Jennifer Cardigan in Adriafil Soffio Plus - Downloadable PDF

Jennifer Cardigan Knitting Pattern in Adriafil Soffio Plus – Free Downloadable PDF

The Jennifer Cardigan is a beautifully structured knitted cardigan designed to be worked in Adriafil Soffio Plus, a premium aran-weight yarn. This free downloadable PDF pattern offers a classic, elegant silhouette with thoughtful shaping details throughout the body, armholes, neckline, and sleeves. The pattern is sized across three sizes, making it accessible to a range of knitters who enjoy working with chunky, cosy aran-weight yarns.

What Is Being Made

The finished project is a full cardigan — a front-opening knitted garment featuring a shaped back, a right front panel, a left front panel, and sleeves. The cardigan includes armhole shaping, neckline shaping, and shoulder shaping, giving it a tailored, wearable finish. The construction follows a classic flat knitting approach, with each major piece worked separately and seamed together.

Construction and Pieces

• Back panel: Cast on between 126 and 150 stitches depending on size, with waist shaping worked at both edges at 24 cm and 42 cm. Armhole shaping begins at 58 cm, and neckline shaping is worked at 76–78 cm depending on size.
• Right front panel: Cast on between 61 and 73 stitches depending on size, with chart placement beginning at a specific offset (the 19th row of the chart) to ensure correct pattern alignment across the front.
• Left front panel: Worked as a mirror of the right front to maintain symmetry across the cardigan opening.
• Sleeves: Worked as separate flat pieces and set into the shaped armholes.

Techniques Used

• Flat knitting: All pieces are worked back and forth in rows, with right-side and wrong-side rows clearly distinguished in the chart.
• Chart reading: The pattern is largely chart-driven, with the first row designated as a wrong-side row. Knitters begin by working the second row of the chart first, then continue repeating rows 1 and 2 in sequence. Different starting points on the chart (labelled A, B, C, D, and E) are used for different pieces and sizes to ensure correct stitch alignment.
• Waist shaping: Single stitch decreases are worked at both edges at specific length measurements to create a fitted silhouette.
• Armhole shaping: A stepped bind-off sequence is used — binding off 3 stitches once, 2 stitches once, and 1 stitch three times, every 2 rows — to create a smooth, set-in armhole curve.
• Neckline shaping: The centre back stitches are bound off and each shoulder half is worked separately, with further bind-offs at the neck edge to shape the back neckline.
• Shoulder shaping: Final shoulder stitches are bound off at the appropriate length for each size.
• Ribbing or border edging: A 5 cm border section is worked at the cast-on edge using a repeat of the first two rows of the chart before transitioning into the full stitch pattern.

Stitches Used

• Chart-based stitch pattern: The body of the cardigan is worked from a visual chart, which governs the primary texture or lace structure of the fabric. The chart is repeated in two-row sequences throughout the garment.
• Cast-on and bind-off stitches: Standard cast-on and stepped bind-off methods are used for shaping at armholes, necklines, and shoulders.
• Decrease stitches: Single stitch decreases are worked at side edges for waist shaping.

Materials – Yarn and Needles

This pattern is specifically designed for Adriafil Soffio Plus, an aran-weight yarn from the Italian brand Adriafil. Soffio Plus is known for its soft, voluminous handle, making it an excellent choice for a cosy, drapey cardigan. As an aran-weight yarn, it knits up relatively quickly and produces a fabric with warmth and body