Looking for a leightweight, warm-weather cardigan worked in one piece? Try the Filet Cabled Cardigan!

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Design Story and Inspiration for This Fun Warm-Weather Cardi

I designed this cardigan as a guest post for Joy of Motion Crochet a while ago and now I am sharing it for free here on my blog with you!

I loved the idea of a top-down seamless cardi, and it turned out even better than I had planned!

Have you ever picked up a skein or cake of yarn and just knew immediately what it wanted to be made into?  That doesn’t happen very often with me, but when I picked up this Lion Brand Mandala I knew instantly that I was going to design this cardigan. 

Yarn Options for this Easy Cardigan Design

This DK, color-changing self striping yarn just begged to be turned into a summery, lightweight cardigan and this gray, white and pink color way was just too good to resist!  Plus, it’s called Unicorn so what could be better?

The Lion Brand Mandala was a joy to use.  It’s lightweight and perfect for spring and the color changes are incredible.  I used the color way Unicorn, which is a great blend of grays, white, and pinks. 

You can also find Mandala in a wide array of other colors, from amazing brights to monochromatic shades.  I really like the blues but I find that I design a lot in blue and wanted to break out of my ordinary for this design.  One of my testers used the Spirit color way, which is blue, and I loved it even more.

Check out the color changes:

This cardigan is perfect for pairing with a sundress or jeans and sandals.  I love to wear dresses to work but I like to cover up a bit and add interest with a cardigan and this one works perfectly when the weather is too warm for a long sleeve or thicker cardigan.

Imagine wearing this with your favorite summer top, jeans and sandals!

Pattern Details

The Filet Cabled Cardigan is worked from the bottom up in one piece with ribbed front edges, a braided cable design on both fronts, a rounded yoke and a filet mesh pattern for the body.  Don’t let the DK-weight yarn fool you – this actually works up very quickly and is easy to create once you get the hang of the cable.

Be sure to check out my awesome tester’s versions here!!

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Filet Cabled Cardigan

What You’ll Need

Yarn: Lion Brand Mandala, 1 (2, 2, 2, 3, 3) skeins Unicorn (590, 1180, 1770 yards) (DK Weight #3)

Crochet Hook: US Size I (5.50mm)

Notions: Yarn needle, scissors, buttons (if desired)

Gauge: 18 stitches & 9 rows per 10 cm / 4” in dc, ch-1 stitch pattern

Finished Sizes: Sized for S (M, L, XL, 2XL, 3XL), with a finished bust measurement of 32 (36, 40, 44, 48, 52) inches and finished length 23 (24, 24, 24.5, 25.5, 26)”.

Pattern Notes
This pattern is written to have very little ease, which means that the finished bust measurement should be your actual bust measurement.
Take measurements to find the size that fits best.
Ch 3 at beginning of row counts as dc.

Stitch Abbreviations
Chain (ch)
Chain one space (ch-1 sp)
Double Crochet (dc)
Slip Stitch (sl st)
Repeat (rep)
*Back post double crochet (bpdc) – Yo, insert your hook from back to front between the prev st & the st you’re working, & bring it to the back again between the st you’re working & the next st, yo & pull up a loop, you have 3 loops on the hook, yo & pull through 2 of the 3 loops, yo and pull through the 2 last loops.
*Front post double crochet (fpdc) – Yo, insert your hook from front to back between the prev st & the st you’re working, & bring it to the front again between the st you’re working & the next st, yo & pull up a loop, you have 3 loops on the hook, yo & pull through 2 of the 3 loops, yo and pull through the 2 last loops.
*Front post treble crochet (FPtr) – Yo twice, insert your hook from front to back between the prev st & the st you’re working, & bring it to the front again between the st you’re working & the next st, yo & pull up a loop, you have 4 loops on the hook, yo & pull through 2 of the 4 loops, you have 3 loops on the hook, yo & pull through 2 of the 3 loops, yo and pull through the 2 last loops.

Cable Pattern (begins on row 4 and continues to collar)

Row 1 (RS): Skip 3 dc, FPtr in next 3 dc, FPtr in 3 skipped dc, working in front of the three FPtr, FPdc in next 3 dc

Row 2: BPdc in next 9 dc

Row 3: FPdc in next 3 dc, skip 3 dc, FPtr in next 3 dc, FPtr in 3 skipped dc, working behind the three FPtr

Row 4: BPdc in next 9 dc

Repeat rows 1-4 for cable pattern

Filet Cabled Cardigan Pattern

Ch 145 (163, 181, 199, 217, 235).

Row 1 (WS): Dc in 4th ch from hook and each ch across – 143 (161, 179, 197, 215, 233) sts.

Row 2: Ch 3, *fpdc, dc; repeat to last st, dc in turning ch.

Row 3: Ch 3, (bpdc, dc) twice, ch 1, skip next dc, dc in next dc, ch 1, skip next dc, dc in next 9 sts (this will be the cable), *ch 1, skip next dc, dc in next dc; repeat from * to last 17 sts, dc 9 (this will be the cable),  ch 1, skip next dc, dc in next dc, ch 1, skip next dc, (bpdc, dc) twice, dc in turning ch.

Row 4: Ch 3, (fpdc, dc) twice, ch 1, dc in next dc, ch 1, cable over next 9 sts, *ch 1, dc in next dc; repeat from * to last 17 sts, cable over next 9 sts, ch 1, dc in next dc, ch 1, (dc, fpdc) twice, dc in turning ch.

Row 5: Ch 3, (bpdc, dc) twice, ch 1, dc in next dc, ch 1, cable over next 9 sts, *ch 1, dc in next dc; repeat from * to last 17 sts, cable over next 9 sts, ch 1, dc in next dc, ch 1, (bpdc, dc) twice, dc in turning ch.

Repeat rows 4-5 until piece measures 14 (15, 15, 15.5, 15.5, 16)” from beginning, ending with a WS row.

Yoke Shaping

Row 1: Ch 3, work 33 (37, 41, 45, 47, 53) sts from right front in pattern as established, ch 49 (57, 57, 59, 69, 77) for right sleeve, skip next 9 (9, 9, 11, 11) sts of body, work 59 (69, 79, 89, 99, 105) back sts in filet pattern as established, ch 49 (57, 57, 59, 69, 77) for left sleeve, skip next 9 (9, 9, 11, 11) sts of body, work 33 (37, 41, 45, 47, 53) sts from left front in pattern as established – 223 (257, 275, 297, 331, 365) sts.

Row 2: Ch 3, work 33 (37, 41, 45, 47, 53) sts of left front as established, *ch 1, skip next ch, dc in next ch; repeat to last ch, ch 1, work 59 (69, 79, 89, 99, 105) back sts in filet pattern as established, repeat from *, ch 1, work 33 (37, 41, 45, 47, 53) sts from right front as established.

Rows 3-4: Work even in pattern as established.

Sizes 2XL (3XL) Only: Work 2 rows even in pattern as established.

All Sizes

Row 5: Ch 3, work 21 (16, 16, 16, 21, 16) sts in pattern as established, [(ch 1, dc in next dc) 4 times, dc in next dc] 18 (22, 24, 26, 30, 34) times, work in established pattern to end – 205 (235, 251, 271, 301, 331) sts.

Row 6: Ch 3, work in pattern as established to first dec, dc2tog, [(ch 1, dc in next dc) 3 times, ch 1, dc2tog in next 2 dc] 18 (22, 24, 26, 30, 34) times, work in established pattern to end – 187 (213, 227, 245, 273, 297) sts.

Rows 7-9: Work even in pattern as established.

Row 10: Ch 3, work 21 (16, 16, 16, 21, 16) sts in pattern as established, [(ch 1, dc in next dc) 3 times, dc in next dc] 18 (22, 24, 26, 30, 34) times, work in established pattern to end – 169 (191, 203, 219, 243, 263) sts.

Row 11: Ch 3, work in pattern as established to first dec, dc2tog in next 2 dc, [(ch 1, dc in next dc) 2 times, ch 1, dc2tog in next 2 dc] 18 (22, 24, 26, 30, 34) times, work in established pattern to end – 151 (169, 179, 193, 213, 229) sts.

Rows 12-14: Work even in pattern as established.

Row 15: Ch 3, work 21 (16, 16, 16, 21, 16) sts in pattern as established, [(ch 1, dc in next dc) 2 times, dc in next dc] 18 (22, 24, 26, 30, 34) times, work in established pattern to end – 133 (147, 155, 167, 183, 195) sts.

Row 16: Ch 3, work in pattern as established to first dec, dc2tog in next 2 dc, [ch 1, dc in next dc, ch 1, dc2tog in next 2 dc] 18 (22, 24, 26, 30, 34) times, work in established pattern to end – 115 (125, 131, 141, 153, 161) sts.

Rows 17-19: Work even in pattern as established.

Row 20: Ch 3, work 21 (16, 16, 16, 21, 16) sts in pattern as established, [ch 1, dc in next dc, skip ch 1 space, dc in next dc] 18 (22, 24, 26, 30, 34) times, work in established pattern to end – 97 (103, 107, 115, 123, 127) sts.

Row 21: Ch 3, work in pattern as established to first dec, dc2tog in next 2 dc, [ch 1, dc2tog in next 2 dc] 18 (22, 24, 26, 30, 34) times, work in established pattern to end – 79 (81, 83, 89, 93, 93) sts.

Collar

Row 1: Ch 3, (fpdc, dc) 2 times, dc in next 3 sts, fpdc 9 sts (over cable), dc in each st and ch-1 space to next cable, fpdc 9 sts (over cable), dc in next 3 sts, (dc, fpdc) twice, dc in turning ch.

Row 2: Ch 3, dc, *bpdc, dc; repeat from * to last st, dc in turning ch.

Fasten off.

Sleeve Edging

Row 1: With RS facing, join yarn at center underarm.  Ch 3, dc evenly around armhole edge, working into each dc and ch-1 space.  Join with slip st to top of ch-3.

Row 2: Ch 3, *fpdc, dc; repeat to end.  Join with slip st to top of ch-3.

Fasten off.

FINISHING

Weave in ends.  Sew buttons to top or waist as desired.

Final Thoughts on the Filet Cabled Cardigan

I have really loved wearing this cardigan and I hope you love it as much as I do!