Touch of Modern Tunic for 18-inch Doll

Free Doll Tunic Knitting Pattern

This is a pattern for a lovely no-frills A-shape tunic for your American Girl or similar-size doll.

If you made the Perfect Little Dress for 18-inch Dolls and used 1 full ball of each recommended yarn, you’ll have just enough leftover yarn to make this tunic!

Skills Required/Techniques Used:
-Knit & purl, cast on & bind off
-Increasing: yarn over (YO), make 1 (m1)
-Decreasing: central double decrease (cdd)
-Working in the round on double pointed needles
-Picking up stitches

Materials: Calipso by Miss Tricot Filati (affiliate link) sport weight yarn (100% cotton), 137 yards(125 meters) /50 g - 1 ball (main multi color)
Paton (affiliate link)s Grace sport weight yarn (100% cotton), 136 yards(124 meters) /50g - 1 ball (matching solid color)

Needles: Circular US 1.5 ( 2.50 mm) and double pointed needles (dpn) for sleeves OR SIZE NEEDED TO OBTAIN GAUGE

Gauge: 28 st x 32 rows = 4" x 4" (10cm x 10cm) in stockinette st

Notions:
- 4 stitch markers
- Stitch holders or 2 pieces 10” long of contrasting color waste yarn to hold stitches
- Yarn needle
- 5 sew-on snaps size 2/0 or 3/0
- Sewing needle and thread of color matching the yarn for attaching the snaps

Abbreviations:
dpn – double pointed needles
K – knit
P – purl
St, sts – stitch, stitches
pu&k - pick up and knit
as est. - as established, work as the pattern demands, here knit the RS rows and purl the WS rows.
co – cast on
RS – right side
WS – wrong side
m 1 - make 1 increase - I used the increase described by Elizabeth Zimmerman: make a backward loop over the right-hand needle and in the next row/round purl/knit it as a regular stitch
cdd - central double decrease: 1) slip 2 sts on the right needle knitwise, 2) knit the next st, 3) insert the left needle in the slipped 2 sts and pass them over the just knitted st. = 2 sts decrease
bb – button band
sm - slip marker


Pattern Notes

Stockinette Stitch in rows:
Row 1 (RS): knit
Row 2 (WS): purl
Repeat row 1-2.

Stockinette Stitch in rounds: all rounds knit

Garter stitch in rows: all rows knit.

Garter stitch in rounds:
Round 1: knit
Round 2: purl
Repeat rounds 1-2.

Seed stitch in rounds:
Round 1: *k1, p1 - repeat from * around
Round 2: *p1, k1 - repeat from * around
Repeat 2 rounds.

The selvedge/edge stitches are worked here as follows: knit the first stitch and purl the last one.


Tunic, Short Overview:

The tunic is worked top down, seamlessly. First the yoke and body are worked back and forth with circular needles to the hip line with raglan increases. The bodice is worked with increases on the sides to give the tunic an A-shape. Then the very short skirt is worked in the round. The short sleeves are worked in the round with double pointed needles.

Button bands are worked on the back of the tunic in garter stitch (all rows knit) together with the bodice.

Raglan increases are made before and after raglan lines with yo in every odd/RS row, thus you increase the number of stitches by 8 in every odd/RS row on the yoke. Increase as follows: yo, sm (slip marker), k1 (raglan st), yo.

A-shaping is achieved by adding (m1) stitches on the sides of the tunic in every 4th row in the following way: knit till marker, m1, sm, k1, m1.

Yoke

Cast on 52 sts with multi-colored yarn.

Work 2 foundation rows in garter stitch (both rows knit).

Check the stitches and place markers as follows: 1 edge - 3 right button band (bb) - 4 right back - 1 raglan (place the first marker before this st)- 10 right sleeve - 1 raglan (place the second marker before this st) - 12 front - 1 raglan (place the third marker before this st) - 10 left sleeve - 1 raglan (place the forth marker before this st) - 4 left back - 3 left bb - 1 edge.

Row 1 (RS and all RS rows): *k all sts till marker, yo, sm, k1 (raglan), yo, - repeat 4 times, k till the last st, p1. = 60 sts

Row 2 (WS and all WS rows): k4, purl to last 4 sts, k3, p1.

Repeat rows 1-2 nine more times. Cut multi-colored yarn.

The count of sts after each raglan increase:

Row 1 = 60 sts
Row 3 = 68 sts
Row 5 = 76 sts
Row 7 = 84 sts
Row 9 = 92 sts
Row 11 = 100 sts
Row 13 = 108 sts
Row 15 = 116 sts
Row 17 = 124 sts
Row 19 = 132 sts


Divide for sleeves and bodice:

Continue with solid-colored thread

Row 21 (RS): k19, transfer 30 sts to a piece of waste yarn, co 3, k34, transfer 30 sts to another piece of waste yarn, co 3, k18, p1. = 78 sts

Row 22: k1, p 77, k3, p1.

Place a marker before each 2nd underarm st.

Row 23: knit till the first marker, m1, sm, k1, m1, knit till the second marker, m1, sm, k1, m1, knit till the last st, p1. = 82 sts

Row 24 and all WS rows: k4, purl till last 4 sts, k3, p1.

Row 25: knit till the last st., p1.

Row 26 like 24.

Repeat rows 23-26 five more times. Repeat rows 23-24 one more time. The count of stitches after the increases:

After row 27 = 86 sts
After row 31 = 90 sts
After row 35 = 94 sts
After row 39 = 98 sts
After row 43 = 102 sts
After row 47 = 106 sts

In the next row we'll close the work into a round:

Row 49/ round 1: knit till the last 4 sts, transfer the last 4 sts to a spare needle, overlap with the right side BB, the spare needle over the left needle. Insert the right needle in the first st on the spare needle, then in the fist st on the left needle, yarn over, pull the yarn through both sts, cast both of them off. Repeat with the remaining 3 sts of the button band. Place a marker between 2 sts of the former bb to mark the beginning of the round. = 102 sts

Round 2: *k2, kfr&b - repeat from * around = 153 sts

Round 3 - knit around

Repeat round 3 nine more times.

Change to multi-color thread and knit around.

Work 8 more rounds in moss stitch:

Round 13: *k1, p1 - repeat from * around

Round 14: *p1, k1 - repeat from * around

Repeat rounds 13-14 three more times. Bind off. Cut yarn.


Sleeves

Sleeves are worked in solid color yarn:

Tranfer all sts to dpn, distributing them evenly. Pu&k 3 underarm sts. = 33 sts

Round 1: k 33

Round 2: k 30, cdd on 3 underarm sts = 31 sts.

Round 3: p31.

Bind off.


Finishing

Weave in all yarn ends. Block the piece. Sew snaps on bb.

Have fun!