Cutie Pie Cardigan in Rowan Cotton Wool (FR) - RB001-00005-FRP - Downloadable PDF

Cutie Pie Cardigan in Rowan Cotton Wool (FR) – Pattern Summary

Designed by Erika Knight for Rowan, the Cutie Pie Cardigan is a charming baby cardigan worked in garter stitch throughout. This downloadable PDF pattern is written in French and is rated intermediate in difficulty. It is sized for babies from 0–3 months up to 9–12 months, with finished chest measurements ranging from 48 cm to 54 cm. The design features a classic, cosy silhouette with integrated sleeves worked as extensions of the body pieces, a neat neckline shaped with decreases, and a simple button band with three buttonholes.

What Is Being Made

The pattern produces a baby cardigan with a left front, right front, back, and sleeves that are knitted as part of the front and back pieces rather than worked separately. The garment is fastened with three buttons (grey or white, 1.5 cm, two-hole), giving it a clean, minimalist finish. The construction is straightforward and well-suited to knitters who are comfortable with basic shaping techniques.

Construction and Techniques

• Garter stitch throughout: Every piece — the back, left front, and right front — is worked entirely in garter stitch (knitting every row), which creates a soft, squishy, reversible fabric ideal for baby garments.
• Integrated sleeve shaping: Rather than seaming separate sleeves, the sleeves are formed by casting on stitches at the sides of the back and front pieces, a technique that reduces finishing work and keeps seams minimal.
• Neckline shaping: The left front neckline is shaped using decreases worked over multiple rows — specifically ssk (surjet simple) and k2tog (2 mailles endroit ensemble) — creating a gradual, smooth slope toward the shoulder.
• Buttonholes: A simple yarn-over buttonhole is worked on the button band of the left front, creating a neat eyelet-style opening suitable for small buttons.
• Three-needle cast-off: Shoulders are joined using a three-needle cast-off (fermer les épaules à 3 aiguilles), which creates a tidy, flat seam without the need for sewing.
• Make-one increases: Sleeve width is increased using lifted make-one increases (augmentation intercalaire) placed three stitches in from each edge, keeping the shaping neat and symmetrical.

Stitches Used

• Garter stitch – the sole stitch pattern used across all pieces
• Yarn-over (jeté) – used to form buttonholes
• K2tog (2 mailles endroit ensemble) – right-leaning decrease for neckline and sleeve shaping
• SSK / surjet simple – left-leaning decrease for neckline shaping
• Make-one / augmentation intercalaire – invisible increase for sleeve shaping
• Three-needle cast-off – for shoulder seams

Materials

• Yarn: Rowan Cotton Wool in Nutkin (shade 209), a DK weight yarn. The quantity required is 2 x 50 g balls for the two smallest sizes and 3 x 50 g balls for the two larger sizes.
• Needles: A pair of 4 mm (US 6) knitting needles, plus one additional 4 mm needle for working the three-needle cast-off at the shoulders.
• Tension / gauge: 20 stitches and 38 rows to 10 cm in garter stitch on 4 mm needles. Achieving the correct tension is important for accurate sizing across the four baby sizes.
• Notions: Three 1.5 cm two-hole buttons in grey or