It’s no secret that my favorite color is a deep red. I dye my hair red, most of my clothing is red, I consider a dark red to be a neutral… So, it makes sense that one of my favorite handknit sweaters is a gorgeous red cardigan. I finished this cardigan in early 2021, and it quickly became a piece on regular rotation in my wardrobe.
The pattern is the Aosta Cardigan by The Knit Purl Girl, a pattern I now recommend to everyone who compliments this sweater when I wear it. It was my first raglan-style sweater ever and was worth every minute of my time, from the knitting to sourcing the perfect buttons.
Pattern Details:
Name: Aosta Cardigan
Designer: The Knit Purl Girl
Needle Size: 7.0 mm, US 10 – 6.0 mm
Difficulty: Confident Beginner
Yarn Weight: Bulky (or two strands held together)
Size Knit: Medium (I believe the pattern has now been updated to include additional sizes)
My Materials:
I used Malabrigo Mecha in Cereza. If you haven’t knit with Malabrigo yarn before, you are in for a treat. This yarn is some of the softest I’ve ever knit with, and I love the variegation in the tonal colors. It’s definitely not an inexpensive yarn; the seven skeins I needed totaled about $100 in my cart at the time (I think a little less).
I also sourced 4 vintage Gucci buttons on Etsy that I thought fit the entire vibe of this sweater perfectly. Finding the perfect buttons is really the cherry on top of a cardigan project.
Final thoughts:
I still love this sweater and wear it all the time. It definitely was a little bigger than I expected (I may have made the sleeves a little too long), but I think the bigger sleeves add dramatic effect to a bold sweater.
As my first cardigan, my ribbed edging could use some work; my edges are a bit wonky, but no one really notices in person.
Seed stitch isn’t my favorite, but once I muster up the patience, this is definitely a sweater I would knit again.
Happy knitting!
