Madreperla Mini-Cardigan in Adriafil Fruttamix - Downloadable PDF

Madreperla Mini-Cardigan Knitting Pattern in Adriafil Fruttamix — Free Downloadable PDF

The Madreperla Mini-Cardigan is a charming, fashion-forward knitted cardigan designed for sizes 40, 42, and 44. This free downloadable PDF pattern from Adriafil uses their distinctive Fruttamix yarn to create a fitted, shaped mini-cardigan complete with raglan sleeves, a split collar, and a decorative brooch closure. The design is well-suited to knitters with some experience, as it combines straightforward knit stitch construction with carefully structured shaping sequences for the body, sleeves, and raglan armholes.

What Is Being Made

This pattern produces a mini-length cardigan with a classic raglan silhouette. The garment is constructed in separate pieces — a back, a right front, a left front, a right sleeve, and a left sleeve — which are then seamed together. Each front panel extends beyond the raglan shaping to form one half of a back collar, giving the finished cardigan an elegant, integrated neckline finish. A single brooch serves as the closure, adding a decorative vintage-inspired touch rather than traditional buttonholes.

Garment Pieces and Construction Details

Back Panel

The back is cast on with 88 (94–107) stitches and begins with a 1 cm border worked in a combination of elastic rib and k1/p1 rib stitch. The main body is then worked in knit stitch, with side shaping that increases one stitch at each end every 6 rows four times, then every 4 rows three times, creating a gently flared silhouette. Raglan shaping begins when the work measures 12 (14–16) cm from the border, with decreases of 2 stitches every 2 rows six, seven, or eight times (depending on size), followed by 2 stitches every 4 rows twelve times. The raglan section measures 20 (21–22) cm in total, after which the remaining 30 (32–35) stitches are cast off for the back neck.

Right Front and Left Front

Each front panel is cast on with 46 (48–50) stitches and worked with the same border sequence as the back. Side increases are worked on the outer edge to mirror the back shaping. At the raglan point, 6 stitches are cast off on the inner edge, followed by decreases of 2 stitches every 4 rows ten, eleven, or twelve times, then 2 stitches every 6 rows twice. Uniquely, the remaining 23 stitches at the end of the raglan shaping are not cast off immediately — instead, they continue to be worked to form the first half of the back collar. The full front panel, including this collar extension, reaches a total length of 42 (46–50) cm. The left front is worked as a mirror image of the right front.

Right Sleeve and Left Sleeve

Each sleeve is cast on with 48 (52–56) stitches and begins with the same border treatment. The sleeve is worked in knit stitch with increases of 1 stitch at each end every 8 rows, repeated eight times, to gradually widen the sleeve toward the underarm. When the sleeve measures 23 (25–27) cm from the border, raglan shaping begins. On the right sleeve, 5 stitches are cast off on the right edge, then decreases of 2 stitches every 6 rows ten, eleven, or twelve times are worked on that side; on the left edge, decreases of 2 stitches every 6 rows seven times are followed by 2 stitches every 4 rows five, six, or seven times. The raglan section again measures 20 (21–22) cm, after which the remaining 15 stitches are cast off. The left sleeve is worked to match the right.

Techniques Used

• Casting on and casting off — standard techniques used at the start and finish of each piece, as well as mid-row for raglan and underarm shaping
• Rib stitch borders — a combination of elastic rib and k1/p1