The inspiration for this pattern came from a Child’s Vest currently held by the Museum of London. For more details on the original artifact, visit MoL. I used construction methods that were appropriate for the period of the original little sweater, and tried to make it as simple as possible. The ‘vest’ itself is a short-sleeved sweater style garment that involves no seaming. It is worked in the round, from the hem to the neck, and can be worked with either double pointed needles or the MagicLoop method.

This pattern is written for an infant up to 12 months, but instructions are included to allow you to adjust the size to the needs of your little one.

You’ll need between 400 and 450 yards of either sport weight or DK weight yarn. The model used Size 2 (2.75 mm) needles to achieve a gauge of 7 stitches per inch. This forms a fairly thick fabric, which mimics the original.

This pattern was written specifically to reproduce as closely as possible the relic garment. I was delightfully surprised at the fit and wear-ability of the finished reproduction. My granddaughter loved it and my daughter didn’t want to give it back.