Silver Yoke Baby Sweater Free Crochet Pattern

Introduction

This little cardigan is a sweet, simple project for anyone who wants to make a handmade gift for a baby aged 3-6 months. It is crocheted from the top down, so the circular silver yoke grows first and the ice blue body and sleeves flow straight out of it with almost no seaming. The result is a short, cozy cardigan with a shallow cape-like top, ribbed cuffs, and a neat single crochet edging, and it has a rustic farmhouse feel that looks lovely in photos and feels soft and snuggly against a baby's skin. If you can chain and work double crochet, you can make this sweater.

Materials Needed

• Yarn: DK weight (3), acrylic or cotton blend, 300 yards total: 150 yards silver, 150 yards ice blue.
• Hooks: 4.5 mm (US 7) for the yoke, body, and main sleeve; 4.0 mm (US G-6) for the cuffs and edging.
• Notions: 3 small buttons (about ½ inch), yarn needle, scissors, stitch markers.
• Finished size: 3-6 months: chest circumference 20 inches, length 10 inches, sleeve length 6 inches.

Abbreviations

• ch - chain: make a loop of yarn and pull it through the loop on your hook.
• dc - double crochet: yarn over, insert hook in stitch, pull up a loop, yarn over and pull through two loops twice.
• sc - single crochet: insert hook in stitch, pull up a loop, yarn over and pull through both loops.
• fpdc - front post double crochet: work a double crochet around the post of the stitch in front of your hook, pushing the post toward you.
• bpdc - back post double crochet: work a double crochet around the post of the stitch behind your hook, pushing the post away from you.
• sl st - slip stitch: insert hook in stitch, yarn over and pull through both the stitch and the loop on your hook.
• sp - space: the gap made by a chain or between stitches.
• st(s) - stitch(es).

Gauge

16 stitches and 8 rows = 4 inches in double crochet with the 4.5 mm hook. Work a small swatch in double crochet and measure it flat; if you have more stitches than 16 in 4 inches, go up a hook size, and if you have fewer, go down.

Tips Before You Start

• Place a stitch marker in each of the four ch-2 raglan spaces on the yoke so you never lose track of where the increases go.
• Keep your turning chains loose; a tight ch 3 at the start of each round makes the yoke pull in at the corners.
• Try the yoke on a baby or lay it flat against a baby-sized top before starting the body, so you know the armholes sit comfortably.
• When you join the ice blue yarn, join at the right back raglan space as written; this keeps the color join hidden at the back of the cardigan.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Yoke (Silver, 4.5 mm hook)

Set-up: Ch 60.

R1: Dc in 4th ch from hook, dc in each ch across (58 dc).

R2: Ch 3, dc in next 8 sts, [dc, ch 2, dc] in next st, dc in next 8 sts, [dc, ch 2, dc] in next st, dc in next 16 sts, [dc, ch 2, dc] in next st, dc in next 8 sts, [dc, ch 2, dc] in next st, dc in last 9 sts (66 sts).

R3: Ch 3, dc in each st, working [dc, ch 2, dc] in each ch-2 sp (74 sts).

R4: Ch 3, dc in each st, working [dc, ch 2, dc] in each ch-2 sp (82 sts).

R5: Ch 3, dc in each st, working [dc, ch 2, dc] in each ch-2 sp (90 sts).

R6: Ch 3, dc in each st, working [dc, ch 2, dc] in each ch-2 sp (98 sts).

R7: Ch 3, dc in each st, working [dc, ch 2, dc] in each ch-2 sp (106 sts).

R8: Ch 3, dc in each st, working [dc, ch 2, dc] in each ch-2 sp (114 sts). Fasten off.

Note: The yoke increases by 8 stitches each round. The four ch-2 spaces mark the raglan points: two at the back, two at the front, with the sleeve sections between them.

Body (Ice Blue, 4.5 mm hook)

R9: Join ice blue at the first ch-2 sp (right back raglan). Ch 3, dc in each st around, skipping all ch-2 sps, join with sl st to first dc (114 sts).

R10: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (114 sts).

R11: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (114 sts).

R12: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (114 sts).

R13: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (114 sts).

R14: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (114 sts).

R15: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (114 sts).

R16: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (114 sts).

R17: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (114 sts).

R18: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (114 sts).

R19: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (114 sts).

R20: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (114 sts). Fasten off.

Sleeves (Ice Blue, make 2)

R1: Join ice blue at the underarm ch-2 sp. Ch 3, dc in each st around the sleeve opening, join (28 sts).

R2: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (28 sts).

R3: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (28 sts).

R4: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (28 sts).

R5: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (28 sts).

R6: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (28 sts).

R7: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (28 sts).

R8: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (28 sts).

R9: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (28 sts).

R10: Ch 3, dc in each st around, join (28 sts). Change to 4.0 mm hook.

R11: Ch 2, [fpdc, bpdc] around, join (28 sts).

R12: Ch 2, [fpdc, bpdc] around, join (28 sts).

R13: Ch 2, [fpdc, bpdc] around, join (28 sts).

R14: Ch 2, [fpdc, bpdc] around, join (28 sts). Fasten off.

Repeat R1-R14 for the second sleeve.

Edging (Silver, 4.0 mm hook)

R1: Join silver at the neck edge. Ch 1, sc evenly around the neck, down the front opening, and around the hem, working into the edge stitches and spaces so the edging lies flat. Fasten off.

Assembly and Finishing

This sweater is worked almost entirely in one piece, so there is very little seaming: the only joining is closing the small gaps at the underarms where the sleeves meet the body, if any remain after joining the sleeves. Use the yarn needle and matching yarn to close those gaps neatly from the inside. Weave in all ends on the wrong side, working each end through several stitches in two directions so it stays put. Block the finished sweater by misting it lightly and patting it flat to the measurements (20-inch chest, 10-inch length, 6-inch sleeves), then let it dry completely. Sew the 3 buttons along the left front opening, spacing them evenly and using the single crochet spaces in the edging as buttonholes.

Pro Tips and Variations

• Swap the colors for a classic cream body with a soft gray yoke, or use a self-striping DK yarn for a playful farmhouse look.
• For a slightly longer cardigan, add a few more straight body rounds before the edging; the stitch count stays at 114.
• Make the cuffs a little longer by adding two more rounds of fpdc/bpdc ribbing, keeping the 28-stitch count.