Description
This gorgeous soft cardigan is made from alpaca and wool blend. It’s designed to be oversized and cropped to end just near your waistline. It’s made without buttons, finished with a chunky edge.

Materials
Option 1:
one strand of Drops Melody Alpaca yarn
Option 2:
Any other chunky yarn where you can achieve the same gauge (the swatch measurement below)
stitch markers
sewing needle

XS: 200g
S: 220g
M: 240g
L: 270g
XL: 300g

Needles
8mm/US 11 80cm (32 in)/100cm (40 in) circular needle
6mm/US 10 40cm (16in) & 80cm (32 in) circular needle

Swatch
13 stitches & 17 rows for a 10x10cm/4x4 in swatch

Fit
The cardigan is designed to have 23cm/9.1 in of positive ease. The sizes are designed to fit a finished cardigan bust circumference of XS: 102cm/40 in, S: 107cm/42 in, M: 112cm/44 in, L: 122cm/48 in, XL: 132cm/52 in. If your bust measurement is 84cm/33.1 in, you should knit a size S. A cardigan in size has a bust circumference of 107cm/42 in, which in the given example would give you 23cm/9.1 in of positive ease.

Sizing
Bust Circumference (finished cardigan):
XS: 102cm/40 in
S: 107cm/42 in
M: 112cm/44 in
L: 122cm/48 in
XL: 132cm/52 in
Length (measured mid back including double knitted edge):
All sizes: 42cm/16.5 in
I recommend measuring how long you’d like the cardigan to be, and deciding if this length works for you. You can always increase it when blocking.

Difficulty
2/5. The cardigan takes 2-3 weeks. Techniques used:
Long tail cast on, German short rows, ribbing, Italian bind off, double knitted edge

Before you begin
About construction:
This cardigan is designed with an oversized fit. If you prefer a more relaxed, less roomy silhouette, I recommend sizing down.

The cardigan is worked seamlessly from the top down, beginning with the upper back. German short rows are used to shape the dropped shoulders and create a comfortable fit. The back is worked flat, with knit stitches on the right side (RS) and purl stitches on the wrong side (WS).

Next, the left and right shoulders are worked separately, with increases along the neckline to shape the front. Once both front sections have reached the required length, they are joined with the back to form the upper body. The body is then worked flat to the desired length.

The body is finished with a ribbed hem for a neat, flexible finish, secured with an Italian bind-off for a clean, polished edge.

Stitches are then picked up along the shoulders to work the sleeves. Increases are worked to shape the sleeves for a comfortable fit, before finishing with ribbed cuffs.

Finally, stitches are picked up along the front edges to create a double-knitted button band, giving the cardigan a clean, structured finish. The cardigan is designed without buttonholes, but you can easily add one or two if you prefer a functional closure.