Disco Ball vs. Ballet: What's the Difference?

If you've been eyeing both the Disco Ball (the red one) and Ballet cardigans (the blush one) and wondering which one to knit first, you're not alone — this is the question I get asked the most. Both are oversized mohair cardigans knit top-down, both use a similar yarn weight, and both finish with the same button band technique. But the construction, the fabric, and the finished look are genuinely different. Here's how to choose.

What's the construction difference?

Ballet is built with a classic raglan yoke. The increases happen along four diagonal lines, which makes the shaping easy to read as you go — a good reason it's rated a beginner-friendlier level 2 out of 5. When you reach the underarms, the sleeve stitches are simply set aside on hold and picked back up later, so there's no extra step to start the sleeves.

Disco Ball uses sloping, dropped shoulders instead. The shoulder seam is shaped with frequent increases on both the right and wrong side while knitting the neck piece, which is what gives the cardigan its trendy, structured shoulder line. It's a slightly more advanced technique (level 3 out of 5), and because there's no raglan line to fall back on, the sleeve stitches for Disco Ball have to be picked up along the armhole edge afterward rather than simply continued.

In short: raglan is easier to visualize as a beginner, sloping shoulders are the more fashion-forward choice.

Why does the fabric feel so different?

Both cardigans are knit in the same mohair blend — Sandnes Garn Ballerina Chunky Mohair — but on very different needle sizes, and that's what changes everything.

Ballet is knit on 5.5 mm (US9) needles, at a gauge of 13 stitches x 19 rows per 10 cm / 4". That's a loose, airy fabric — the kind of soft, floaty mohair layer you'd recognize from those American Dream-style sweaters everyone fell in love with.

Disco Ball is knit on much finer 4 mm (US6) needles, at 17 stitches x 22 rows per 10 cm / 4". The denser gauge gives it a tighter, more sweater-like fabric with real structure and drape, rather than a floaty haze.

What about the finishing details?

Here's the fun part: both cardigans share the exact same button band technique, worked in double-knitting for a clean, tubular finish. So once you've made one, the button band on the other will already feel familiar.

The buttons themselves set a different mood, though. Disco Ball leans into sparkly, statement "wow" buttons that catch the light — fitting for a cardigan named after a disco ball. Ballet keeps things simpler, letting the soft, cropped silhouette do the talking.

So which one should you knit?

If you're newer to top-down construction, or you want a quick, satisfying knit on big needles, start with Ballet — the raglan shaping is easy to follow, and the airy mohair fabric comes together fast.

If you're comfortable with picking up stitches and want a more structured, trend-forward silhouette with denser fabric and sparkle, go for Disco Ball.

Either way, you already know the button band — so the second cardigan you make will feel like an old friend.

Shop the Disco Ball Cardigan → · Shop the Ballet Cardigan →
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