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| Designed by © Terry Kimbrough, Susan Leitzsch, Lucie Sinkler |
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| Photos above © Knitting Knife Crochet Paradise |
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| The photo above © Jolanda Schneider |
Maebry Top Down Cardigan designed by © OGE Knitwear Designs
Maebry Top Down Cardigan - P152 by OGE Knitwear Designs is a beautifully detailed baby and toddler cardigan knitting pattern featuring simple stockinette, garter stitch sleeves and a decorative daisy-stitch border.
Worked from the top down in one piece, Maebry is available in five sizes from 3 months through 2 years. The pattern is designed for DK-weight yarn and is rated for intermediate knitters.
Maebry begins at the neckline and is worked downward in one piece. After the garter-stitch neckband, the fronts and back are worked mainly in stockinette stitch, with garter-stitch borders running along the front edges.
This construction gives the cardigan a clean, classic appearance while avoiding the need to assemble separate front and back body pieces.
One of the prettiest details in the Maebry Cardigan is the decorative border worked in OGE Knitwear Designs' version of daisy stitch.
The textured border contrasts nicely with the smooth stockinette body and garter-stitch sections, giving the otherwise simple cardigan a distinctive handmade finish.
The pattern offers knitters a useful choice when making the sleeves. They can be worked flat, or they can be knitted in the round.
The sleeves themselves are worked in garter stitch, adding another layer of texture to the design.
The Maebry Top Down Cardigan includes five sizes: 3 months, 6 months, 12 months, 18 months and 2 years.
This makes the same design useful for both small babies and toddlers. Check the designer's finished measurements in the purchased pattern before selecting the size you want to knit.
The original pattern was designed using Sublime Extra Fine Merino DK, with approximately 127 yards (116 m) per 50 g ball.
The original yarn requirements are approximately 3, 3, 4, 4 and 5 balls for the five sizes respectively.
The cardigan uses 3.75 mm (US 5) needles. If you choose to knit the sleeves in the round, you will also need suitable double-pointed needles or your preferred method for knitting small circumferences.
The specified gauge is 22 stitches and 31 rows or rounds = 4 inches (10 cm) in stockinette stitch on 3.75 mm needles.
Matching gauge is particularly important for a fitted baby or toddler garment, so make a swatch before beginning if you are substituting another DK-weight yarn.
No. Maebry Top Down Cardigan - P152 is currently a paid knitting pattern from OGE Knitwear Designs.
This is worth noting because older posts and saved links online may not accurately reflect the pattern's current availability. Always check the designer's official shop for the current price and availability.
The complete Maebry Top Down Cardigan - P152 is available directly from OGE Knitwear Designs. Visit the designer's official shop for the current price and downloadable PDF.
Get the Maebry Cardigan Pattern at OGE Knitwear Designs
Pattern availability and status were checked when this article was updated. Prices and availability may change over time.
Trellis by Britta Stolfus Rueschhoff is a classic baby cardigan featuring decorative cables, seed stitch and a cozy shawl collar. Originally published in Knitty in 2005, the design remains a popular choice for knitters who enjoy traditional texture and structured garment knitting.
The sweater is worked in pieces from the bottom up and then seamed together. Its most distinctive feature is the repeating trellis cable motif, which creates a rich textured surface across the body while the shawl collar gives the cardigan a timeless, polished look.
The complete Trellis pattern is still available free from its original publisher, Knitty.
Design and original pattern © Britta Stolfus Rueschhoff.
The feature that makes Trellis immediately recognizable is its all-over cable texture.
The cable motifs form repeated interlocking shapes across the knitted fabric, creating the visual effect of a trellis or lattice.
This gives the sweater much more depth than a plain stockinette cardigan while still keeping the overall design traditional and suitable for either boys or girls.
The central texture is built around an 18-row repeating cable pattern.
Although that sounds long compared with a simple rib repeat, cable patterns often become much easier once the structure begins to appear in the fabric. The growing cables themselves provide visual clues about where you are in the repeat.
It is still worth keeping a row counter nearby, especially during the first few repeats.
Trellis combines the cable pattern with seed stitch, which adds another layer of texture without competing with the main cable motifs.
Seed stitch alternates knit and purl stitches to create a small pebbled surface. In this design, it helps frame the more pronounced cable sections and gives the cardigan a carefully finished look.
A shawl collar is one of the most attractive features of Trellis.
Unlike a simple ribbed neckline, the collar creates extra fabric around the neck and front opening, giving the sweater a warm, jacket-like appearance.
This style works especially well with the traditional cable texture because both elements give the cardigan a classic hand-knit character.
The cardigan is worked flat from the bottom up.
The individual garment pieces are knitted separately and then assembled with seams. This is a more traditional sweater-construction method than seamless top-down knitting.
Because the pieces are worked flat, knitters do not need to manage the entire garment in the round while following the cable pattern.
Trellis is not a seamless cardigan. The finished pieces must be joined during the finishing stage.
Good seaming can make a major difference in the final appearance of a cable sweater. Align the row edges carefully so that the texture remains balanced across the garment.
Blocking the individual pieces before final assembly can also help make the edges easier to match.
The original pattern includes three baby sizes:
The corresponding finished lengths are approximately 11, 12 and 13 inches.
As with any baby garment, use the finished measurements rather than relying only on the age label when selecting a size.
The original sample uses Rowan All Seasons Cotton, an Aran-weight cotton and acrylic blend.
The published yardage is approximately 392–490 yards / 358–448 meters, depending on size.
An Aran-weight yarn with clear stitch definition is a good choice for this project because the cable texture is one of the main visual features.
When substituting yarn, look for an Aran-weight yarn that can produce the required gauge while still showing cables clearly.
Very fuzzy yarns may hide some of the trellis definition, while a smooth wool, cotton blend or similarly structured yarn will usually make the cable crossings more visible.
For a baby garment, also consider softness, washability and durability.
The published gauge is:
21 stitches and 28 rows = 4 in / 10 cm in the pattern stitch.
Gauge is especially important for a fitted garment because it directly affects the finished chest measurement and sleeve length.
Cable fabrics can behave differently from plain stockinette, so make your swatch in the actual pattern stitch whenever possible.
The original pattern recommends US 7 / 4.5 mm needles.
Treat that size as a starting point rather than a fixed requirement. Use whichever needle size allows you to match the published gauge with your chosen yarn.
Trellis is better suited to an intermediate knitter or a confident advanced beginner ready to learn garment construction and cables.
The project combines several skills at once: cable work, pattern tracking, shaping, seaming and collar finishing.
None of these techniques is unusually difficult on its own, but together they make the sweater more involved than a basic garter-stitch baby cardigan.
Use a smooth yarn. Clear stitch definition helps the trellis motifs remain visible.
Keep cable tension even. Avoid pulling too tightly immediately after crossing stitches.
Track the 18-row repeat. A row counter can prevent accidental misalignment between garment pieces.
Block before seaming. This can help the cable fabric relax and make the garment pieces easier to join neatly.
Check cable orientation regularly. Catching a reversed cable crossing early is much easier than fixing it several repeats later.
Before assembling the cardigan, lay out the blocked pieces and make sure the edges and pattern sections align correctly.
Use consistent tension while seaming. Pulling the seam too tightly can distort the cable fabric, while a very loose seam may create visible gaps.
Take particular care where sleeves meet the body, since bulky cable fabrics can create extra thickness at garment joins.
Yes. Trellis by Britta Stolfus Rueschhoff is currently listed as a free knitting pattern.
The design was originally published by Knitty in its Spring 2005 issue, and the free pattern remains associated with that original publication.
Amazing Knitting therefore directs readers to the original Knitty pattern rather than to copied PDFs or unofficial downloads.
View the Free Trellis Pattern at Knitty →
Trellis is a strong choice if you want a baby sweater that feels more substantial and traditional than a very simple beginner cardigan.
The cables provide enough repetition to make the knitting interesting, while the seed stitch and shawl collar give the finished garment a polished, heirloom-style appearance.
It is also an excellent small-scale project for practicing techniques that transfer directly to adult cable sweaters, including chart reading, shaping, seaming and collar construction.
Amazing Knitting links readers to legitimate designer or publisher sources whenever possible. Pattern prices, download locations and availability can change after an article is published.
Read Our Pattern Availability Policy →
Amazing Knitting is an independent pattern discovery and project-guide site. The Trellis design and knitting pattern remain the intellectual property of Britta Stolfus Rueschhoff and its original publisher, Knitty. This guide does not reproduce the designer's complete row-by-row pattern instructions or charts.
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| The photo above © Purlsoho |
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Flying Solo. Photos © Espace Tricot
Flying Solo by Espace Tricot is a free unisex cowl knitting pattern with a clean ribbed texture and beautiful ombre color transitions.
The design uses two strands of fingering-weight yarn held together throughout. By changing only one strand at a time, the colors blend gradually from one shade into the next, creating the distinctive striped gradient effect.
Flying Solo has a minimalist shape, but the changing yarn colors give the finished cowl much more visual depth than a basic ribbed accessory.
The entire design is based around classic 1×1 ribbing, which creates a stretchy fabric that sits comfortably around the neck. The color changes then become the main decorative element.
This combination makes Flying Solo a great choice if you prefer simple stitch patterns but still want a finished project with a distinctive look.
The cleverest feature of Flying Solo is the way Espace Tricot creates the color transitions.
Instead of working with a single strand of yarn, you hold two strands together throughout the project.
When it is time to introduce a new color, only one strand is changed. For example, two strands of Color A might be followed by one strand of Color A held together with one strand of Color B. Later, both strands can become Color B.
This gradual replacement of one strand at a time produces soft ombre transitions rather than abrupt color changes.
The original Flying Solo sample uses three colors of ArtFil Solo.
Espace Tricot chose a neutral palette for its sample, but the designer specifically notes that the cowl can also look striking in saturated, speckled, bright or jewel-toned hand-dyed colors.
Because the colors overlap as you change one strand at a time, three yarn colors can create several visually distinct blended sections.
Flying Solo uses fingering-weight yarn held double. This means you knit with two strands at the same time as though they were a single working yarn.
Holding yarn double creates a thicker fabric while also making the gradual color blending possible.
It is important to remember that the pattern's listed gauge is measured with both strands held together, not with a single strand of fingering yarn.
The suggested yarn is ArtFil Solo, a fingering-weight single-ply yarn made from 100% merino wool.
Ravelry lists ArtFil Solo at approximately 366 metres per 100 grams.
Espace Tricot describes it as a soft yarn suitable for accessories and garments worn next to the skin, which makes it a natural choice for a cowl.
You do not need to use the original ArtFil Solo to enjoy the color concept of Flying Solo.
Look for fingering-weight yarns that work well together when held double and that produce the required ribbed gauge on 4.5 mm needles.
Using yarns with similar fiber content and yardage can make the color changes easier to manage, especially if you want the sections to have a consistent texture.
Flying Solo is especially well suited to hand-dyed yarn because the held-double construction naturally mixes neighboring colors.
A tonal yarn can create subtle transitions, while speckled or highly saturated yarns can produce a much bolder effect.
You can also choose three related colors for a smooth gradient or use contrasting shades for more dramatic stripes.
The cowl is worked from the bottom up.
However, it does not begin entirely in the round. The lower section has separate front and back flaps, which gives the finished cowl its characteristic longer shape at the front and back.
These two sections are knitted separately first and then joined before the upper portion of the cowl continues in the round.
The front and back flaps are an important part of the Flying Solo design.
They extend lower than the sides of the cowl, providing additional coverage over the upper chest and back without making the entire cowl equally long.
This shaping is particularly useful when the cowl is worn beneath a coat or jacket because the longer sections can help cover the area near the neckline.
Flying Solo uses both flat knitting and knitting in the round.
You begin by working the two lower flaps separately. Once they are complete, the pieces are joined and the remaining cowl is worked continuously in the round.
This construction creates the shaped lower edge without requiring the entire cowl to be seamed afterward.
Although part of the project is initially worked back and forth, the pattern is classified as a one-piece construction.
After the lower sections are joined, the main body grows upward as one continuous ribbed tube.
This keeps finishing relatively limited while preserving the unusual dipped shape at the bottom.
The pattern uses US 7 (4.5 mm) knitting needles.
The specified gauge is: 27 stitches and 27 rows = 4 inches (10 cm) in 1×1 ribbing with the yarn held double.
Ribbing is naturally elastic, so gauge affects both the finished dimensions and the way the cowl stretches around the neck.
Make your gauge swatch using two strands together just as you will for the actual project.
The pattern lists approximately 600 yards (549 metres) of fingering-weight yarn in total.
Because the project uses two strands simultaneously and changes colors throughout, check the original pattern carefully for the recommended distribution of the three colors before beginning.
If you substitute yarn, having a little extra can also be useful when planning your own color transitions.
Useful techniques for this project include:
If you have never knitted with two strands held together, Flying Solo provides a practical reason to learn the technique.
The stitch pattern itself remains simple, so your attention can stay on keeping the two yarn strands together and managing the color changes.
Once you become comfortable treating two strands as one, the technique can also be useful for many other knitting projects.
When knitting with two strands, it helps to keep the working balls separate so they do not become unnecessarily tangled.
Check periodically that you have caught both strands when forming each stitch, particularly if the yarn colors are very similar.
When changing one color, take a moment to organize the yarn before continuing. This makes the ombre transitions easier to manage and keeps the knitting relaxing.
Flying Solo is designed as a unisex accessory.
The simple ribbed structure has no strongly gendered decorative elements, and the finished look changes dramatically depending on the colors you choose.
Neutral shades create a classic minimalist cowl, while brighter hand-dyed yarns can produce a much more expressive version.
Flying Solo combines a very familiar stitch pattern with a clever color technique and practical shaping.
The 1×1 ribbing keeps the knitting straightforward, while holding two strands together and changing one strand at a time creates sophisticated-looking ombre stripes.
The separate front and back flaps also give the cowl more coverage than a simple straight tube, making the construction visually interesting as well as functional.
The complete Flying Solo by Espace Tricot is currently available as a free downloadable knitting pattern from the Espace Tricot Ravelry Store.
Get the Free Flying Solo Cowl Knitting Pattern
Pattern availability was checked when this article was updated. Availability on external websites may change over time.