Lucie Baby Top in Ella Rae Lace Merino Aran - ER22-02 - Downloadable PDF

Lucie Baby Top in Ella Rae Lace Merino Aran – Pattern Summary (ER22-02)

The Lucie Baby Top is a charming knitted infant and toddler top designed by Ella Rae and worked in their Lace Merino Aran yarn. This downloadable PDF pattern produces a delicate, lace-panelled top suitable for babies and young children, available in four sizes ranging from 6–12 months through to 3–4 years, with finished chest measurements of 46 cm / 18 in up to 61 cm / 24 in. The design combines the softness and warmth of an aran-weight merino blend with an elegant repeating lace motif, making it a lovely handknitted gift or wardrobe staple for little ones.

What Is Being Made

The finished project is a baby and toddler top featuring integrated short sleeves shaped directly from the body, a structured garter border, and an all-over lace pattern panel. The garment is constructed in separate pieces — a Back and a Left Front (with a corresponding Right Front implied by the construction) — and is finished with 2 buttons, suggesting a button-band or button-tab opening typical of infant tops for easy dressing.

Techniques Used

• Flat knitting worked back and forth in rows on a pair of straight needles
• Side shaping using decreases and increases worked at the beginning of specified rows to create a fitted silhouette
• Sleeve shaping integrated into the body — stitches are increased at the beginning of alternating rows to form the sleeve extension, avoiding the need for a separate set-in or raglan sleeve piece
• Garter stitch borders worked over the first 10 rows to create a neat, non-rolling lower edge
• Lace pattern repeats introduced after the garter border, worked over a 14-row repeat using yarn-over and decrease combinations
• Button finishing with 2 buttons for the garment closure

Stitches Used

• Garter stitch — knit every row, used for the lower border (Rows 1–10) and as edge stitches throughout the lace pattern
• k2tog (knit two stitches together) — a right-leaning decrease used on right-side rows within the lace pattern and for shaping
• p2tog (purl two stitches together) — a decrease used on wrong-side rows within the lace pattern
• yfon (yarn forward and over needle) — a yarn-over technique used to create a new stitch between two knit stitches on right-side lace rows, forming the characteristic eyelet holes of the lace motif
• yfrn (yarn forward and round needle) — a yarn-over technique used to create a new stitch between a knit and a purl stitch on wrong-side lace rows, maintaining stitch count while adding the lace detail
• Purl — used within the wrong-side lace rows in combination with yfrn and p2tog

The Garter Lace Pattern Explained

The Garter Lace Pattern is the central stitch pattern of the Lucie Baby Top and repeats over 14 rows. The first 10 rows are worked entirely in garter stitch (knit every row), establishing a firm, textured base. Rows 11 and 13 are right-side lace rows worked as: K1, * yfon, k2tog; repeat from * to last stitch, K1. Rows 12 and 14 are wrong-side lace rows worked as: K1, * yfrn, p2tog; repeat from * to last stitch, K1. This creates a subtle, all-over eyelet lace fabric with a garter-stitch character, keeping the fabric relatively stable and easy to handle — ideal for a baby garment. The single knit stitch at each end of every row maintains a tidy selvedge edge throughout.

Materials Required