Folklore-Inspired Cardigan Knitting Pattern

Back in 2020, Taylor Swift delighted music fans and knitwear lovers alike with her album folklore, which has a song called “Cardigan,” the music video of which features that article of clothing.

She also sold cardigans like the one in the music video and sent them to friends and others around the same time the album came out.

If you are looking for the crochet version we found that one too.

The original cardigan is a cable knit and textured sweater with blue stripes on the cuffs and button bands, and appliqued silver stars on the sleeves. There have been several knit replicas of the pattern made through the years, but I recently came across the Folklore Cardigan at Lion Brand’s website, which is a nod to the original but also a great classic cardigan in its own right.

Like the original, this pattern includes bands of braided cables and textured knitting on the fronts, as well as diamond cables on the sleeves and back. Add your own star appliques if you want to complete the look.

This one is still oversized but has a bit of a sleeker fir than the one in the music video. It uses worsted weight yarn in two colors (cream and navy are classic) and comes in three sizes, with chest measurements ranging from 45 to 60 inches (114.5 to 152.5 cm).

Because the pattern includes several different cables and stitch patterns it is considered best for intermediate knitters.

You can grab the free pattern, or a full kit to make the sweater at Lion Brand.

As I mentioned there have been a few different versions of this style of sweater pattern over the years, so if you want to check out a few others, you can find the Folklore Cardigan from Sewrella, which uses some more complicated cables on the back and sleeves in addition to the diamonds.

Or try this one form Madeline Tosh, with a variety of braided cables and diamond patterns.

Have you ever knit a Folklore cardigan? I think these would be great gifts for the Swifties in your life who might be in their cardigan era!

[Photo: Lion Brand Yarn]

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Many times when I write these posts I will say something like “you can use any yarn you want” or “this would be a great stash-busting project.” That’s just how my mind works. And my stash, too, since I probably have sweater quantity of two or three yarns at most, but tons of singles and odd balls and leftovers.

Blankets are generally a really good way to use up those bits, but in this case, I think you’re going to want to plan it out a bit better.

Looking at photos of the Color Study Blanket from Purl Soho, it looks like it’s made with two yarns held together, and that block in the center is worked with one of each color from the adjoining sides to make a mixed up color.

But that’s not actually how it’s done. This is three separate colors (four, really, with the neutrals in the corners) chosen form a yarn with an expansive palette so they play off each other. The project calls for a worsted weight superwash wool, which is a great choice for a blanket that’s both warm and washable.

This pattern was originally designed by Laura Ferguson and was updated by Hiromi Glover. It is worked in one piece in garter stitch intarsia, which is a great way to learn the intarsia technique if you don’t already know it. It comes in crib or throw sizes.

Despite the introduction to this post, I am going to go ahead and say that, yes, of course you could do this blanket with scraps or odd balls or even just choose five colors that don’t blend together so easily. But I really do love the look of the color play, and I think it would be worth your time to find colors that play well together to get a similar effect.

This pattern is available for free from Purl Soho.

[Photo: Purl Soho]

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