Simple Cable V-Neck Cardigan

A cozy beginner-friendly worsted-weight cardigan with easy 4-stitch cables, V-neck, and classic button front. Worked flat in pieces and seamed.

Materials

• Worsted weight yarn (approx. 100 yd / 90 m per 50 g): 1100 (1200, 1350, 1500, 1650) yards
• US 7 (4.5 mm) straight or circular needles (for ribbing)
• US 8 (5 mm) straight or circular needles (for body)
• Cable needle (cn)
• Stitch markers
• Stitch holders or scrap yarn
• Tapestry needle
• 6 (6, 7, 7, 7) buttons, ¾" diameter
• Sewing needle and thread for buttons

Gauge

18 stitches and 24 rows = 4" (10 cm) in Stockinette stitch on US 8 (5 mm) needles, blocked. Take time to check gauge. Cable panels pull in slightly; measure St st gauge for fit.

Sizes

S (M, L, XL, 2XL) Finished bust (buttoned): 36 (40, 45, 49, 54)" Finished length: 24 (24.5, 25, 25.5, 26)" Sleeve length to underarm: 18" Shown in size M. Choose size with 2–4" positive ease over actual bust.

Abbreviations

• BO: bind off
• C4F: cable 4 front (sl 2 sts to cn and hold in front, k2, k2 from cn)
• cn: cable needle
• CO: cast on
• cont: continue
• dec: decrease
• inc: increase
• k: knit
• k2tog: knit 2 together
• m1: make 1 (lift bar between sts and knit into back)
• p: purl
• pm: place marker
• RS: right side
• sl: slip
• ssk: slip, slip, knit (slip 1 knitwise twice, knit those 2 sts together through back loop)
• st(s): stitch(es)
• St st: Stockinette stitch (knit RS, purl WS)
• WS: wrong side
• wyib: with yarn in back
• wyif: with yarn in front

Pattern Notes

• Cardigan is worked flat in four pieces, then seamed.
• Cable panels are worked over 8 stitches: p2, k4, p2. The C4F is worked on the center 4 knit stitches every 8th row. Stitch count never changes inside the panel.
• When shaping cuts into a cable panel, work remaining stitches in St st (knit the knits and purl the purls as they appear) and discontinue that cable.
• V-neck decreases are worked 1 st in from the neck edge for a clean slant.
• Button band is picked up along both fronts and back neck in one continuous band; buttonholes are worked on the Left Front band only.
• Always slip markers as you come to them unless instructed otherwise.

Cable Panel (worked over 8 sts)

Row 1 (RS): P2, k4, p2. Row 2 (WS): K2, p4, k2. Rows 3–6: Repeat Rows 1–2. Row 7 (RS): P2, C4F, p2. Row 8 (WS): K2, p4, k2. Repeat Rows 1–8 for pattern.

Back

With smaller needles, CO 80 (88, 100, 108, 120) sts. Rib setup (WS): P1, *k2, p2; rep from * to last 3 sts, k2, p1. Work in established 2x2 rib (k the knits and p the purls) until piece measures 2" from CO edge, ending after a WS row. Change to larger needles. Next row (RS): K18 (20, 24, 26, 30), pm, work Cable Panel Row 1 over next 8 sts, pm, k28 (32, 36, 40, 44), pm, work Cable Panel Row 1 over next 8 sts, pm, k18 (20, 24, 26, 30). (80 = 18+8+28+8+18 ✓; 88 = 20+8+32+8+20 ✓; 100 = 24+8+36+8+24 ✓; 108 = 26+8+40+8+26 ✓; 120 = 30+8+44+8+30 ✓)

Next row (WS): P to marker, sm, work Cable Panel Row 2, sm, p to marker, sm, work Cable Panel Row 2, sm, p to end. Cont in St st and Cable Panels as established until piece measures 15 (15, 15.5, 15.5, 16)" from CO edge, ending after a WS row.

Shape Armholes

BO 4 (5, 6, 7, 8) sts at beg of next 2 rows. 72 (78, 88, 94, 104) sts. Dec row (RS): K1, ssk, work in patt to last 3 sts, k2tog, k1. 2 sts dec. Next row (WS): Work even in patt. Rep last 2 rows 3 (4, 5, 6, 7) more times. 64 (68, 76, 80, 88) sts remain. (72 − 2×4 = 64 ✓; 78 − 2×5 = 68 ✓; 88 − 2×6 = 76 ✓; 94 − 2×7 = 80 ✓; 104 − 2×8 = 88 ✓)

Work even in established patt until armhole measures 8 (8.5, 9, 9.5, 10)", ending after a WS row.

Shape Shoulders

BO 6 (7, 8, 8, 9) sts at beg of next 2 rows, then BO 6 (7, 8, 9, 10) sts at beg of following 2 rows. Place remaining 40 (40, 44, 46, 50) sts on holder for back neck. (64 − 6−6−6−6 = 40 ✓; 68 − 7−7−7−7 = 40 ✓; 76 − 8−8−8−8 = 44 ✓; 80 − 8−8−9−9 = 46 ✓; 88 − 9−9−10−10 = 50 ✓)

Left Front

With smaller needles, CO 40 (44, 50, 54, 60) sts. Rib setup (WS): *P2, k2; rep from * to last 0 (0, 2, 2, 0) sts, p0 (0, 2, 2, 0). Work in established 2x2 rib until piece measures 2" from CO edge, ending after a WS row. Change to larger needles. Next row (RS): K16 (18, 21, 23, 26), pm, work Cable Panel Row 1 over next 8 sts, pm, k16 (18, 21, 23, 26). (40 = 16+8+16 ✓; 44 = 18+8+18 ✓; 50 = 21+8+21 ✓; 54 = 23+8+23 ✓; 60 = 26+8+26 ✓)

Next row (WS): P to marker, sm, work Cable Panel Row 2, sm, p to end. Cont in St st and Cable Panel as established until piece measures 15 (15, 15.5, 15.5, 16)" from CO edge, ending after a WS row.

Shape Armhole

Next row (RS): BO 4 (5, 6, 7, 8) sts, work in patt to end. 36 (39, 44, 47, 52) sts. Work 1 WS row even. Dec row (RS): K1, ssk, work in patt to end. 1 st dec. Next row (WS): Work even. Rep last 2 rows 3 (4, 5, 6, 7) more times. 32 (34, 38, 40, 44) sts. (36 − 4 = 32 ✓; 39 − 5 = 34 ✓; 44 − 6 = 38 ✓; 47 − 7 = 40 ✓; 52 − 8 = 44 ✓)

Work even until armhole measures 3 (3, 3.5, 3.5, 4)", ending after a WS row. At the same time, begin V-neck shaping on the next RS row as follows (armhole edge is at the beginning of RS rows; neck edge is at the end of RS rows).

Shape V-Neck

Note: Continue any remaining armhole decreases if they have not yet finished; once armhole shaping is complete, work armhole edge even. Neck Dec row (RS): Work in patt to last 3 sts, k2tog, k1. 1 st dec at neck. Work 3 rows even in patt. Rep the last 4 rows 9 (9, 10, 10, 11) more times, then work Neck Dec row once more. 21 (23, 26, 28, 31) total decreases from start of V-neck? Wait—track carefully: You work the Neck Dec row a total of 11 (11, 12, 12, 13) times. 32 − 11 = 21; 34 − 11 = 23; 38 − 12 = 26; 40 − 12 = 28; 44 − 13 = 31 sts remain. ✓

After all neck decreases, work even on remaining 21 (23, 26, 28, 31) sts until armhole measures same as Back to shoulder, ending after a WS row.

Shape Shoulder

BO 6 (7, 8, 8, 9) sts at beg of next RS row, work to end. Work 1 WS row. BO remaining 6 (7, 8, 9, 10) sts. (21 − 6 − 6? For S: 21 − 6 = 15, then next BO would be wrong—adjust final counts. Corrected shoulder match to Back: final front shoulder total must equal Back shoulder (12 (14, 16, 17, 19) sts). After neck decs, sts should be 12 (14, 16, 17, 19). Therefore total neck decreases needed from the post-armhole count: 32 − 12 = 20 decs for S; 34 − 14 = 20; 38 − 16 = 22; 40 − 17 = 23; 44 − 19 = 25. Re-sequence: Work Neck Dec row every 4th row 10 (10, 11, 11, 12) times, then every other RS row 0 (0, 0, 1, 1) time(s) as needed to reach exactly 12 (14, 16, 17, 19) sts. Work even thereafter to shoulder height. BO 6 (7, 8, 8, 9) sts at beg of next RS row; work 1 WS row; BO rem 6 (7, 8, 9, 10) sts. (12 = 6+6 ✓; 14 = 7+7 ✓; 16 = 8+8 ✓; 17 = 8+9 ✓; 19 = 9+10 ✓)

Right Front

With smaller needles, CO 40 (44, 50, 54, 60) sts. Rib setup (WS): P0 (0, 2, 2, 0), *k2, p2; rep from * to end. Work in established 2x2 rib until piece measures 2" from CO edge, ending after a WS row. Change to larger needles. Next row (RS): K16 (18, 21, 23, 26), pm, work Cable Panel Row 1 over next 8 sts, pm, k16 (18, 21, 23, 26). Cont exactly as for Left Front, reversing all shaping:

• Armhole BO and decreases are worked at the beginning of WS rows (or end of RS rows: work to last 3 sts, k2tog, k1).
• V-neck decreases are worked at the beginning of RS rows: K1, ssk, work in patt to end.
• Shoulder BO is worked at the beginning of WS rows. Final shoulder sts identical: 12 (14, 16, 17, 19).

Sleeves (make 2)

With smaller needles, CO 40 (40, 44, 44, 48) sts. Work 2x2 rib (k2, p2 across, adjusting edges with k1/p1 if needed for neatness) for 2", ending after a WS row. Change to larger needles. Work in St st for 4 rows. Inc row (RS): K1, m1, k to last st, m1, k1. 2 sts inc. Work 5 (5, 5, 3, 3) rows even. Rep Inc row every 6th (6th, 6th, 4th, 4th) row 6 (8, 9, 11, 11) more times. 54 (58, 64, 68, 72) sts. (40 + 2×7 = 54 ✓; 40 + 2×9 = 58 ✓; 44 + 2×10 = 64 ✓; 44 + 2×12 = 68 ✓; 48 + 2×12 = 72 ✓)

Work even until sleeve measures 18" from CO edge, ending after a WS row.

Shape Sleeve Cap

BO 4 (5, 6, 7, 8) sts at beg of next 2 rows. 46 (48, 52, 54, 56) sts. Dec row (RS): K1, ssk, k to last 3 sts, k2tog, k1. 2 sts dec. Work 1 WS row even. Rep last 2 rows 8 (9, 10, 11, 12) more times. 28 (28, 30, 30, 30) sts. (46 − 2×9 = 28 ✓; 48 − 2×10 = 28 ✓; 52 − 2×11 = 30 ✓; 54 − 2×12 = 30 ✓; 56 − 2×13 = 30 ✓)

BO 3 sts at beg of next 4 rows. 16 (16, 18, 18, 18) sts. BO remaining sts.

Finishing

Block all pieces to finished measurements. Sew shoulder seams. Set in sleeves; sew sleeve and side seams.

Button Band / Neckband

With smaller needles and RS facing, beginning at Right Front lower edge, pick up and knit 3 sts for every 4 rows along Right Front edge to start of V-neck, then 1 st in every row along right V-neck edge, knit across 40 (40, 44, 46, 50) back neck sts from holder, pick up 1 st in every row along left V-neck edge, then 3 sts for every 4 rows along Left Front edge to lower edge. Count sts; adjust by increasing or decreasing evenly on first row if needed so total is a multiple of 4 + 2. Row 1 (WS): P1, *k2, p2; rep from * to last st, p1 (or adjust to maintain 2x2 rib). Work 2 more rows in established rib. Buttonhole row (RS) (Left Front only—work buttonholes on the half of the band that sits on the Left Front): Work in rib for approximately 1", *yo, k2tog (or p2tog to match rib), work in rib for 2.5 (2.75, 2.5, 2.75, 2.75)" (spacing evenly for 6 (6, 7, 7, 7) buttonholes); rep from * until last buttonhole is ~½" below start of V-neck shaping, then work in rib to end. Work 3 more rows in rib. BO loosely in rib.

Sew buttons to Right Front band opposite buttonholes. Weave in all ends. Block band lightly if needed.

Tips for Beginners

• Practice the C4F on a small swatch before starting the fronts.
• Use locking markers on either side of each cable panel so you never lose your place.
• When picking up stitches for the band, a slightly smaller needle can help keep the edge neat; change back to the ribbing needle after the pick-up row if desired.
• Try the cardigan on before sewing the side seams to check length and ease.

Enjoy your new cable cardigan!