Super Soft Merino Fluted Cowl
Our Fluted Cowl combines two of our very favorite things: elegant drama and Super Soft Merino! If you haven’t heard, Super Soft Merino is Purl Soho’s new, very own yarn, and we couldn’t be happier about it!
A loosley spun single ply of 100% Peruvian merino, Super Soft Merino is beautiful, decadent and yes, super soft. For cozy warmth and cuddly comfort, it makes the consummate neck wrapper!
This Fluted Cowl is the perfect expression of everything we love about Super Soft Merino. It is lush and wonderfully indulgent, easy and versatile; it is why we knit! The scale and elegance of this cowl give it an operatic sweep that will carry you through the winter in style.
This fascinating texture is created by a simple pattern called the Fluted Fabric Stitch. Slipped stitches add depth and loftiness, while gentle ribbing creates a soft rhythm. Easy for beginners, quick for everyone? Think holiday gift!
Share your progress and connect with the community by tagging your pics with #PurlSoho, #PurlSohoBusyHands, #PurlSohoFlutedCowl, and #PurlSohoSuperSoftMerino. We can’t wait to see what you make!
Materials
- 6 skeins of Purl Soho’s Super Soft Merino, 100% Merino Wool. Each skein is 87 yards/ 100 grams; approximately 522 yards required. This color is Oyster Gray.
- A US 17 (12 mm), 32-inch circular needle.
- Jumbo stitch marker (optional)
Gauge
3¼ stitches = 1 inch in pattern stitch
Size
15 inches high and 60 inches around
Note
The Fluted Fabric Stitch works in the round on any multiple of four stitches.
Pattern
Cast on 196 stitches. We used a basic Long Tail Cast On.
Place a marker and join for working in the round being careful to not twist the stitches.
Round 1: *K1, slip 1 with yarn in front (sl1 wyif), k1, p1, repeat from * to end of round.
Round 2: *Sl1 wyif, p1, sl1 wyif, k1, repeat from * to end of round.
Repeat Rounds 1 and 2 until piece measures 15 inches from cast on edge, ending with Round 1.
Working Round 2, bind off in pattern.
Weave in your ends and get cozy!
Hi,
I love this and wanted to try it with some nice soft wool i have but i only have two skeins… so I was wondering how I could adapt the pattern easily… making it less wide and less long but still being able to double it around my neck? Also when it says slip (yarn in front or back) does it mean purl slip or knit slip direction? Thank you 🙂
Hi Kate,
Thanks for the nice comment! This pattern is easily adaptable because the stitch pattern is worked in the round on any multiple of four stitches. On a 24″ circular needle, fill up the needle with stitches and make sure you’ve cast on a multiple of four. Join and work the pattern until you’ve reached your desired height. For this pattern, you will always slip purl-wise. Yarn in back/front just describes the orientation of your yarn when you slip. Let me know how it goes!
-Adam
I wish that the pattern said clearly that the reverse side is what is showing in the photos. Or you could rewrite it so that the slips are on the back. Or you could include a small chart.
Otherwise lovely pattern. I am making a square of it for a sampler vest.
Hi there,
Thanks for writing in. The reverse side always hows on a cowl because you’ll always see the wrong side when wrapped around the neck. Sorry for the confusion.
-Adam
I think the pattern on both the right and wrong side of the cowl are very pretty and this is what makes the pattern great for me! This is my WIP right now. Love it!
Hi there,
Would it be fairly simple to adapt this fluted pattern to a flat piece, say a blanket? Thanks in advance!
Zoë
Hi Zoe,
Thanks for writing us! Unfortunately we can’t convert a pattern in the round to a flat pattern over the comments section, but I can give you some guidance. I’d try a swatch where you do row 1 as round 1 and then for row 2 you will reverse all stitches (knits become purls, s1wyif becomes s1wyib, etc.). Hope this helps!
-Adam
Hello,
Just wandering around what weight the yarn you use is. Unfortunately, I don’t have the budget for that lovely stuff, so am looking for a cheeper alternative. In the description it says super bulky. Does that mean 6? Sorry, I am new to all this knitting jargon! Thank you and God bless!
Hi Grace,
Thanks for writing in! Our Super Soft Merino is roughly a Super Bulky yarn with a gauge of 2.75 – 3.25 stitches per inch. The Craft Yarn Council would consider this a 6!
Happy knitting!
Cassy
Thank you so much!
I am nearly done making this scarf and can’t wait to wear it. But being a beginner, I don’t know how to weave in the ends for this pattern. What’s the best approach?
Hello Jo,
Thank you for reaching out! How I approach weaving in my ends, in the most basic terms, is I follow my stitches. There are many ways to approach weaving in your ends, but for an in-depth overview of some of our preferred ways of weaving in our ends, check out our Tutorial –
I hope this clears things up and let us know how it goes.
Happy knitting!
-Marilla
Will a 196 stitch cast on with this super bulky yarn really fit on a 32” cable?
Hi Olga,
Thanks for writing in! We were able to use a 32 inch cable for this lovely cowl but you can certainly use a 40 inch cable if you prefer a little bit of extra room to work!
Best,
Cassy
The pattern calls for a #19 needle and the yarn description an 11 needle. Is this correct and why such a big jump?
Hi Monica,
Thanks for writing in! This is correct! The stitch pattern here is quite dense so in order to get a pleasing fabric with a nice drape, we went up several needle sizes.
I hope that this helps!
Cassy
Hello. I am working on this cowl… well, I have been for some time. I am coming close to the end. I was wondering if you blocked the cowl once it was completed?
Thank you
Hi Jennifer,
Thanks for writing in! It is always a good idea to block your knits when they are finished – blocking really helps even out any uneven stitches and gives hand knits a more polished, finished look. I would not block this stitch aggressively, but a quick steam or soak in the sink followed by drying flat will still make a big difference.
I hope that helps!
Julianna
Hi! I’m struggling a bit with the pattern as my cowl looks nothing like the one on the photos. I was wondering if the second row should have slip with yarn in BACK not in front? Otherwise this knit stitch that you see on the right side disappears behind the “yarn in front”. Thank you!
Julia
Hello Julia,
Thank you for reaching out! On row 1, when you slip 1 stitch with the yarn in front, it will create a bar in front of the slipped stitch. In row 2, you will purl the slipped stitch while leaving the bar, created by slipping the stitch on the previous row, alone. How is your cowl turning out? What, specifically, is different about your cowl verses ours?
I hope I can help!
Warmly,
Marilla
Hi,
I just finished the cowl and it is beautiful but it came out quite a bit too long. is there a way (thru blocking?) to make it shorter?
thank you,
Maggie
Hello Maggie,
Thank you for reaching out! Though you can make small adjustments with blocking, you will not be able to make the cowl much shorter. You could always go back into your project and cast off sooner.
I hope this is helpful and let us know if you have any further questions.
Good Luck!
-Marilla
Hi Maggie,
I would like to knit this pattern in Season Alpaca. What size needles would you recommend and how many stitches should I cast on?
Christina
Hi Christina!
Thank you for your question! Season Alpaca is a much thinner weight yarn than Super Soft Merino, so the best way to figure out your cast on for this project would be to knit a gauge swatch in pattern and measure how many stitches you are getting per inch. Then, with that number in mind, you can calculate how many stitches you would need for 60″ around! Season Alpaca works well on a size US 3-5 needle, so I would start with one of those sizes for your gauge swatch.
I hope this helps!
All the best,
Margaret
Hi Margaret,
Thank you for your reply. Should I go up a needle size to achieve the same result. The pattern uses a bigger size than recommended for the wool. I’m a bit confused.
Christina
You are very welcome, Christina! This cowl uses a larger needle size than recommended for Super Soft Merino since the Fluted Fabric Stitch makes a very dense fabric. In order for the cowl to have some drape to it, we used a larger needle size to create some more air between the stitches, making for a cozy but flowing cowl!
I hope this helps clarify the needle size!
All the best,
Margaret