Lunar Yoke Cardigan - Free Cardigan Knitting Pattern For Women in Paintbox Yarns Simply DK & Metallic DK by Paintbox Yarns

Lunar Yoke Cardigan: Free DK Knitting Pattern for Women by Paintbox Yarns

The Lunar Yoke Cardigan is a women's knitted cardigan pattern designed and published by Paintbox Yarns, available as a free downloadable PDF. This is a sophisticated, fashion-forward cardigan featuring a distinctive yoke construction that creates a seamless visual focal point across the shoulders and upper chest. The design is rated Advanced in difficulty, making it a rewarding project for confident intermediate to advanced knitters who are comfortable managing multiple techniques and shaping sequences simultaneously.

What Is Being Made

The finished garment is a women's yoke-style cardigan — a button-front, open-fronted sweater with set-in or yoke-shaped upper body construction. The yoke design is a classic silhouette in knitwear, where the upper portion of the garment — covering the shoulders, neckline, and top of the sleeves — is worked as a single unified section, creating a smooth, elegant drape across the body. This cardigan is sized to fit a chest measurement ranging from 30–32 inches up to 44–46 inches (76–81 cm to 112–117 cm), with five sizes in total, offering a broad range of fit options. Finished chest measurements span from approximately 20½ inches to 27¼ inches across each front and back panel as listed in the pattern.

Construction Techniques

The Lunar Yoke Cardigan is constructed using a combination of specific techniques that give it both its structural integrity and its refined appearance:

• Top-Down Construction: The cardigan is worked from the top down, beginning at the neckline and yoke and progressing toward the hem. This approach allows knitters to try the garment on as they go, making length adjustments straightforward before casting off.
• Worked Flat: Despite being top-down, the body is worked flat — meaning it is knitted back and forth in rows rather than in the round. This is typical for cardigans, as the open front edges are built in from the start rather than steeked later.
• Seamed Finishing: The pattern incorporates seaming, which means certain sections — such as the sleeves or side seams — are joined together after knitting using mattress stitch or a similar seaming method. Seamed construction generally produces a more structured, tailored result compared to fully seamless garments.

Stitches Used

The pattern uses a focused set of knitting stitches and techniques that are standard for intermediate-level garment knitting:

• Knit (k): The fundamental knit stitch forms the base fabric of the cardigan.
• K2tog (Knit 2 Together): A right-leaning decrease stitch used for shaping — particularly in the yoke and sleeve cap areas — where stitches need to be reduced in a controlled, neat manner.
• M1 (Make 1): An increase stitch used to add stitches during shaping sections, helping to expand the fabric smoothly as the yoke transitions into the body and sleeves.
• Purl and ribbing stitches are implied by the garment's construction and typical cardigan finishing, including button bands and hem edges, though specific stitch details are contained within the full pattern PDF.

The combination of k2tog decreases and m1 increases is central to achieving the curved, fitted shape of the yoke — a hallmark of this style of cardigan construction.

Yarn and Materials

This pattern is specifically designed for use with two Paintbox Yarns products:

• Paintbox Yarns Simply DK: A smooth, consistent DK weight yarn that provides the main fabric of the cardigan. Simply DK is known for its excellent stitch definition, making it ideal for garments where shaping and texture need to read clearly.
• Paintbox Yarns Metallic DK: A DK weight yarn with a metallic finish, used in combination with the Simply DK to create the signature lunar, luminous effect that gives this cardigan its name. The metallic element adds a subtle shimmer and visual interest, particularly suited to the yoke focal point.

Both yarns are worked at DK weight, and the