Also known as Mr. Sophisticate or Daddy Sophisticate to those who have been requesting it! It’s been a long time coming (like, 2 and a half years), but I’ve finally been able to write, knit, have test knitted, have tech edited, take pictures of and create the patten layout for the adult version of my baby pattern, Baby Sophisticate. I’m not sure if people are still waiting for it after all this time, but I hope some of you are still excited to see this pattern hit the market!
I’ve designed this pattern so that it can be made for a man or a woman, with optional waist shaping for the women’s pattern and different lengths for certain parts of the sweater depending on whether it’s being knit for a guy or a girl.
The pattern includes sizing for chest measurements of 30, 34, 38, 42, 46, 50, 54, 58, and 62 inches and calls for Knit Picks City Tweed Heavy Weight (mine in Brocade and the men’s sweater in Tabby). You will need 5, 6, 7, 8, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 11 skeins for the above sizes.
The gauge for the sweater is 15 sts/20 rows to 4 inches in Stockinette on size 8 US needles. Just like Baby Sophisticate, the sweater is knit from the top down, with a raglan yoke, and the button band and collar are picked up and knit after the body is finished.
That’s Sophie helping me out with my photo shoot.
The pattern is available for 6.50 (USD) as a download in my Ravelry Store or through Paypal. Just click below! If you do decide to knit Sophisticate, I always welcome feedback and questions, so please let me know how you like it!
Purchase through Paypal:
Purchase through Ravelry:
Stockinette 
You just made my week! This is the sweater my husband has been asking for. I even have the yarn!
How pretty! I just finished a sweater using the same yarn. Isn’t it great!
I have a question, I really like this cardigan and I have Araucanian Limar in my stash ,it’s a bulky weight fiber of 70% wool, 20% alpaca and 10% silk.Yardage 73 yds.
Weight 100g
Yarn Weight Bulky
Fiber Content Wool , Alpaca , Silk
Texture Plied
Gauge (st. /4 in.) 11
Needle Size(s) 11 US (8mm)
would this work for this pattern?
I’m so excited to make this!!! I am halfway through Baby Sophisticate for a January baby, and it occurred to me today, “I need a version of this for myself,” and here it is! I’ll be purchasing the pattern in the next few days :)
I’m so happy to find the adult version of this pattern. A friend of mine wanted one in their size, after seeing the baby version of this jacket. Now it is safe to say that I make it in bigger sizes now. I see myself making A LOT of theses in the future (adult and baby).
Help!!! I paid for your wonderful pattern and my computer’s hard drive melted. I paid for it with PayPal. Could you please reset it so I could down load it now that I have a new hard drive. Thank you!!!! Cynthia Corum
Hi Cynthia! Sorry about your hard drive! I’ve replied to you via email about this problem.
I love the looks of this pattern! Gorgeous sweater!
I’m a new knitter and haven’t yet made a sweater (have made a few smaller projects), but this looks like a good one for me to start with…. Ravelry rates it as fairly easy… would you say it is a good “first sweater” pattern? Also, the yarn I’d like to make it with is this:
http://www.craftsy.com/supplies/Tahki-Kismet-Yarn/2950
Tahki Yarns Kismet Yarn – – Fiber Content: 54% Alpaca, 46% Nylon – – 4-Worsted
I have 10 balls of this (250 yards each) so I’m sure I’d have more than enough (women’s size XL)… right? I’d appreciate any feedback/input from you – thank you! :)
Hi! I do think that Sophisticate is a good first sweater pattern because it’s a fairly simple top-down construction, though you might find yourself having to look up a few of the techniques (like casting on at the underarm). You should have enough of the Tahki yarn, but the only thing I would say is check your gauge! The yarn calls for 16 sts/4 inches but the pattern calls for 15 sts/4 inches. You’ll have to make sure that you like the yarn at the pattern gauge, or else make some adjustments to the pattern if you use the yarn gauge. Phew, I hope that wasn’t confusing! Happy knitting!
Thank you, Linden! I appreciate your feedback! After swatching, I’m putting this on hold until I’ve worked with this type of yarn a bit… it is listed as “worsted” but seems VERY much finer than any worsted I’ve ever seen – just very fuzzy and light, so I’m having trouble getting it to gauge correctly without using MUCH larger needles… I’ll re-visit the sweater plan in a few months! :)
Am a beginner.you have mentioned # 8 needles. Does this also require circular needles? Is there a way i can do this without circular needles.
I am a new knitter. I bought the city tweed yarn but in a DK weight can I use it to make this sweater
okay, i wanted it to be heathered 3 different colors, black, grey, and purple. basically i want the colors like the sweater in the link i added but i wanted to add purple to the colors, would i be able to do this with 3 individual strands of yarn so i can get all there colors, OR i could find a spool that is already a blend of black and white so its just two strands, one of the black& white blend and the other strand purple. basically, i wanna know if my plan will work for this pattern, or if i could get a suggestion on how to do said color combo
http://www.dresslily.com/turn-down-collar-long-sleeves-cotton-cardigan-product687038.html
Either technique you mentioned should work for getting 3 colors in the sweater, you will just have to be sure to double check your gauge! Happy knitting!
I got the free version of your 6 – 12 months from my local knitting shop. Made it with a few mistakes but I learned from them. If I buy your $6.50 version will it just give me adult sizes (which I want), but I am also looking for bigger child sizes, where should I buy them? Thanks for your time and your pattern
Hi Linden,
I’m enjoying the sweater pattern! I do have a question though: you’re having me cast on 16 stitches as I put the sleeve stitches on stitch holders. Then when we do the sleeves you have me casting on another 16 stitches (8 per sleeve). But there’s no instruction on how you want me to join the sleeve to the body. One way I could interpret this issue is that you’re asking me to pick up, rather than cast on, when I start the sleeve. Is that accurate? I appreciate your response. Thank you. Kim Illig
Hi Kim! Glad you’re enjoying the pattern. :) You’re completely right, it should ask you to pick up stitches at the underarm, not cast on. Happy knitting!
Hi
I am having difficulty with understanding the short row collar could you send me an email please.
Hi! I think I answered your question via Ravelry, but let me know if you’re a different person with a shawl collar question!
You did! Thank you so much.
Kathy
Linden – I made the baby Sophisticate (it got raves!) and now I’m doing one by request for baby’s dad. Somehow I’m confused at the pick up instructions for placket and collar. If I start with lower left corner RS as per pattern, I can not pick up and knit as it is wrong direction. I can’t remember how I solved this on baby pattern. Also, I’m beginning to think I may have not made the body quite wide enough. Could I increase the placket width? Thanks!
Hi! I’m glad you liked the baby pattern enough to make an adult version! I think the confusion comes from my phrasing about which corner to start at – I’m talking about the left corner of the sweater as you’re looking at it with RS facing you not the left side as the sweater is worn. Does that make sense? In any case, you start at the corner where picking up stitches works, no matter what it’s called! :) Yes, you can definitely increase the placket width a bit if the body is not large enough, but I wouldn’t put too much of the width there or it will mess with the fit. I would increase the width before working the short rows for the collar if I were you. Hope this helps! Happy knitting!
It does make sense. I had decided that’s what I would do if I couldn’t reach you, but I am always anxious that I will make a big mess of things after all these hours of work! Thank you for your prompt reply. Everyone complimented my grandson when he wore the baby version (a few thought it was J. Crew), so my son put in his order. I followed the pattern for a size larger than his chest measurements, but it is still looking a bit small. Probably I can get a bit of “give” when I block it. I used Cascade Alpaca Lana D’oro which is knitting up quite well. Thanks again for your help – it’s much appreciated!
Hi Linden, I am making the sophisticate adult sweater, in the large size, with Knitpicks Wool of the Andes. Clear sailing until the dividing point for the body. I think there are a few errors in the pattern. 1) put 52 stitches on holder, then co 16, knit to next marker – but shouldn’t the sequence then be reversed for the other side (co, then put sts on marker)? Every sweater I know is symmetrical. 2) the number of sts put on marker in the directions are: 42 (48, 52, 52, etc…) That must be a mistake because the number of stitches would be 148 and not 164 for the final number of stitches. Anyway, I am now past that point and I’m afraid I will have too few sts, so I am going to add 12 extra sts to the edges. Ugh! This is like following directions for making a cake that has the incorrect amounts. 3) Looking ahead to the sleeves, it says to co sts. What??? Surely this means pick up sts. But why 8 sts when we have already cast on 16 sts when making the divide? Please clarify. Thanks. jm
Hi JM, thanks for the questions! Sorry if there is some confusion in the way I wrote up the pattern — I’ll try to make things more clear! For your questions:
1) When splitting for the body, you’re knitting the two fronts of the sweater and the back, and casting on stitches for the underarm. Since the 52 stitches that are put on a holder are for the sleeves and are not knitted, and the stitches you cast on are for the underarms, it doesn’t matter if you put the stitches on a holder or cast on the underarm stitches first — you’ll end up with the same result either way! So feel free to do those steps in whatever order you like. 2) The 52 stitches that you put on a holder are for the sleeves, so if you take the total number of stitches (236), subtract out the sleeve stitches (2×52) and add in the cast on underarm stitches (2×16), you get the final stitch count of 164 for the body. I double checked this math starting from how many stitches are cast on and how many increases are worked and I believe it is correct. 3) I didn’t realize the pattern said CO instead of PU, but obviously you’re right that you should pick up stitches there (I’ll add a note to the pattern page about this!). As for the number of stitches, the pattern actually does have you PU 16 sts — it just says CO 8, pm, CO 8 — I just wanted to have the marker for the center of the sleeve in place from the start. Hope this is all helpful! Please let me know if you have any more questions. Happy knitting!
Thank you for your prompt reply. You have clarified the situation.
Dear Linden,
I’ve finish severel baby siphisticate cardigans and they turned great. My daughter both me the pattern for adult as a gift. Now I start to knit and allready have a problem. After first 5 rows I don’t know what to do as pattern says: work rows 2 though 5 a total of 6(8,8,….. Until 152(196,196… As I CO 52 And follow the instruction I can’t get 196 st. I don’t understand how I’m going to rich the right size of fronts as I increase it only once through row 3. How many stiches do I have to have on each front when split for body? Sorry for my english I’ll be happy if You can tell me what to knitt after first 5 rows
Kind regards
Vesna Sumic
Croatia
Hi! I love this pattern and so did my son after seeing the sweater I made for his son. I have a question on the decreases for the sleeve in the men’s version. After completing the rt sleeve I had him try it on and the sleeve was too tight. He wears a men’s small and likes to wear clothes close, but this didn’t fit over a shirt. I ripped back and omitted two decreases (8 total in 52″) and then decreased 2st 2″ before the garter st at end of sleeve. Has anyone else had a problem with the forearm being to tight? I am using Peace Fleece Worsted in Rabbit Grey.
Mary Gillies
Michigan
Hi Linden,
I’m a basic knitter who just start to knit with your lovely Sophisticate pattern.
I have some trouble on it.
Row3
‘slip m’, what is that mean? maybe slip m1?
‘to last stitch, inc1,k1’ do [ ] and for 2 last stitches knit inc1, k1?
Thanks in advance!
Soyoung
I am totally interested in purchasing this pattern, but am concerned about the questions and deviations expressed. Have corrections been made so I can begin knitting with “no brains” and have a nice finished sweater. The pattern is awesome and I so want to knit this. But, I need basic instructions with no questions. Thank you. Patty
Hello I am working on adult size 34 and think there is an error of some sort. When counting increases end up with either 184 stitches (with 7 not 8-rows 2-5) or 202 stitches (with 8 repeats). Then am not able to arrive at 212 stitches after last increases (before yoke). Help please. Mary
Is this pattern accurate? And, is this a beginner project. I have knitted only 2 patterns and would like this one for my partner.