Cotton Candy Cardigan – Adjustable Crochet Pattern

Have you ever held back on crocheting a sweater because you don’t understand gauge? I’m excited to introduce you to the Cotton Candy Cardigan, which uses fully adjustable sizing so you can get the perfect fit for your body!

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Let me Help you crochet a sweater with great fit

Have you ever felt this way before?

Unsure if you can crochet a garment because you don’t understand gauge…

Frustrated with the fit of crocheted garments…

Or maybe even wondering how in the world you can make a garment that actually fits?

Awhile ago, I tried a pattern that used what was called fully adjustable sizing, and ever since then, I’ve been hooked!

For the Cotton Candy Cardigan, I used this method, which basically allows you to fully customize the pattern so that you can get the best fit possible for your body.

Sound intriguing? I’ll go into more detail farther down in this post, so make sure you keep on reading! 😉

Access the Pattern

Before we go any further into the details of the pattern, I wanted to make sure you know how you can access this adjustable cardigan!

The pattern is available both on Etsy & Ravelry. Just click below and go to whichever platform you prefer!

P.S. To get a sneak peak of how the cardigan is assembled, make sure you view the video tutorial in this post!

How it’s Designed

You might be thinking, “this promise of perfect fit is too good to be true. How can you really guarantee that?”

Well, I’ll be totally honest. Of course I cannot guarantee the perfect fit. However, I did try VERY hard to create a pattern that could be adjusted to get an awesome fit.

Let me tell you how the adjusting works.

First of all, I will give you a full sizing worksheet. I will walk you through all the details of measuring your chest and adding ease.

Next, you will make a swatch in single crochet. This is where the fun comes in, because you actually DON’T have to meet a specific gauge in this pattern.

Instead of meeting my gauge, I will help you measure your swatch to create your very OWN gauge!

We’ll measure the swatch, collecting measurements, and then we will use that data to determine the size of your garment.

Yes, it’s a bit different from your standard pattern. However, I’ve found that it helps the maker so much!

Speaking of gauge…if you don’t understand it, did you know I have a FREE email challenge that teaches you everything you need to know?

Sign up below!

The Yarn

It is super important we talk about the YARN needed for this cardigan!

First of all, I want you to know that you can use ANY yarn. You are in no way limited to the yarn I used.

However, I really love the yarn I used and highly recommend it…so you might want to think about getting some. Just sayin’ 😉

I used Lion Brand Truboo for this cardigan, in the colors Aqua and Vibrant Pink. It is a DK weight, bamboo yarn, and you guys. It is just soooo soft, silky, and drapey!

I loved working with this yarn. You can grab some for yourself here!

The links above will take you directly to Lion Brand. But if you like shopping on amazon, it is also available there!

Make for kids & adults

Another great feature of this cardigan is that because of the adjustable sizing, you can literally make it in ANY size!

The design is geared toward kids, yes. However, I think it would be super cute as a mommy and me set. And the adjustable sizing method allows you to do that!

Cotton Candy Cardigan Notes & Materials

Here’s a few more details you’ll probably want to know about the cardigan before you purchase the pattern!

• To pin this pattern to your pinterest boards, click HERE
• To purchase the pattern on Etsy, click HERE
• To purchase the pattern on Ravelry, click HERE
• To buy the yarn for this cardigan, click HERE

Materials:

• Fingering, sport, or DK, weight yarn. You can really use any size yarn you want to customize the fit. BUT, I do recommend a lighter weight so it stays cool for summer!
• I used Lion Brand Truboo Yarn (DK weight): 4 balls for MC, and 1 ball for CC. If you use DK weight like me, you will probably need from 800-1,500 yards for the MC (depending on size) as well as a small amount of the CC. 
• G (4.25mm) hook (or appropriate hook size for the weight of yarn you chose)
• Yarn needle

Abbreviations/Stitches Used:

Chain – ch

Slip Stitch – sl st

Single crochet – sc

Repeat – rep

Round – rnd

Skip – sk

Stitch(es) – st(s)

Space – sp

RS – right side

MC – main color

CC – contrasting color 

YO – yarn over

Sizing/Fit: 

This pattern is fully adjustable, meaning it is designed in such a way to allow you to make it to fit your body perfectly! There is no need to obtain gauge; rather, you will determine your own gauge with the yarn & hook you choose to use. Don’t worry, I will help you do this!

The fit: This sweater is designed to have positive ease. The instructions will include steps for adding ease into your sweater. I recommend adding anywhere from 4-7” of positive ease. The more ease you add, the looser your sweater will fit.  

Notes:

1. Ch 1 at beginning of rows does NOT count as a sc. 
2. Ch 3 at beginning of rows counts as dc
3. Cardigan is made from 3 panels: 1 back panel and 2 front panels. Pieces are sewn together and then sleeves are joined at the base of the armhole and worked in the round.
4. Color changes will always be made at the end of a row.
5. All pieces of the cardigan start with a foundation single crochet row (fsc). If you are unfamiliar with this technique, check out this blog post. Starting with a regular chain stitch is not recommended because it won’t be as stretchy. But if you need to start with a chain, just be sure to add one more chain to your starting row number. Then, skip the first chain and work one row of sc across (this will give the same result of fsc, just less stretchy).

Want to Unlock the Rest of the Pattern?

Purchase on either Etsy or Ravelry below!

I hope you guys love this pattern! I had so much fun designing it 🙂