Two-Color Mistake Rib Cowl
Not all mistakes are bad. In fact, some result in fascinating, lofty, and very beautiful stitch patterns! The so-called Mistake Rib is one such mistake, a case of misaligned knits and purls that creates a squishy-soft hand knit like this one, our Two-Color Mistake Rib Cowl.
Mistake Rib in one color is lovely, but add another, and you’re in the business off creating a herringbone textile so intricate looking you wouldn’t imagine that it’s a simple matter of knit 2, purl 2 and switching colors each round. Amazing!
And please, let’s make sure the knitting is as enjoyable as the wearing! One of our very favorite yarns, our Season Alpaca is a 100% super baby alpaca treat, ensuring that the time spent is a pleasure, not a chore!
Yarn lovers, if you adore the yarn used in this project, you’ll love exploring all of our other yarn collections! Discover over 45 thoughtfully designed yarns in nearly every natural fiber and in every spectacular color you can imagine. Only available here at Purl Soho’s online yarn store, where every skein is created with care and your creativity in mind!
Designed by Purl Soho designer, Jake Canton. Click here to see even more of Jake’s designs!
Share your progress + connect with the community by tagging your pics with #PurlSoho, #PurlSohoBusyHands, #PurlSohoTwoColorMistakeRibCowl, and #PurlSohoSeasonAlpaca. We can’t wait to see what you make!
Materials
- Color A: 2 skeins of Purl Soho’s Season Alpaca, 100% super baby alpaca yarn. Each skein of this sport weight yarn is 218 yards; approximately 431 yards required. We used Stillwater Blue.
- Color B: 2 skeins of Season Alpaca. Approximately 431 yards required. We used Heirloom White.
- US 4 (3.5 mm), 40- or 47-inch circular needles
- A stitch marker
Gauge
Unblocked: 34 stitches and 40 rows = 4 inches in mistake rib pattern
Blocked: 31 stitches and 36 rows = 4 inches in mistake rib pattern
Size
- Finished Circumference: Approximately 55 inches
- Finished Height: Approximately 10 inches
Notes
Stitch Multiple
Mistake Rib in the round is worked over a multiple of 4 stitches.
Pattern
With Color A, cast on 424 stitches. We used a Basic Long Tail Cast On.
Place a marker, and join to work in the round, being careful not to twist the stitches.
Bottom Edge: One-Color Mistake Rib
Round 1: *K2, p2, repeat from * to end of round.
Round 2: P1, *k2, p2, repeat from * to last 3 stitches, k2, p1.
Repeat Rounds 1 and 2 two more times.
Body: Two-Color Mistake Rib
NOTE: Join Color B the first time you work Round 2.
Round 1: With Color A, *k2, p2, repeat from * to end of round.
Round 2: With Color B, p1, *k2, p2, repeat from * to last 3 stitches, k2, p1.
Repeat Rounds 1 and 2 until piece measures 9½ inches from cast-on edge, ending with Round 2.
Cut Color A.
Top Edge: One-Color Mistake Rib
With Color B, repeat Rounds 1 and 2 of One-Color Mistake Rib pattern three times.
Bind off in stitch pattern.
Weave in the ends and block as desired.
LEARN ABOUT SEASON ALPACA + ALL OUR BEAUTIFUL YARNS
Season Alpaca always brings deep beauty to your hand-knits. Made of 100% super baby alpaca, the most special grade of Peruvian alpaca there is, this sport-weight yarn is incredibly soft, and with its long fibers and many fine plies, it also creates smooth stockinette and lovely stitch definition. Prepare to knit with your new favorite alpaca yarn!
More Free Knitting Patterns
- Be sure to explore our collection of (mostly free!) Season Alpaca knitting patterns and cast on!
More Sport-Weight Yarns
- Shop our entire collection of sport-weight yarns
- If you want to use a different yarn, be sure to take the time to get the correct gauge. Need help? Check our All About Gauge Tutorial!
More Yarns With Similar Fibers
- Shop alpaca yarn
Looking for more inspiration? Explore all of our free knitting patterns and knitting tutorials, buy one of our many knitting kits and yarn bundles, and shop for beautiful yarn. We have over 35 gorgeous natural fiber yarns in 100’s of magnificent colors, designed to bring integrity, beauty, and joy to your next knitting project and only available at Purl Soho!
If I wanted to use this stitch to make a blanket, how would I adapt for knitting flat with two colors?
Hi Ellen,
Great question! I would suggest starting with our Two-Tone Mistake Rib Scarf as the basis for your blanket! Just like the cowl, it is knit in single stripes of two different colors in Mistake Rib, but this pattern has the four-row repeat you need to use to work the stitch flat.
I hope that helps!
Julianna
Is this cowl designed to wrap twice around the neck or only once?
Hi Kris,
Thanks for reaching out! Yes, the cowl is designed to wrap around twice!
Best,
Gianna
Is there something that I need to do to avoid a jog in the round when I switch colors?
Hi Megan,
Thanks for reaching out! A slight jog will just happen naturally when working in the round and switching colors so there isn’t necessarily a way to avoid that.
All the best,
Gianna
Love this but would like to use a single cowl. Any suggestions with a 7 needle too?
Hi Denise,
Thanks for reaching out! I would recommend checking out our other pattern Mistake Rib Cowl In Cashmere Tend, it is the same stitch but worked in one color on a US 8 needle! You can easily adjust the pattern to be worked in 2 colors by following the color work instructions for the Two-Color Mistake Rib Cowl!
I hope this helps, feel free to reach out if you have any more questions!
Warmly,
Gianna
Just confirming that the cast on is 424 stitches (I’m dreading that part). Is there a way to make it somewhat smaller but still be able to double it? Thanks so much – love your store!
Hi Laurie,
Thanks for reaching out! Yes that is correct, the cast on in 424 for this cowl! I actually knit the sample in the photographs and the cast on was definitely a long process, but long tail cast on helps keep it pretty manageable! I also recommend placing a stitch marker every 50 or 100 stitches to help you keep track of how many you have cast on. The cowl as is (55″ finished circumference) fits perfectly doubled, so I wouldn’t suggest changing the cast on too much. The stitch pattern works over a multiple of 4 stitches, So I would go down to 420 or 416 stitches but wouldn’t go much smaller than that to insure you can still double it!
I hope this helps, happy knitting!
Gianna
It seems as though the headings on the pattern sections are mislabeled. i.e. Top Edge: One-Color Mistake Rib starts out “With Color B”… You would not have a Color B for a One-Color cowl.
Hi Deborah,
Thanks for reaching out! It is not mislabeled, since this is a two color version of this cowl you have Color A which is your main color and Color B which is the constraining color. For our sample Color A was Stillwater Blue and Color B was Heirloom White. This cowl is knit from the bottom up, both edges start and finish with the ONE-COLOR MISTAKE RIB pattern, you will start by casting on and working 1 inch in ONE-COLOR MISTAKE RIB using Color A, then you will work TWO-COLOR MISTAKE RIB using A and B together and finally you will finish with another inch of ONE-COLOR MISTAKE RIB now in Color B.
I hope this clears things up, happy knitting!
Gianna
Hi Deborah,
I would love to knit this lovely cowl but prefer to not twist it at all. Would I be right in halving the number of stitches? Here in Australia 🇦🇺 the winters are not as severe as in the Northern Hemisphere. A single cowl would be just right otherwise it would come off extremely quickly from overheating.
Thank you so much for your freebies I so appreciate your kindness. I love a good ‘pay it forward’. Please thank your lovely designer.
Hi Francien,
Thanks for reaching out and for your kind words! I will certainly pass your note along to the designer! You can easily adjust this pattern to be a single wrap cowl! Depending on the overall circumference you would like and if your gauge is consistent with the pattern you can calculate your cast on amount from there, just be sure to keep in mind that Mistake Rib in the round is worked over a multiple of 4 stitches.
I hope this helps and please let me know if you have any more questions!
Gianna
Hello,
I love this pattern so much and the yarn! But wondering if you might be able to suggest a slightly less expensive yarn that could also work? Would the pattern work with Purl Soho’s Cotton Pure yarn?
Thank you!
Hi Laura,
Thanks for writing in. I think this pattern would be lovely in Cotton Pure! You may also want to consider Good Wool, or Brooklyn Tweed’s Ranch 03, which are some other cheaper options for a sportweight yarn.
As always, we recommend making a gauge swatch before starting a project to be sure you’re working with the right needles, especially when substituting yarns. If this is daunting, I’d recommend checking out a tutorial called All About Gauge, which covers some incredibly helpful information.
All the best,
Lili
Hi,
I’m a beginner and haven’t used 2 colors at the same time before. Is there a tutorial you recommend for how to manage the 2 different yarns or is it pretty simple to let go of one yard color, switch to the other, and then go back to colorA?
thanks so much!
Hi Kiran,
You do essentially just let go of the color you’re not using and pick up the one you are, but our Stripes In The Round tutorial shows you the one little thing you’ll want do to keep the inside tidy and make sure there are no gaps in your knitting. It’s super easy and this is such a fun pattern… You’re in for a treat!
Best,
Whitney
I am following this pattern to the tee. It looks awfully wide. I see from the comments that it is doubled when you wear. I am not sure what that means exactly. Can you send me a picture so I can get a visual of how its worn doubled. Im sorry to be so confused but I have worked so hard, it is a present and do not know what exactly it looks like. Thank you
Hi Cathy,
Thank you for writing in! That is a great question! I like to think of cowls of this construction as a figure 8 or infinity shape. When you finish knitting your cowl, it will be in the shape of a large ‘O’. You will then twist both ends until your cowl is the shape of an 8. At that point, you will fold the top over the bottom circle so that they are now one smaller circle. Unfortunately, we don’t currently have a picture of how to wear this cowl but I hope this helps! Please let me know if you need any more clarification and I will be happy to help!
Happy knitting,
Gavriella