An easy baby sweater crochet pattern – my Boutchou Sweater – is a free crochet pattern here on the blog! Read through my inspiration, where the name comes from and the perfect yarn I choose for this project. Or scroll on down for the free pattern.
No time right now? Pin this adorable baby crochet sweater pattern for later!
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If you prefer to purchase the cheap ad-free PDF Pattern to get all the instructions and pictures in a nice PDF you can print and take notes on without relying on your phone or an internet connection, I’ve got you covered!
The Boutchou Sweater is available on Ravelry or in my Etsy Shop. Grab your copy before you forget.
Or grab the discounted Boutchou set here.
Why Boutchou?
Boutchou is a french expression coming from “Bout de Chou,” which means “piece of cabbage.” French lore dictates that babies originate from cabbages (now you know where the creator of the Cabbage Patch Doll got the idea!). The word “chou” also translates to “cute,” which made Boutchou the perfect nickname for our unborn baby while I was pregnant. Better than just calling him Baby for 9 months!
This sweater, along with the rest of the Boutchou Baby Set, were designed and created especially for our sweet little Boutchou baby.
The Boutchou Crochet Baby Pattern Set
The Boutchou sweater is part of the Boutchou crochet baby pattern set which includes a hat, booties, a romper, a lovey and a matching baby blanket pattern.
Read more about each of the patterns and find the free online version here or grab the discounted PDF pattern set here.
The Yarn
For this extra special personal project, I choose to use Paintbox Cotton Aran yarn. Since an entire set uses up a lot of yarn, I knew I would need something of great quality, yet still affordable.
This yarn has amazing stitch definition, which is exactly what I wanted for this project. The simple design and lightly textured stitches of the pattern are highlighted further by my choice in yarn. I picked a cotton yarn because we live in a tropical country, and I needed something that would be easy to wash. Machine washable is an absolute must when creating anything for a baby, or else parents will rarely use it, which would be a pity!
Added bonus for those of you who want to make your set in a different color, Paintbox Cotton Aran yarn is available in 50 different shades, so you’re sure to find something you like.
A big thanks to my friends at Lovecrafts.com for sponsoring the yarn for this project (btw, did you know they also have a great library of free crochet patterns?).
Before you Start your Crochet Baby Sweater
- Purchase the large print, ad-free printable on Etsy HERE.
- Add this baby pattern to your Ravelry queue HERE.
- Pin the Boutchou baby sweater crochet pattern to your Pinterest boards HERE.
Materials
- 4 mm / US G – 6 hook.
- Paintbox Cotton Aran (50g, 100% cotton, 85m / 93yds)
- 4 (4, 5, 5, 6, 8, 13) skeins in dolphin blue (referred to as blue).
- 1 skein in banana cream (referred to as white)
- 1 skein in daffodil yellow (referred to as yellow)
- Tapestry needle to weave in the ends.
- 7 10mm buttons. The cute wooden buttons with engraved leaves I used are my absolute favorites. You might have noticed I use them for most projects. You can find them here.
Size
The baby sweater crochet pattern is available in the following sizes: newborn, 6 – 12 months, 18 – 24 months, 4 years, 6 years, 8 years, and 10 years
Sizes are written as follows: newborn (6 – 12 months, 18 – 24 months, 4 years, 6 years, 8 years, 10 years) throughout the pattern. Pictures illustrate the 6-12 months size.
Final sweater chest measurements are:
- Newborn: 51 cm / 20”
- 6 – 12 months: 53 cm / 20.75”
- 18 – 24 months: 58 cm / 22.75”
- 4 years: 62 cm / 24.5”
- 6 years: 66 cm / 26”
- 8 years: 73 cm / 28.75”
- 10 years: 76.5 cm / 30”
Gauge
The gauge for this pattern, in dc, is 15.5 st by 10 rows for a 10 cm by 10 cm square (4” by 4”).
Abbreviations
This pattern uses US notations.
- st = stitch
- ch = chain
- sc = single crochet
- hdc = half double crochet
- dc = double crochet
- sl st = slip stitch
Notes
Work instructions between [] the indicated number of times or until the end of the row / round.
The final number of stitches is indicated at the end of the row / round between < >.
The turning ch 1, ch 2 don’t count as stitches throughout the pattern except if mentioned otherwise.
The pattern is written in crochet shorthand. For example:
- “sc 1” means to single crochet in the next stitch,
- “sc 2” means to single crochet in each of the next 2 stitches,
- and “2 sc” means to single crochet twice in the next st.
Special Stitches
- Back loop only: Work the stitch as you normally would but instead of working through both loops, only go through the back loop.
- Front loop only: Work the stitch as you normally would but instead of working through both loops, only go through the front loop.
Tips and Tricks
- To avoid having a ton of ends to weave in at the end, I crochet the first 6-8 stitches in a new color over the old color yarn so my ends get woven in while I keep crocheting.
- Don’t worry if your edges aren’t perfect, the edging and seams will hide that.
The Actual Baby Sweater Crochet Pattern
With your 4mm / US G – 6 crochet hook and your blue color yarn, ch 79 (82, 90, 96, 102, 113, 119) + 2 st.
Row 1: Dc in the 3rd ch from the hook, dc across, turn. < 79 (82, 90, 96, 102, 113, 119) st>
Row 2 – 3: Ch 2, dc across, turn.
Switch to yellow color yarn.
Row 4: Ch 1, sc across, turn.
Cut the yellow yarn and switch back to blue color yarn.
Row 5: Ch 2, dc across, turn.
Switch to white color yarn.
Row 6: Ch 1, hdc across, turn.
Row 7: Ch 1, hdc in the back loop only across, turn.
Switch to blue color yarn.
Row 8: Ch 2, dc in the front loop only across, turn.
Row 9: Ch 2, dc across, turn.
Switch to yellow color yarn.
Row 10: Ch 1, sc across, turn,
Switch to blue color yarn.
Row 11 – 15: Ch 2, dc across, turn.
Switch to yellow color yarn.
Row 16 – 22: Repeat Rows 4 to 10.
Switch back to blue color yarn.
For sizes newborn to 6 years: Work 0 (0, 1, 3, 5) rows of dc in blue color yarn.
For size 8 &10 years: Repeat Rows 11 to 22.
For size 10 years: Work an additional 4 rows of dc in blue color yarn.
From now on, split in 3 parts (as indicated below for each size).
- Newborn: 19 st, 41 st, 19 st. Work each section separately for 9 rows of dc.
- 6 – 12 months: 20 st, 42 st, 20 st. Work each section for 9 rows of dc.
- 18 – 24 months: 22 st, 46 st, 22 st. Work each section for 12 rows of dc.
- 4 years: 24 st, 48 st, 24 st. Work each section for 12 rows of dc.
- 6 years: 25 st, 52 st, 25 st Work each section for 14 rows of dc.
- 8 years: 28 st, 57 st, 28 st. Work each section for 16 rows of dc.
- 10 years: 29 st, 61 st, 29 st. Work each section for 16 rows of dc.
Assembly
With the sweater inside out (the right side is the side where you have horizontal lines in the white sections), sew the top panels together leaving 7 (7, 8, 8, 9, 9, 10) cm / 2.75 (2.75, 3.25, 3.25, 3.5, 3.5, 4)” unsewn on each side toward the neck opening.
Turn the cardigan back to have the right side on the outside to make the sleeves.
Sleeves
Tip: To reduce the number of ends to weave in, I carried over the blue yarn on the inside of the sleeve.
Row 1: With blue color yarn, join yarn in the armpit. Ch 2, dc 28 (28, 35, 35, 42, 49, 49) st around, join with a sl st. <28 (28, 35, 35, 42, 49, 49) st>.
This is approximately 1.5 st per row around the armpit
Switch to yellow color yarn.
Row 2: Ch 1, [sc 5, sc2tog] around, join with a sl st. <24 (24, 30, 30, 36, 42, 42) st>
Switch back to blue color yarn.
Row 3 – 4: Ch 2, dc around, join with a sl st.
Switch to white color yarn.
Row 5: Ch 1, hdc around, join with a sl st.
Row 6: Ch 1, hdc in the back loop only around, join with a sl st.
Switch to blue color yarn.
Row 7: Ch 2, dc in the back loop only around, join with a sl st.
Switch to yellow color yarn.
Row 8: Ch 1, sc around, join with a sl st.
Switch to blue color yarn.
Row 9 – 11: Ch 2, dc around, join with a sl st.
Switch to yellow color yarn.
Row 12: Ch 1, sc around, join with a sl st.
Row 13 – 18: Repeat Rows 3 to 8.
For sizes newborn to 6 years: Work 0 (0, 1, 6) rows of dc in blue color yarn.
For size 6, 8 &10 years: Repeat Rows 9 to 18.
For size 8 /10 years: Work an additional 2 / 5 rows of dc in blue color yarn.
Cuff
If not already using blue color yarn, switch to blue.
Join yarn and ch 5, turn
Row 1: Sl st in the back loop of the 2nd ch from the hook, sl st in the back loop of the next 3 sts. Sl st in the next stitch of the sleeve, ch 1 and turn. < 6 st >
Row 2: Sl st in the back loop of the 3rd st from the hook (skipping the ch 1 and sl st in the sleeve), sl st in the back loop of the next 3 sts, ch 1 and turn. < 5 st >
Repeat Rows 1 and 2 around the sleeve.
Finish with a Row 2 starting in the last sleeve st. Sew the ribbing closed.
Baby Sweater Edges
Bottom Edge
Start at the bottom corner (on the left side for left handed crocheters, in the right corner for right handed crocheters). Make a ribbing following the same technique as for the cuffs. Work each sl st in the back of the starting chains of the body:
Join blue yarn and ch 5, turn.
Row 1: Sl st in the back loop of the 2nd ch from the hook, sl st in the back loop of the next 3 sts. Sl st in the cardigan side, ch 1 and turn. < 6 st >
Row 2: Sl st in the back loop of the 3rd st from the hook (skipping the ch 1 and sl st in the side), sl st in the back loop of the next 3 sts, ch 1 and turn. < 5 st >
Repeat Row 1 and 2 along the bottom edge.
Right Edge
Repeat the same process (repeating Row 1 and 2 above) along the right edge of the cardigan. Spread the sl st evenly along the border up to the neck area. The exact count doesn’t matter.
Left Edge
The left edge is a bit different from the others as we need to make the buttonholes.
Join yarn at the bottom and ch 5.
Row 1: Sl st in the back loop of the 2nd ch from the hook, sl st in the back loop of the next 3 sts. Sl st in the next stitch of the side, ch 1 and turn. < 6 st >
Row 2: Sl st in the back loop of the 3rd st from the hook (skipping the ch 1 and sl st in the side), sl st in the back loop of the next 3 sts, ch 1 and turn. < 5 st >
Repeat Rows 1 and 2 2 (2, 4, 2, 4, 2, 4) times.
Make a buttonhole:
Row 3: Sl st in the back loop of the 2nd ch from the hook, ch 2, skip 2, sl st in the back loop of the next st. Sl st in the next stitch of the sleeve, ch 1 and turn. < 6 st >
Row 4: Sl st in the back loop of the 3rd st from the hook (skipping the ch 1 and the sl st in the side), sl st in the back loop of the next 3 sts, ch 1 and turn. < 5 st >
Go back to repeating Rows 1 and 2 for 5 (5, 5, 6, 7, 8, 8) cm / 2 (2, 2.25, 2.75, 3, 3)”
Make a buttonhole.
Repeat for a total of 6 buttonholes.
Finish by repeating Rows 1 and 2 until the top.
Blocking and Finishing Touches
You’re done with the crocheting part. Make sure to weave in all the ends.
Carefully block your sweater to give it its best shape.
Don’t skip this step as it can make a huge difference. Read my detailed tutorial on why block, how-to, and all my tips and tricks if you need help.
Sew the buttons in front of the buttonholes.
