Shrug with Cable Pattern in Regia 4 Ply 50g - 7232

Shrug with Cable Pattern in Regia 4 Ply – Pattern Summary (Design 7232)

This free downloadable PDF knitting pattern from Regia (Design 7232) provides instructions for a beautifully structured shrug — known in German as a Schulterwärmer, meaning "shoulder warmer." The garment is designed to wrap around the shoulders and upper back, making it a practical and elegant layering piece suitable for cooler days. It is worked in Regia 4 Ply yarn, a fingering-weight sock yarn well known for its durability and stitch definition.

What Is Being Made

The finished item is a shrug with a cable pattern — a close-fitting shoulder wrap that covers the upper back and extends over both shoulders to frame the front neckline. This style of garment is popular for its versatility: it can be worn over dresses, blouses, or knitwear to add warmth without the bulk of a full cardigan or jacket. The cable detailing adds a classic, textured aesthetic that elevates the piece beyond a simple accessory.

Construction Method

One of the most notable features of this pattern is its sideways construction — the shrug is knitted in a single piece, worked horizontally from side to side rather than from hem to shoulder. This technique is referred to in the instructions as knitting quer (crosswise). The knitter begins at the left front section and works across through the back to the right front, shaping the neckline and shoulders as the piece progresses.

This sideways approach means that the cable pattern runs vertically on the finished garment, even though it is knitted horizontally during construction. It also allows the shaping to be achieved through cast-ons and cast-offs along one edge, creating smooth, gradual curves without the need for seaming shaped panels together.

Shaping and Structure

The shaping is carefully engineered through a series of incremental increases and decreases along the left edge of the work:

• Front neckline shaping: Stitches are cast on at the left edge every 2 rows — first 4 times with 5 stitches, then 9 times with 4 stitches — building from an initial 36 stitches up to 92 stitches over approximately 12 cm of height.
• Shoulder shaping (first side): Stitches are then cast off progressively — once by 3 stitches, then 10 times by 3 stitches every 2 rows, followed by 7 times by 2 stitches — reducing back to 45 stitches at around 29 cm height.
• Back section: Stitches are cast on again along the left edge to rebuild the stitch count to 92, and the centre back is reached at approximately 54.5 cm height (after 119 rows, or at row 47 of the cable chart).
• Second half: The second half of the shrug is worked as a mirror image of the first, with the second shoulder shaping beginning at approximately 64 cm height (after 139 rows, or at row 44 of the cable chart).

Techniques Used

• Sideways (horizontal) construction — the entire shrug is worked as one piece from left front to right front
• Incremental cast-ons — new stitches are added at the edge every 2 rows to shape the neckline and back
• Incremental cast-offs — stitches are bound off progressively to create shoulder shaping
• Cable knitting — the Zopfmuster (cable pattern) is worked from a chart (Strickschrift) throughout the piece
• Two-strand cast-on — the pattern specifies casting on with two strands of yarn (2 Fäden) for a firm, stable foundation edge
• Symmetrical mirroring — the second half of the garment repeats the shaping of the first half in reverse, ensuring a balanced, symmetrical result

Stitches Used