Rosso Cardigan in Rowan Kidsilk Haze - Downloadable PDF

Rosso Cardigan in Rowan Kidsilk Haze – Knitting Pattern Summary

The Rosso Cardigan is an elegant, lace-weight knitted cardigan designed by Sarah Hatton and published by Rowan. It is worked in the iconic Rowan Kidsilk Haze, a luxuriously fine yarn that gives the finished garment a delicate, halo-effect drape. This is a downloadable PDF pattern aimed at intermediate knitters who are comfortable working with fine yarn and managing multiple techniques simultaneously.

What Is Being Made

The Rosso is a women's cardigan, designed to be worn as a lightweight, elegant layering piece. It is sized to fit a wide range of bust measurements, making it a versatile wardrobe addition. The five sizes available cover bust measurements from 81–86 cm up to 122–127 cm (32–34 in to 48–50 in), with actual garment bust measurements ranging from 91 cm to 130 cm (36 in to 51 in), providing a comfortable, relaxed fit across all sizes.

Design Details and Construction

The Rosso Cardigan features a travelling or moving lace panel as its central design element. This is a sophisticated construction technique in which a defined panel of pattern stitches is not fixed in one position but instead moves across the fabric as knitting progresses. The pattern instructs knitters to use markers to track the position of the 31-stitch pattern panel, which shifts gradually through a series of carefully structured right-side rows.

The movement of the lace panel is achieved through a combination of increases and decreases worked in close proximity to the markers. On each right-side row, stitches are added on one side of the panel using M1R (make one right) and M1L (make one left) increases, while stitches are simultaneously removed on the opposite side using K2tog (knit two together) and sl 1, K1, psso (slip one, knit one, pass slipped stitch over) decreases. This keeps the total stitch count stable while the panel visually travels across the garment body — a hallmark of advanced intermediate design.

Four stitch markers in total are used to frame the travelling panel: one pair positioned at either side of the 31-stitch pattern section, with the centre pair flanking a 25-stitch central section. As the pattern progresses, the panel narrows to 21 stitches between each pair of markers, while the central section grows to 35 stitches, demonstrating the dynamic, shifting nature of the design.

Techniques Used

• Travelling lace panel – a moving stitch pattern that shifts position across the knitted fabric row by row
• Stitch marker placement and management – four markers used simultaneously to track panel boundaries
• Paired increases – M1R and M1L to maintain stitch count while moving the panel
• Paired decreases – K2tog and sl 1, K1, psso (skp) for symmetrical shaping
• Pattern repeat management – keeping a lace or textured pattern correct across shaping rows
• Garment construction – shaping a fitted cardigan across multiple sizes

Stitches Used

• Knit (K) – the foundational stitch used throughout the body
• K2tog – a right-leaning decrease (knit two stitches together)
• Sl 1, K1, psso – a left-leaning decrease (slip one, knit one, pass slipped stitch over), also known as skp
• M1R – make one right, a lifted increase that leans to the right
• M1L – make one left, a lifted increase that leans to the left
• Lace pattern stitches – worked across the defined 31-stitch travelling panel

Materials – Yarn and Weight

The pattern is written exclusively for Rowan