Tahki Yarns Courage Jacket Knitting Pattern

Tahki Yarns Courage Jacket

What is Being Made

The Courage Jacket is a seamless, bottom-up cardigan designed by Lynn M. Wilson. This knitted garment is available in six sizes ranging from Small to 3X, with finished bust measurements from 38¾ inches (98.5 cm) to 54¾ inches (139 cm) and lengths from 22½ inches (57 cm) to 25 inches (63.5 cm). The cardigan features a classic construction with set-in sleeves, button closures, and decorative pocket details.

Techniques Used

This cardigan employs several key knitting techniques that create both structure and visual interest:

• Bottom-Up Construction: The jacket is knitted from the lower edge upward, allowing for easy customization of length and straightforward finishing
• Seamless Knitting: Worked primarily on circular needles to minimize seaming and create a more polished final garment
• Stranded Colorwork: The pattern incorporates stranded knitting techniques, as evidenced by the inclusion of a main color (MC) and contrasting color (CC) throughout the design, including the Pocket Chart and Sleeve Chart details
• Worked Flat: Despite using circular needles, the body and sleeves are worked flat in rows rather than in the round, providing traditional shaping capabilities
• Grafting: The pattern employs the Kitchener stitch (grafting) technique to seamlessly join stitches, creating invisible seams and professional finishing

Stitches Used

The Courage Jacket utilizes fundamental knitting stitches that create texture and structure:

• Stockinette Stitch: The primary stitch used throughout the body and sleeves, creating a smooth, classic fabric with characteristic V-shaped columns
• Ribbing (K2, P2): Used for the lower edge cuff, providing elasticity and a finished appearance that helps the garment maintain its shape
• Charted Colorwork Stitches: The Pocket Chart and Sleeve Chart employ stranded colorwork techniques, requiring knitters to work with two colors simultaneously to create patterned details

Materials and Tools

The Courage Jacket is constructed using Tahki Yarns Montana, a 100% pure new wool yarn available in multiple colorways. The pattern calls for 5 to 8 hanks depending on size, with each hank weighing 3.5 ounces (100 grams) and providing 130 yards (120 meters) of yardage. The project uses color #01 natural as the main color and color #12 coffee as the contrasting color.

Needles required include one 32-inch (80 cm) circular needle in size 13 (9mm) for the main fabric and one in size 11 (8mm) for ribbing, allowing for gauge control through needle sizing. Double-pointed needles in both sizes are needed for sleeve caps and finishing details. Additional supplies include stitch holders, stitch markers, a yarn needle for grafting and weaving in ends, and six buttons measuring 1⅛ inches (29 mm) in diameter for the cardigan front closure.

Gauge and Sizing Information

The pattern is worked to a gauge of 10 stitches and 16 rows over 4 inches (10 cm) in Stockinette stitch using the larger size 13 (9mm) needles. Checking gauge before beginning is essential to ensure the finished garment matches the intended measurements across all six available sizes.