Swans Island The Sullivan Street Cardigan Knitting Pattern

The Sullivan Street Cardigan by Swans Island

What Is Being Made

The Sullivan Street cardigan is an oversized knit cardigan designed for comfortable, versatile everyday wear with urban styling. This intermediate-level knitting project features a relaxed fit perfect for casual occasions like Sunday brunches, bookstore browsing, or lounging at home. The cardigan is available in five sizes ranging from XS to XL, with finished bust measurements from 32 inches to 51 inches and a length of approximately 28 to 29 inches depending on size.

Design Features

The Sullivan Street cardigan showcases several distinctive design elements that balance comfort with visual interest:

• Allover lace pattern: An intricate lace design that creates the appearance of cable knitting while maintaining the airiness of true lace
• Turned-back ribbed cuffs: Finished edges at the wrists that fold back for a polished, intentional look
• Side slits: Strategic openings along the sides that enhance the oversized silhouette and add movement
• Exaggerated ribbed shawl collar: A generous collar that hangs open at the front, offering styling flexibility and the option to secure with a shawl pin for added sophistication

Knitting Techniques Used

This pattern employs several fundamental and intermediate knitting techniques to construct the finished garment:

• Bottom-up construction: The cardigan is knitted from the lower edge upward, allowing for easy length adjustments and a logical progression through the pattern
• Worked flat: All pieces are created on straight needles or a circular needle used in flat knitting mode, rather than in the round, which simplifies shaping and seaming
• Seamed assembly: Individual pieces are knitted separately and then joined together using seaming techniques, creating clean, professional-looking seams
• Lace knitting: The allover lace pattern requires working yarn overs and decreases to create the openwork design that mimics cable texture

Stitches and Stitch Techniques

The Sullivan Street cardigan incorporates a variety of knitting stitches and techniques essential to the pattern:

• Knit and purl stitches: The foundation of the ribbed cuffs and collar, creating vertical texture and elasticity
• Yarn overs (YO): Essential for creating the openwork lace pattern throughout the cardigan body
• Decreases: Multiple decrease methods including k2tog (knit 2 together), k3tog (knit 3 together), ssk (slip, slip, knit), p2tog (purl 2 together), ssp (slip, slip, purl), and sl1-k2tog-psso (slip 1, knit 2 together, pass slipped stitch over) to shape the garment and form the lace pattern
• Make one increase (m1): Used to add stitches where needed for shaping, created by inserting the left needle under the horizontal strand between stitches and knitting through the back loop
• Herringbone Lace pattern: The primary stitch pattern used throughout the cardigan body, which creates the distinctive cable-like appearance
• Ribbing: Used for cuffs and the shawl collar to create elastic, fitted edges that contrast with the oversized body

Materials and Tools

The Sullivan Street cardigan is designed to be knitted with specific materials to achieve the intended drape, texture, and finished dimensions:

• Yarn: Swans Island Natural Colors 100% Organic Merino Wool in worsted weight (100 grams, 250 yards per skein). The pattern requires 7 to 9 skeins depending on size. The cardigan shown in the pattern photo is knitted in Charcoal (color code YW213)
• Needles: US Size 8 (5mm) straight needles for working flat pieces, plus a 32-inch circular needle (also US Size 8) or the size needed to obtain proper gauge
• Notions: Stitch markers for tracking pattern repeats and shaping points, and a yarn needle for seaming pieces together and weaving in ends
• Gauge: 5 stitches and