Tahki Yarns Bowrider Cable Rib Jacket Knitting Pattern

Tahki Yarns Bowrider Cable Rib Jacket

What Is Being Made

The Bowrider Cable Rib Jacket is a fitted cardigan designed by Joan Forgione, available in six sizes ranging from Small to 3X. This knitted jacket features a sophisticated cable and rib pattern throughout, with finished bust measurements from 38¼ inches (Small) to 57¾ inches (3X) and a length of approximately 24½ to 25¼ inches depending on size. The garment is designed to be worn as a layering piece or standalone cardigan.

Techniques Used

This pattern employs multiple advanced knitting techniques to create its structured silhouette and textured design:

• Top-Down Construction: The jacket is knitted from the top down, beginning with the collar and working toward the hem, allowing for easy fit adjustments and seamless integration of the collar into the body.
• Worked Flat and In-The-Round: The pattern combines flat knitting for certain sections with circular knitting techniques, utilizing both longer circular needles for the body and shorter needles or double-pointed needles for the sleeves.
• Cable Techniques: Cable patterns are a primary design element, requiring the use of a cable needle to create the twisted, rope-like texture that defines the jacket's aesthetic appeal.
• Specialty Increase Technique: The pattern includes a specialized increase method called "knit 1 front, slip 1 through back loop" (kfsb), which creates a nearly invisible increase by knitting into a stitch without removing it from the needle, bringing the right needle behind the left needle, and then slipping the original stitch off—resulting in one additional stitch that will be purled on the following wrong-side row.

Stitches Used

The Bowrider Cable Rib Jacket incorporates several fundamental and decorative stitches:

• Stockinette Stitch (St st): Used as the primary base stitch, creating a smooth, classic knit fabric with a gauge of 20 stitches and 30 rows per 4 inches (10cm) when worked with the larger needles.
• Cable Rib Pattern: A textured combination stitch that integrates ribbing with cable motifs, worked at a gauge of 31 stitches and 36 rows per 4 inches (10cm) using the smaller needles. This pattern is charted and includes a 49-stitch panel repeat.
• Collar Cable Pattern: A specialized charted cable pattern used specifically for the collar, which must be precisely matched in length to the body for proper fit—a 1-inch difference in collar length corresponds to a half-inch difference in body length.

Materials and Tools

The Bowrider Cable Rib Jacket is constructed using premium materials and requires specific tools for successful completion:

• Yarn: Tahki Yarns SCOTLAND, a 100% fine merino wool in color #05 charcoal. The yardage requirement ranges from 8 balls (Small) to 13 balls (3X), with each ball containing 1.75 ounces (50g) and 174 yards (160m) of yarn.
• Needles: The pattern requires multiple needle sizes and types. Size 6 (4mm) circular needles in both 32-inch and 16-inch lengths are used for the smaller gauge sections, while size 7 (4.5mm) circular needles in the same lengths are used for the larger gauge sections. Double-pointed needles (dpn) in both sizes can be substituted for the 16-inch circular needles when working sleeves.
• Additional Tools: Stitch markers for tracking pattern repeats and shaping, a cable needle for executing cable twists, waste yarn for holding stitches, and a yarn needle for seaming and weaving in ends.

Gauge Considerations

Accurate gauge is critical for this project. The pattern specifies two distinct gauges: 20 stitches and 30 rows per 4 inches in stockinette stitch with the larger needles, and 31 stitches and 36 rows per 4 inches in the cable rib pattern with the smaller needles. The pattern includes an important note that the body length must exactly match the collar length, as even a 1-inch discrepancy in collar length will result in a half-inch difference in body length, affecting the overall fit and proportions of the finished jacket.