewood Cardigan is an intermediate-level knitted cardigan designed by Rosemary Drysdale. This garment is constructed as a classic button-front cardigan available in six sizes ranging from Small to 3X, with finished bust measurements from 37 inches (94 cm) to 57 inches (145 cm) and lengths from 26 inches (66 cm) to 28.5 inches (72.5 cm). The cardigan features a sophisticated design suitable for everyday wear and layering.

Techniques Used

This pattern employs several key knitting techniques that contribute to its intermediate difficulty level:

• Bottom-Up Construction: The cardigan is knitted from the bottom edge upward, allowing knitters to try on the piece as they progress and make adjustments to the length as needed.
• Worked Flat: All pieces are knitted flat on straight needles rather than in the round, making this pattern accessible to knitters who prefer traditional flat knitting methods.
• Seamed Assembly: Individual pieces (back, fronts, and sleeves) are knitted separately and then seamed together, requiring basic seaming skills for finishing.
• Cable Work: The pattern incorporates cable stitches as a design element, specifically using 6-stitch over 6-stitch cable crosses that add visual interest and texture to the finished garment.
• Shaping: The cardigan includes waist shaping with strategic decreases worked every 3/8 inch for four times, and armhole shaping with bind-offs and decreases to create a well-fitted silhouette.
• Hem Construction: A folded hem is created by picking up stitches from the cast-on edge and purling them together with live stitches, providing a professional, finished edge.

Stitches Used

The Rosewood Cardigan utilizes fundamental knitting stitches combined with cable techniques:

• Reverse Stockinette Stitch (Rev St st): Worked by purling on the right side and knitting on the wrong side, this stitch creates a textured, bumpy fabric that forms the primary surface of the lower body and likely other sections of the cardigan.
• Stockinette Stitch (St st): The classic knit on right side, purl on wrong side stitch, used for sections of the cardigan including the upper body after the initial reverse stockinette section.
• Cable Stitches: The pattern features two directional cable crosses: 6/6 LC (Left Cross) created by slipping 6 stitches to a cable needle and holding in front, knitting 6 stitches, then knitting the 6 stitches from the cable needle; and 6/6 RC (Right Cross) worked by slipping 6 stitches to a cable needle and holding in back, knitting 6 stitches, then knitting the 6 stitches from the cable needle. These cables create the decorative twisted rope effect characteristic of cable knit designs.

Materials and Gauge

The Rosewood Cardigan is designed to be knitted with Stacy Charles Fine Yarns Olivia, a 100% merino wool yarn. Yardage requirements range from 10 hanks for the smallest size to 16 hanks for the largest size, with each hank containing 1.75 ounces (50 grams) and 109 yards (99 meters). The recommended color is #7089 brown, a warm neutral shade suitable for versatile styling.

The pattern requires multiple needle sizes to achieve proper gauge and texture variation:

• Size 7 (4.5mm) needles for the main body sections
• Size 8 (5mm) needles specifically for cable work
• Size 5 (3.75mm) needles for picking up hem stitches
• A cable needle for managing cable stitches

The target gauge is 18 stitches and 26 rows over 4 inches (10 cm) in Reverse Stockinette stitch using the smaller (size 7/4.5mm) needles. Achieving proper gauge is essential for obtaining the correct finished measurements and garment fit, as noted in the pattern instructions.

Pattern Structure

The pattern is written for the smallest size with larger sizes indicated in parentheses throughout.