Who doesn’t love a SUPER COZY comfy cardigan? I decided to knit and design this fun and simple cardigan for any beginner knitter. It’s knit from the top down and requires NO seaming.

For this design I used We Are Knitters The Wool in Dusty Pink. This was so generously gifted to me by the amazing team at We Are Knitters. It’s crazy soft and was amazing to work with! Here are some details of the yarn from the We Are Knitters website.

IT IS SUPER-SOFT AND HAS A HARD-TO-FIND THICKNESS. IT WILL RESULT IN AN EXTRAORDINARY, CHARACTERISTIC AND UNMISTAKABLE PIECE OF CLOTHING.

OUTSTANDING QUALITY 100% NATURAL WOOL YARN BALLS 
+/-200 GR | +/- 7 OZ PER +/-80 M | +/-87 YDS 
WE RECOMMEND FOR KNITTING WITH 10 MM NEEDLES AND LARGER.

WEIGHT: SUPER BULKY

GAUGE KNITTING:
STOCKINETTE STITICH
4 IN | 10 CM = 6 STITCHES
4 IN | 10 CM = 8 ROWS

GAUGE CROCHET:
SINGLE CROCHET
4 IN | 10 CM = 6 STITCHES
4 IN | 10 CM = 5 ROWS

Here in the east coast of Canada it gets cold in February and I find myself always gravitating towards a warm and comfy cardigan. This cardigan was just what I was needing.

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Pin it now, Knit it later!

Supplies you’ll need

• We Are Knitters The Wool or another Super Bulky Yarn For the sample I used 5 balls of We Are Knitters
• US 15 & 17 32″ circular needle or size to obtain gauge
• Tapestry Needle
• 3 Buttons 1 1.2″ size I used Rose Lafleur Button
• 4 Stitch Markers
• Waste Yarn

The size I knit fits around a 58 inch or 147 cm bust, it’s meant to be a very loose fitting cardigan. I’ve also added the option of adding some toggles to keep the cardigan closed.

The Instructions

Cast on 52 stitches with the smaller needles using the long tail cast on. Do not join in the round.

Round 1-3: *K2, P2; Repeat from * around

Switch to Larger needles.

Round 1: Knit all stitches

Round 2: K1, P1, P8, PM, P8, PM, P16, PM, P8, PM, P8, PM, K1, SL1

Round 3: K1, P1 *Knit to 1 stitch before the marker, KFB, SM, K1, KFB; Repeat from * around

Round 4: K1, Purl to 2 stitches before the end of round, K1, SL1

Repeat Rounds 3-4 until you’ve reached 21 stitches for each front, 36 stitches for each sleeve and 44 for the back ending on Row 4. If you’d like the make the garment larger keep increasing until you’ve reached the measurements desired.

AT THE SAME TIME You will be create a gradient garter stitch.

Every 5th Round you will be purling the stitches instead of knitting them. This will create a garter bump.

Splitting for the sleeves

K21, RM, Place the next 36 stitches on a waste yarn, CO 4 stitches at the underarm using the backward loop method, K44, RM, Place the next 36 stitches on a waste yarn, CO 4 stitches at the underarm using the backward loop method, knit to the end.

Body Pattern

Section 1:

Round 1: K1, Purl to 2 stitches before the end of round, K1, SL1

Round 2: Knit to 1 stitch before the end of round, SL1

Round 3: K1, Purl to 2 stitches before the end of round, K1, SL1

Round 4: Knit to 1 stitch before the end of round, SL1

Round 5: Knit to 1 stitch before the end of round, SL1 (Garter Bump)

Repeat Section 1 one time for 1 Garter Bump Ridge.

Section 2

Round 1: K1, Knit to 1 stitch before the end of round, SL1

Round 2: K1, Purl to 2 stitches before the end of round, K1, SL1

Round 3: K1, Knit to 1 stitch before the end of round, SL1 (Garter Bump)

Repeat Section 2 4 times total for 4 Garter Bump ridges

Section 3

Round 1: Knit to the last stitch, SL1

Repeat Round 1 until work measures 13.5 inches or 34cm from the underarm. If you’d like to make the cardigan longer continue knitting section 3 until desired length.

Bind off all stitches.

Picking up for the sleeves

Pick up 36 stitches from the waste yarn and using the backward loop method cast on 4 stitches at the underarm.

Section 1:

Rounds 1- 4: Knit all stitches

Round 5: Purl all stitches (Garter Bump)

Repeat Section 1 one time for 1 Garter Bump Ridge.

Section 2:

Rounds 1-2: Knit all stitches

Round 3: Purl all stitches (Garter Bump)

Repeat Section 2 4 times total for 4 Garter Bump ridges

Section 3:

Round 1: Knit all stitches

Round 2: Purl all stitches (Garter Bump)

You will be repeating section 3 until it measures 10 inches or 25 cm from cast on at underarm ending on a purl round.

Sleeve Decrease Round

This is a rapid decrease where it creates a puffy sleeve.

K2TOG around the sleeve bringing your stitch count to 20 stitches.

Switch the smaller needles.

Round 1: Knit all stitches

Round 2: Purl all stitches (Garter Bump)

You will be repeating Rounds 1 and 2 until it measures 3 inches or 7.6 cm. Then Bind off all stitches.

Repeat with other sleeve.Buttons

I just LOVE these wooden buttons from LaFleur. They are the perfect addition to this cardigan. You can grab yours here

I placed each of the buttons approximately 5 inches or 12.7 cm apart. Not sure how to attach a button? Check out this blog post on how to attach buttons to knitting.

If you’d like your cardigan to close I’d recommend trying to add some fun toggles to your knitting. This is a great alternative to adding a button band.