String Cora Coat Cardigan Knitting Pattern

String Cora Coat

What is Being Made

The Cora Coat is an intermediate-level knitted cardigan designed by Lidia Karabinech. This garment is a sophisticated coat-style cardigan available in four sizes: Small, Medium, Large, and Extra Large, with finished bust measurements ranging from 37 inches (94 cm) to 50 inches (127 cm). The coat features a length to shoulder of 30½ inches (77.5 cm) and is fastened with six buttons, making it a functional layering piece suitable for various seasons and occasions.

Techniques Used

The Cora Coat is constructed using several key knitting techniques that create both structure and visual interest:

• Bottom-Up Construction: The garment is knitted from the bottom edge upward, allowing for easier fitting adjustments and a natural progression of the design.
• Worked Flat: The coat is knitted on flat needles rather than in the round, using circular needles to accommodate the wider fabric width while working back and forth in rows.
• Seamed Assembly: Individual pieces are knitted separately and then seamed together, creating clean, professional-looking seams that contribute to the garment's polished appearance.
• Lace Patterning: Decorative lace elements are incorporated throughout the design, featuring yarn overs and decreases that create openwork diamond motifs and add elegance to the finished coat.

Stitches Used

The Cora Coat employs a variety of fundamental and decorative stitches:

• Stockinette Stitch (St st): The primary stitch used for the main body, created by alternating knit rows on the right side with purl rows on the wrong side, providing a smooth, classic fabric base.
• 1x1 Ribbing: Used for edgings and the neckband, this elastic stitch alternates single knit and purl stitches, creating vertical columns that provide stretch and recovery to prevent rolling edges.
• Lace Diamonds Pattern: A 27-stitch repeat motif featuring yarn overs (yo) combined with decreases including knit two together (k2tog) and slip, slip, knit (ssk) decreases. This pattern creates openwork diamond shapes that develop over multiple rows, adding textural interest and visual sophistication to the coat.
• Yarn Overs (yo): Decorative increases that create the holes characteristic of lace patterns, adding airiness and elegance to the design.
• Decreases: Both k2tog (knit two stitches together) and ssk (slip, slip, knit) decreases are used to shape the garment and balance the yarn overs in lace sections, ensuring proper stitch count and fabric integrity.
• Make 1 (M1): An invisible increase technique used for shaping, created by lifting the strand between stitches and working through the back loop to prevent holes.

Materials and Gauge

The Cora Coat is designed to be knitted with String BREEZE yarn, a luxurious blend composed of 60% cotton, 20% cashmere, and 20% silk. This fiber combination creates a garment with excellent drape, breathability, and softness. The yarn is available in color 200713 almond, a neutral warm tone suitable for versatile styling. Yardage requirements range from 10 balls for size Small to 14 balls for size Extra Large, with each ball containing 1.75 ounces (50 grams) and providing 136 yards (125 meters) of yarn.

The pattern calls for US 7 (4.5mm) circular needles in two sizes: a 32-inch (80 cm) needle for working the main body pieces and a 16-inch (40 cm) needle for the neckband. Achieving the correct gauge is essential for proper fit; the pattern specifies 18 stitches and 26 rows over 4 inches (10 centimeters) in stockinette stitch. Additional notions include stitch holders for managing stitches during construction, a yarn needle for weaving in ends and seaming pieces together, and six buttons for closure.