Blue Sky Fibers Audrey Coat

Blue Sky Fibers Audrey Coat – Knitting Pattern by Cheryl Nelson

The Audrey Coat is an elegant, tailored women's coat knitting pattern designed by Cheryl Nelson and published by Blue Sky Fibers (formerly Blue Sky Alpacas). This intermediate-level pattern produces a sophisticated, fitted coat with refined waist shaping, structured armhole shaping, and a polished neckline — all hallmarks of classic, timeless outerwear design. The pattern is available as a downloadable PDF and is suitable for knitters who are comfortable with shaping techniques and working flat in pieces.

What Is Being Made

The finished garment is a women's coat worked in three sizes: Small, Medium, and Large, with finished bust measurements of 35½ (37¾, 40) inches. The coat features a fitted silhouette with deliberate waist shaping, armhole shaping, and neck shaping on both the back and front bodice pieces. The design includes a Right Front Bodice section with its own waist shaping worked using stitch markers and increase rows, indicating a structured front opening. Closure is achieved with three 1½-inch cover buttons and three 7/8-inch snaps, giving the coat a clean, professional finish. The sample shown in the pattern is knitted in Scarlet #518.

Construction Method

The Audrey Coat is constructed using a bottom-up, worked flat, seamed approach. Each section — back, right front bodice, and presumably left front bodice and sleeves — is knitted separately as flat pieces and then seamed together. This traditional construction method gives the coat its structured, tailored shape and allows for precise blocking and finishing of each panel before assembly.

• Bottom-up construction: Knitting begins at the cast-on edge and works upward toward the shoulders, allowing shaping to be introduced gradually through the body.
• Worked flat: All pieces are knitted back and forth in rows rather than in the round, which is typical for structured outerwear and makes seaming straightforward.
• Seamed finishing: Individual pieces are joined after knitting, contributing to the coat's structured drape and durability.

Techniques Used

This pattern is rated Intermediate in experience level, and it incorporates several shaping and construction techniques that require familiarity with reading knitting instructions and executing increases and decreases precisely.

• Waist Shaping: Worked using M1 (Make 1) increases on right-side rows, with stitch markers used to position increases accurately on the front bodice. The waist shaping is repeated over multiple rows to create a gradual, flattering curve.
• Armhole Shaping: Achieved through bind-off rows at the beginning of right-side rows, followed by paired decreases on every right-side row to create a clean armhole edge.
• Neck Shaping: Worked with a series of stepped bind-offs at the neck edge — binding off larger numbers of stitches first, then progressively smaller numbers — to create a smooth, curved neckline. Both the back and right front bodice include neck shaping instructions.
• Back Shaping: The back includes additional increase rows worked in conjunction with armhole and neck shaping, demonstrating the multi-directional shaping typical of fitted coat construction.
• Stitch Marker Placement: A stitch marker is used on the right front bodice to delineate the increase zone, keeping shaping consistent across rows.
• Button Cover Construction: The pattern references the use of a double strand of yarn specifically for working button covers, adding a coordinated, handcrafted detail to the finished coat.

Stitches Used

The primary stitch pattern throughout the coat is Stockinette stitch (St st), worked flat by knitting right-side rows and purling wrong-side rows. Stockinette creates a smooth, classic fabric that is well-suited to tailored outerwear and showcases the natural luster of the alpaca yarn beautifully. Edge stitches are incorporated into the shaping rows, with the pattern specifying K1 at the beginning and end of increase rows for a neat selvedge.

• Stockinette Stitch (St st): The foundational stitch