Crochet Sweater Pattern for Boys and Girls

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With a relaxed fit, easy top down construction and oodles of texture in those stitches this raglan jumper is a perfect crochet sweater pattern for boys and girls. Neutral and modern but with a nod to tradition it’s great for any age.

The pattern is sized from baby to 10 years old and because it’s worked from the top down and seamless it’s very easy to adjust the body and sleeve length to suit whoever you are making for.

With a full video tutorial this is the perfect child’s sweater for anyone that wants to crochet seamless raglan clothes but doesn’t know where to start.

Crochet sweater pattern for boys and girls on a toddler and 5 year old boy in grey and green.

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Scroll down and sign in for the free baby crochet sweater pattern, or purchase an ad-free, printable PDF version with all sizes up to 10 years, added schematics, charts and more:

Etsy

Ravelry

About the raglan crochet sweater pattern

For such a long time I avoided designing top down raglan sweaters because I was so scared of figuring out the sizings for all ages of children but I really loved the idea of creating a classic crochet jumper for my boys and so I set myself the challenge!

I honestly shouldn’t have been worried. Yes, the spreadsheet to work it out was complex but the end result is a stunning seamless crochet sweater that I think is perfect for any child and I’m even making one for myself so watch out for adult sizes soon too 🙂

A raglan sweater begins from the neckline and you increase at four points to create the yoke (the different texture you see here at the top of the sweater) then you magically start to just work the body without any joining or seaming.

Once you’ve made the body you pop on the sleeves, and you’re done!

Toddler wearing green raglan crochet sweater.

How do make a seamless crochet sweater pattern?

Crocheting a sweater for a baby or child might seem intimidating and fiddly but it really isn’t!

The great thing about this style is that you work in continuous rounds for the yoke then the body and sleeves are worked in a fun textured herringbone moss stitch that grows really quickly.

Because you are working from the top down you can also really easily adjust the length of the body and sleeves using the main stitch repeat and also change the cuff lengths if you’d like too. If you have your little model to hand you can try it on and just work as many rounds as you need to make it fit!

Here’s the smallest baby size sweater which worked up so fast –

Seamless baby crochet sweater pattern with textured stitch in cream yarn.

Seamless Crochet Sweater Pattern Video Tutorial

If you’d like to follow a full video tutorial then you can find it here:

Yarn

To make the raglan sweaters I used Swish DK by WeCrochet 100% premium acrylic (218yds, 200m/100g).

You will need for the following sizes: 0-6 months (6-12 months, 1-2 years, 3-4 years, 5-6 years, 7-8 years, 9-10 years) approximately:

490 (615, 675, 740, 860, 1110, 1355) yards.

Which is 4 (5, 6, 6, 7, 9, 11) balls of the recommended yarn.

I often get asked about ideas for alternative yarns and I love swatching from my stash to see what works!

Here are some that I think would work really well for this crochet cardigan pattern in various price ranges:

Mellowpsun by Mary Maxim 100% acrylic; 284yds/100g
Paintbox Yarns Simply DK 100% acrylic; 301yds/100g
Capra DK by WeCrochet 85% fine merino, 15% cashmere, 123yds/50g

Here’s a picture of Elliot wearing the 5-6 year version in the shade Squirrel Heather of Swish DK.

Boy wearing crochet sweater holding leaf and smiling.

Tension and Sizing

Cuff: 15 sts and 18 rows measure 10cm x 10cm (4″ x 4″) over slip stitch in blo.

Raglan: 18 sts and 12.5 rounds measure 10cm x 10cm (4″ x 4″) over Hhdc stitch.

The child crochet cardigan pattern is for sizes 0-6 months (6-12 months, 1-2 years, 3-4 years, 5-6 years, 7-8 years, 9-10 years). The baby size is available to view for free by logging in below.

To fit chest circumferences: 17 (18, 21, 23, 25, 26.5, 28) inches.

Sweater Width: 9.75 (10.25, 11.5, 12.75, 13.75, 14.5, 15) inches.

Garment Circumference: 19.25 (20.5, 23.25, 25.5, 27.5, 29, 30.25) inches.

Child Sweater Length: 12 (12.75, 13.25, 14.5, 15.5, 17.5, 18.5) inches.

Sleeve Length: 5 (6, 6.75, 8.25, 9.75, 10.75, 12) inches.

Materials

Along with your yarn, you will need the following:

A 4.5mm(I) crochet hook or hook that meets gauge. My favourites are: Furls Streamline Swirl crochet hooks or Clover Amour crochet hooks.
Scissors
Tapestry Needle

Pattern Options

View the baby sweater pattern free in this blog post in US terms – just scroll down and login to the members area to find it! You can also purchase an ad-free, printable PDF with sizes to age 10 years and added extras in my pattern stores:

Purchase and Print

Get the ad-free, printable PDF in sizes baby to age 10 years in my stores:

Etsy

Ravelry

Don’t forget to join HanJan Crochet to receive regular discount codes (and more free patterns!) and Pin this free baby sweater pattern to your crochet Pinterest board!

Two boys in seamless crochet sweaters holding onto old door handle.

Glossary and Abbreviations

ch(s) – chain(s)

sp – space

ss – slip stitch

RS – right side

WS – wrong side

sk – skip

rep – repeat

yoh – yarn over hook

blo – back loop only

flo – front loop only

Crochet Stitches

US crochet terminology

sc – single crochet (UK dc – double crochet)
hdc – half double crochet (UK htr – half treble crochet)

Special Stitches

Herringbone half double crochet: Hhdc

Yarn over, insert hook into next stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop (3 loops on hook). Pull first loop straight through the second loop (similar to a slip stitch to leave 2 loops on the hook). Yarn over, pull through two remaining loops on hook.

The Hhdc is used in Raglan Section.

Back loop only herringbone half double crochet moss stitch: Hhdc-moss

Work as for Hhdc but insert hook into back loop only of unworked stitch 2 rounds below. Work over the chain 1 space on the previous round.

The Hhdc-moss is used in the Body and Sleeves.

Back loop only herringbone half double crochet moss stitch 2 together : Hhdc-moss2tog

Yarn over, insert hook into back loop only of next stitch 2 rounds below (working over the ch1 on round below), yarn over and pull up a loop (3 loops on hook).
Pull first loop straight through the second loop (similar to a slip stitch to leave 2 loops on the hook). Yarn over, skip next st on previous round, insert hook into back loop only of next stitch 2 rounds below (working over the ch1 on round below), yarn over and pull up a loop (4 loops on hook).
Pull first loop straight through the second loop (similar to a slip stitch to leave 3 loops on the hook).
Yarn over, pull through three remaining loops on hook.

I love the texture that the herringbone hdc moss stitch gives! I’ve used it on quite a few of my other designs and when my friend had a new baby I made a matching hat, mitten and sweater set!

Pattern Notes

If you’re new to crochet garment making please don’t worry! I have a fabulous guide on how to start your perfect crochet wardrobe and also learn garment making with 12 free crochet top patterns for different skill levels.

A ch1 at the beginning of a round does not count as st.

A ch2 at the beginning of a round counts as a ch1-sp in stitch count.

Do not turn at the end of each round.

Read through the entire pattern before beginning.

Before you start, go through the pattern and highlight/mark the stitch and row counts that correspond to the size you are making (this will make your life much easier!).

Make sure that you are familiar with all of the stitches in the abbreviations list before you begin.

Instructions are given for the smallest size, with larger sizes in brackets ( ).

Stitch counts are given in [ ] at the end of each row. If no stitch count is given, then the count is the same as the previous row.

The pattern is written in standard US crochet terms.

Two boys in crochet sweaters standing on a bench.

Boys in crochet sweaters standing behind each other smiling.

Crochet Sweater Construction

The entire sweater is seamless working from the top down so no fiddly seams to worry about!

You begin by working the neckband in rows.

The neckband is then joined and you start to work in rounds to create the raglan yoke. It will begin to look like this:

Raglan crochet sweater before joining body section.

Once the raglan section is complete, we fold the work over so that we then just work in the stitches for the main body. Like this:

When the main body is complete, you join your yarn to the armhole and work the sleeves in rounds using the same stitch as the body.

If you enjoy working top down crochet garments then you will also love my Franny Granny Collection! I have a fun child granny stitch sweater that you can make in no time.

Crochet Sweater Pattern for Boys and Girls – Baby Size

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US Crochet Terminology

NECKBAND

(Begin with the neckband and work top down) :

Foundation chain: ch 8, turn.

Row 1: ss in blo 2nd ch from hook and each across, turn. [ 7 ]

Row 2: ch1, ss in blo each across, turn.

Rows 3 – 52: Repeat Row 2.

At the end of the final row turn you need to decide whether to join the band or to add a button fastening for the neckline.

The neckline is designed to be a snug fit and so for the first and second sizes you might want to leave it unjoined and add a button or snap fastening to make it easier to get on and off.

If you choose to do this for any sizes then work the first Round of the Raglan Section as a Row and then continue in Rounds after that.

If you decide to join the neckband at this point – join the penultimate row to the foundation chain with a slip stitch seam.

Joining the penultimate row will make a much neater finish (make sure to watch my video to see more details on this).

Turn the work to RS facing and rotate to work into the sides of the rows for the Raglan Section.

RAGLAN SECTION

Work in continuous rounds for this section.

Round 1: ch1, *Hhdc in side of next 18 rows, ch1, Hhdc in side of next 8 rows, ch1; rep from * once more. [52]

Round 2: *Hhdc in next 18 sts, (Hhdc, ch1, Hhdc) in ch1-sp, Hhdc in next 8 sts, (Hhdc, ch1, Hhdc) in ch1-sp; rep from * once more. [60]

Round 3: *Hhdc in each st to next ch1-sp, (Hhdc, ch1, Hhdc) in ch1-sp; rep from * a further 3 times, Hhdc in next st. [68]

Place a st marker in last st of round just worked and move it up after each round, always placing it in last st of round. This will be one stitch further away from the corner each round as you increase the Raglan.

Round 4: *Hhdc in each st to next ch1-sp, (Hhdc, ch1, Hhdc) in ch1-sp; rep from * a further 3 times, Hhdc in each st to last st of Round (this will be one stitch further away from the corner each Round). [76]

Rep Round 4 a further 9 times, noting that 8 sts are increased on each round. [148]

For size 0-6 months move onto the Main Body Section now.

MAIN BODY SECTION

At the end of the last increase round, slip stitch into the first stitch to join and continue to work in joined rounds.

Round 1: (split for sleeves) ch1, Hhdc in next 30, Hhdc in ch1-sp, skip stitches of sleeve, Hhdc in next ch1-sp, Hhdc in next 42, Hhdc in ch1-sp, skip stitches of second sleeve, Hhdc in next ch1-sp, Hhdc in next 12, ss in 1st st to join [88].

Round 2: ch1, *Hhdc in next st, ch1, skip next st; rep from * around, ss in 1st to join.

Round 3: ch2 (counts as ch1-sp), Hhdc-moss in next skipped st below ch-1 sp, *ch1, skip next st, Hhdc-moss in next skipped st below ch-1 sp; rep from * around, ss in 1st ch of beginning ch2 to join.

Round 4: ch1, Hhdc-moss in skipped st below ch-1 sp, ch1, skip next st, *Hhdc-moss in next skipped st below ch1-sp, ch1, skip next st; rep from * around, ss in 1st Hhdc-moss to join.

Round 5: rep Round 3

Rounds 4 and 5 create the set pattern for the Main Body Section.

Rounds 6 – 29: work the set pattern for the Main Body Section.

Final Round for Size 0-6

Round 30: ch1, Hhdc-moss in skipped st below ch-1 sp, sc in next st, *Hhdc-moss in next skipped st below ch1-sp, sc in next st; rep from * around, ss in 1st Hhdc-moss to join.

Continue to Bottom Rib now for Size 0-6

BOTTOM RIB

The Bottom Rib is worked in rows and joined as you work to the stitches of the last round of the Main Body Section.

Without breaking your yarn, continue from the last st of the final round of the Main Body Section.

Foundation chain: ch 8.

Row 1: sc in 2nd chain from hook and next 6 chains, ss into next 2 sts of final round of Main Body Section, turn. [7]

Row 2: ss in blo of next 7 sts, turn.

Row 3: ch1, sc in blo of next 7 sts, ss into next 2 sts of final round of Main Body Section, turn.

Rows 2 and 3 create the Bottom Rib Set Pattern.

Repeat the Bottom Rib Set Pattern around the final round of the Main Body Section.

Join the final row of the Bottom Rib to the first row with a ss seam to complete.

SLEEVES

Work each sleeve in the same way.

You need to join your yarn to the back of the sweater to ensure the seam (which isn’t very noticeable is on the back).

For the first sleeve that works towards the Front, join to st 6 before the underarm with the back of your sweater facing you.

For the second sleeve that works towards the back, join to the st directly at the underarm join.

Sleeve set-up rounds

Round 1: ch1, Hhdc in each st and ch1-sp around sleeve opening, ss in 1st st to join [34].

Round 2: ch1, *Hhdc in next st, ch1, skip next st; rep from * around, ss in 1st to join.

Round 4: ch1, Hhdc-moss in skipped st below ch-1 sp, ch1, skip next st, *Hhdc-moss in next skipped st below ch1-sp, ch1, skip next st; rep from * around, ss in 1st Hhdc-moss to join.

Round 5: Rep Round 3

Rounds 4 and 5 create the set pattern for the Sleeve Section.

After completing Round 5, each sleeve has decrease rounds at various points in the sleeve in order to shape the sleeve. When instructed to work a decrease round, follow the decrease round instructions below.

Decrease Round: ch1, Hhdc-moss2tog, ch1, skip next st, *Hhdc-moss in skipped st below next ch-1 sp, ch1, skip next st; rep from * around, ss in 1st Hhdc-moss2tog to join. [2 sts decreased].

At the end, each sleeve has a final round that is worked as follows:

Final Sleeve Round: ch1, *Hhdc-moss in next skipped st below ch-1 sp, sc in next st; rep from * around, ss in 1st st to join.

The sizes are worked in the following sequence:

Size 0-6 months: Number of total rounds to work: 26

Rounds 6-7: Continue in Sleeve Section set pattern

Round 8: Decrease Round [32]

Round 9: Rep Round 5

Rounds 10-17: continue in Sleeve Section set pattern

Round 18: Decrease Round [30]

Round 19: Rep Round 4

Rounds 20- 23: continue in Sleeve Section set pattern

Round 24: Decrease Round [28]

Round 25: Rep Round 5

Round 26: Final Sleeve Round

Continue to work Cuff now.

CUFF

Working in turned rows and slip stitching into the stitches of the sleeves.

Foundation chain: ch 8

Row 1: ss in 2nd and each st to end, ss in next 2 sts of sleeve. Turn.

Row 2: ss in blo of each st [7]

Row 3: ch1, ss in blo of each st to end, ss in next 2 sts of sleeve. Turn.

Rows 2 and 3 create the cuff stitch pattern.

Repeat the cuff stitch pattern until you return back to Row 1.

Join with a ss seam to Row 1 to complete the cuff.

Weave in all ends and block to complete.

I hope you enjoyed this crochet sweater pattern for boys and girls – I’ve loved sharing it with you!

Four images of crochet sweater pattern for boys.

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