Cardigans and Blanket in King Cole Baby Glitz DK - 4396 - Downloadable PDF

Cardigans and Blanket Knitted in King Cole Baby Glitz DK – Pattern 4396

Pattern 4396 from King Cole is a beautifully detailed knitting pattern offering two garment cardigans and a matching blanket, all worked in King Cole Baby Glitz DK yarn. Designed for babies and young infants, the pattern covers chest/blanket sizes ranging from 36 cm to 56 cm (14 in to 22 in), making it suitable for newborns through to older babies. The pattern is available as a downloadable PDF and is rated at an intermediate difficulty level, making it ideal for knitters who are comfortable with basic techniques and ready to explore more intricate stitch patterns.

What Is Being Made

This pattern includes instructions for:

• A raglan sleeve cardigan – a classic baby cardigan featuring raglan shaping, worked in sections including a Left Front, and finished with neat ribbed edgings.
• A blanket – a coordinating knitted baby blanket worked in the same decorative stitch pattern, perfect for completing a gift set or nursery collection.

The raglan sleeve construction is a popular choice for baby knitwear because it creates a smooth, comfortable shoulder line with no hard seams pressing against delicate skin. Raglan shaping is achieved by working paired decreases along defined lines from the underarm to the neckline, gradually reducing stitches on both the body and sleeve sections simultaneously.

Yarn and Materials

All designs in this pattern are worked in King Cole Baby Glitz DK, a double knitting (DK) weight yarn. As the name suggests, this yarn is specially formulated for babywear and incorporates a subtle sparkle or glitz effect, adding a touch of luxury and celebration to finished pieces without compromising on softness. DK weight yarn is one of the most versatile and widely used yarn weights, striking a balance between speed of knitting and fine detail.

• Primary needles: 4mm knitting needles for the main pattern sections
• Ribbing needles: 3.25mm knitting needles for cast-on edges and ribbed borders

Tension

The stated tension is 22 stitches and 28 rows to 10 cm (4 in) measured over pattern using 4mm needles. The pattern emphasises that achieving the correct tension is very important and essential to success. Knitters are advised to swatch before beginning: if fewer stitches and rows are achieved per 10 cm, switch to finer needles; if more stitches and rows are achieved, switch to larger needles. Correct tension ensures accurate sizing across all five size options.

Stitches and Techniques Used

Ribbing

Cast-on edges and borders are worked in 1x1 rib, a classic stretchy edging stitch. This is worked by alternating knit and purl stitches across the row, then reversing the sequence on the return row. Ribbing provides elasticity and a neat, professional finish to cuffs, button bands, and lower edges.

Decorative Lace-Style Pattern Stitch

The main fabric of both the cardigans and the blanket features a repeating decorative pattern stitch worked over an 8-row repeat. This stitch combines:

• K2tog (knit two together) – a right-leaning decrease that reduces stitch count by one
• K3tog (knit three together) – a central decrease reducing three stitches to one, creating a strong directional lean
• yfwd (yarn forward) – bringing the yarn to the front of the work to create a yarn-over eyelet, adding an open, lace-like hole
• yrn (yarn round needle) – wrapping the yarn around the needle to create an additional stitch, used in combination with decreases to maintain stitch count
• yon (yarn over needle) – similar to yfwd, used in specific positions within the pattern to create openwork effects
• P1 (purl one) – used as a dividing stitch within the pattern repeat to create structure and definition