Chunky Seed Stitch Cowl. No-Pattern Pattern.
Happy Sunday!
My Chunky Seed Stitch Cowl literally flew off the needles! It turned out exactly how I envisioned it - big, cozy and warm. I really love its color, which is very versatile and casual. It was a great quick and relaxing project to take here and there when I had a couple of free minutes or just before going to sleep. It's also great for car knitting - you don't have to keep track of any numbers and can literally knit it with close eyes.
Project Notes
Pattern. I wrote quick pattern notes at the end. If you have some similar leftover yarn in your stash, you can use it. This project is perfect for beginners!Yarn. DK weight merino/silk blend, two strands held together + light grey baby alpaca. You can read more about yarn here - Chunky Seed Stitch Cowl. I used my favorite ADDI circular needles (5 mm) - it is always such a joy to work with them!
Size. I made a pretty big cowl - 58" (147 cm) in circumference and 12.5" (32 cm) wide. It can be easily double wrapped around the neck for extreme coziness! The yarn is perfect to wear next to your skin - warm, not scratchy at all and very soft.
Texture. I am really happy that I made two swatches to compare. My first intention was to use moss stitch, but looking at the texture of the seed stitch and how great it goes with the gradient, I realize I made the right call :) Never skip swatching - it is so worth it! Gradient effect is my favorite part, it looks like the cowl is covered in snow.
Here are some pattern notes that you can use to make your own cozy seed stitch cowl. I call it no-pattern pattern - basically you can get any type of yarn, any needles, knit 20 stitch swatch and do your own numbers. These notes just give you the idea of the project and point where you can do your own modifications.
Chunky Seed Stitch Cowl Pattern
SIZE:
One size.
FINISHED MEASUREMENTS:
Finished circumference: 58" (147 cm)Finished height: 12 1/2" (32 cm) (The solid color part - 10", the gradient part - 2 1/2")Note: If you don't want to make the double wrap cowl, you can easily make it with 25-30" circumference.
MATERIALS:
Yarn. Any DK weight yarn holding two strands together. I used approximately 6 skeins of Knit Picks Gloss DK weight yarn (123 yds or 112 m/50 g; 70% Merino Wool, 30% Silk) colourway Hawk + 1 skein of 100% baby alpaca.Note: I used two strands because at the end I was mixing two different types of yarn. So, at first I was knitting with two strands of merino/silk, then I left just one strand and added one strand of baby alpaca to it to create slight gradient effect. If you plan to make it in one color, just use thicker yarn. Two strands of DK weight yarn approximately equal to one strand of aran/bulky yarn.Needles. 5 mm (US 8) circular 80 cm (31").
GAUGE
4" (10 cm) = 11 sts. The round gauge is not essential in this project, you just keep knitting until you are happy with the cowl's height.Note: Feel free to play around with numbers. Your gauge shouldn't be exactly the same. The best way to check if you are happy with your yarn/needle size combination is the swatch.
STITCH EXPLANATION
Seed Stitch in the Round:Rnd 1: *K1, p1; rep from * to end.Rnd 2: * P1, k1; rep from * to end.Repeat Rnds 1-2 for Seed Stitch pattern.
INSTRUCTIONS
Holding two strands together of yarn A and using long tail cast on method, cast on 161 sts + 1 extra st for the invisible join.Helpful Tip: If I cast on with one needle, I find it too tight, so I almost always hold two needles together when casting on and when I am done I take one needle out and start knitting as usual. This way the cast on stitches are not tight and the first row/round is very easy to knit. It is not always convenient with the circular needle, especially if you have a big number of stitches to cast on, because after you are done with cast on and need to take one needle out, the cord often doesn't let you do that. You can do the following:
- Take one end of the circular needle and take the straight needle of the same or of very close size.
- Put them together and start the usual long tail cast on. You will cast on stitches on two needles held together - one end of circular needle and the straight needle.
- When you cast on all the stitches, just pull the straight needle out. You are left with nice, not too tight cast on stitches on the circular needle.
Note: If you choose to change the stitch count for your cowl, keep the following in mind. When knitting seed stitch in the round it is better to cast on an odd number of stitches. 1 extra stitch is cast on for the invisible join in the round. Making sure not to twist stitches, join the knitting to work in the round using the invisible join - How To Knit The Invisible Join In The Round. - 161 sts left. Place BOR marker.Work even in seed stitch pattern until piece reaches the desired solid color height (in my case - 10" (25 cm)). Remove one strand of yarn A and join one strand of yarn B. Work even in seed stitch holding one strand of yarn A and one strand of yarn B together until the desired height of the cowl.Bind off.Weave in ends. Block to measurements.
Wrap yourself in your very own chunky and cozy cowl!
I hope you will find this mini-pattern useful someday!
Have a great Sunday!
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