Pretty Speedy Cowls
When “pretty” and “speedy” come together, we’re in the sweet spot of gift knitting!
Instead of a marathon that drags into the wee hours, making our Pretty Speedy Cowls is more like an evening trot around the block, a blissfully stress-free solution to creating something special at the eleventh hour.
These little sweeties convey care rather than expedience thanks to their soft and supple feeling and simple beauty. Not stifling or scratchy, they’re made to be appreciated long after the wrapping paper comes off!
We knit up our Pretty Speedy Cowls in three different ribs: a very easy 2×4 rib and the slightly more challenging spiral rib (below) and open mock cable rib (above). None are more than an advanced beginner can handle, and all charming in their big-stitch boldness!
The softness, the beauty, and, of course, the done-in-a-wink-ness are all thanks to our wonderful Woolly Wool. A single-ply super bulky in a 200-gram skein, you only need one to make two Pretty Speedy Cowls. Yup, one skein makes two cowls, which means two make four, three make six. You get the idea…. Lots of pretty cowls, not a lot of skeins, and almost no time at all!
Designed by Purl Soho founder and co-owner, Joelle Hoverson.
Share your progress and connect with the community by tagging your pics with #PurlSoho, #PurlSohoBusyHands, #PurlSohoPrettySpeedyCowls and #PurlSohoWoollyWool. We can’t wait to see what you make!
Materials
- 1 skein of Purl Soho’s Woolly Wool, 100% wool. Each skein is 109 yards/ 200 grams; approximately 54 yards required. (NOTE: We no longer offer Woolly Wool, but choose from one of our other super bulky weight yarns.)
- US 19 (15/16 mm), 24-inch circular needles
- A jumbo stitch marker
NOTE: One skein is enough to make two cowls in any of the three stitch patterns!
We used three different colors for our cowls…
- 2×4 Rib Cowl: Sea Turtle
- Spiral Rib Cowl: Blossom Pink
- Open Mock Cable Rib Cowl: Peach Lily
Gauge
6½ stitches = 4 inches in stockinette
NOTE: We used US 19 needles to achieve this gauge, but different knitters may find smaller or larger needles work better for your style of knitting. More important than needle size is getting the correct stitch gauge so that your cowl will be plump and stretchy. If gauge is a new concept for you, our All About Gauge tutorial is a helpful primer!
Size
Finished Dimensions: Approximately 18½ inches around x 9 inches high, relaxed
NOTES
RT (RIGHT TWIST)
NOTE: Our Mock Cable Rib tutorial demonstrates this technique!
Knit 2 together and leave stitches on left needle, insert right needle between 2 stitches just worked and knit first stitch again, slip both stitches from left needle together. [2 stitches on right needle, no decrease or increase]
SLIP STITCHES
Slip all slipped stitches purlwise with yarn in back.
PSSO (PASS SLIPPED STITCH OVER)
Use left needle to lift slipped stitch (third stitch on right needle) over first two stitches and off the needle. [1 stitch decreased]
STITCH MULTIPLES
The 2×4 Rib and Spiral Rib Cowls are worked over a multiple of 6 stitches.
The Open Mock Cable Rib Cowl is worked over a multiple of 5 stitches.
PATTERNS
2×4 Rib Cowl
Cast on 30 stitches. We used a basic Long-Tail Cast On.
Join for working in the round, being careful not to twist the stitches. Place marker for beginning of round.
Round 1: *K2, p4, repeat from* to end of round.
Repeat Round 1 until work measures 9 inches from cast-on edge, or to desired length.
Bind off in stitch pattern.
Weave in ends and gently steam block, if desired.
Spiral Rib
Cast on 30 stitches. We used a basic Long-Tail Cast On.
Join for working in the round, being careful not to twist the stitches. Place marker for beginning of round.
Round 1: *K4, p2, repeat from * to end of round.
Round 2: *[RT (see Notes)] 2 times, p2, repeat from * to end of round.
Round 3: Repeat Round 1.
Round 4: *K1, RT, k1, p2, repeat from * to end of round.
Repeat Rounds 1–4 until piece measures 9 inches from cast-on edge or to desired length, ending with Round 4.
Bind off, working Round 1.
Weave in ends and gently steam block, if desired.
Open Mock Cable Rib
Cast on 30 stitches. We used a basic Long-Tail Cast On.
Join for working in the round, being careful not to twist the stitches. Place marker for beginning of round.
Rounds 1 and 2: *K3, p2, repeat from * to end of round.
Round 3: *Slip 1 (see Notes), k2, psso (see Notes), p2, repeat from * to end of round. [24 stitches remain]
Round 4: *K1, yarn over, k1, p2, repeat from * to end of round. [30 stitches]
Repeat Rounds 1–4 until piece measures 9 inches from cast-on edge or to desired length, ending with Round 4.
Bind off, working Round 1.
Weave in ends and gently steam block, if desired.
Hello. Can this pattern be made with your Gentle Giant yarn? (I realize that one skein would only be adequate for one cowl.) Would any modifications to the pattern need to be made? Thanks!
Hi Rachel,
Thanks for writing in! I think Gentle Giant would make for a fantastic and super soft cowl, but you would need 2 skeins to complete one cowl for this particular pattern. The pattern calls for approximately 54 yards of yarn per cowl and Gentle Giant comes in 48 yard skeins. I would also highly recommend doing a gauge swatch to make sure your gauge is consistent with the pattern and also because Gentle Giant is a very malleable yarn so knitting tension can have a big impact on the final gauge. We have a guide on swatching called All About Gauge in case you’re interested! I hope this helps!
All the best,
Cat
Is there another Purl Soho non-wool yarn that could be doubled (or tripled) and used for this pattern? Or how would I modify pattern to accommodate a different yarn that is not super bulky.
Hi Susan,
Thanks for reaching out. You can absolutely modify this pattern for any weight of yarn! We actually have a cowl pattern that uses the exact same stitch patterns but is written for a fingering weight yarn. Take a look at the Soft as a Cloud Cowls.
In general, if you want to modify a pattern like this, you’d need to adjust the number of stitches you cast on. To figure out your cast-on number, you will want to first knit a gauge swatch in pattern. Once you know how many stitches you are getting per inch, you can multiply that number by the width that you would like and cast on the multiple listed in the pattern. For reference, the 2×4 Rib and Spiral Rib Cowls are worked over a multiple of 6 stitches, and the Open Mock Cable Rib Cowl is worked over a multiple of 5 stitches.
Hope this helps!
All the best,
Lili
Thank you so much!
What’s the skill level for these cowls?
Hi Colleen,
Thanks for reaching out. We don’t rate the difficulty of our patterns because we want people to feel free to try things that are “too hard” for them; we want to encourage people to discover that learning new techniques enriches the process of making. However, I can absolutely let you know what skills are used in this pattern so that you can get a sense of what’s involved: Long Tail Cast-On, Right Twist, Slip Stitches, Pass Slipped Stitch Over (psso), Mock Cable Rib.
I’ve provided links to video tutorials that we have for some of these techniques, and instructions for the others are detailed in the NOTES section of the pattern. Ultimately, we hope that you will take little leaps into the unknown and find that the satisfaction was worth the challenge! We are always happy to give you advice as you work through the patterns.
All the best,
Lili
Thanks for the inspiration! Was wondering though: seeing it’s knit in the round, do we purl the RT stitches (as shown in the tutorial video)?
Best,
Constance
Montclair, NJ
Hi Constance,
Thanks for reaching out! Since it’s knit in the round, you can just follow the instructions for Round 3 as written, which will have you knit the RT stitches instead of purling them. Hope this helps!
All the best,
Lili
Lovely patterns. Would it be possible to make the patterns more environmentally friendly: less paper needed to print. I get that the images are wonderful to look at, but perhaps one small image is enough and a more condensed pattern.
Save paper. Love trees.
Hi Laura,
Thanks for reaching out. I want to let you know that there is a way to print out fewer pages so that the pattern is more condensed! If you’re on a desktop version of the site, you will find a “print” icon in the right column just below the “Save To Favorites” button. If you’re on a mobile version of the site, you will find a “print” icon below the pattern and above the comments.
Click on this button, and a window will pop up where you can delete whichever parts of the pattern you don’t want to save to the PDF. When you hover over any image or a text block, it will be highlighted in yellow and a “trash” icon will appear. Just click on this icon to delete anything that’s not necessary to the pattern! For example, you may decide to shorten the pattern by omitting the images or the list of materials. Then, just click on the “PRINT” button in the top, left-hand corner of the window!
I hope these instructions are useful.
All the best,
Lili
Hi there, I just casted on 30 stitches on 24″ circular needles and they are really stretched out. It’s impossible to knit. I am a new knitter and am wondering what I’m missing. Thanks for your help
Hi Barbara,
Thanks for reaching out! That is totally normal, when you first cast on, the stitches will be more condensed, but once you start knitting the stitches will comfortably stretch out over the needles!
I hope this helps and please let us know if you have any more questions!
Gianna
I am an experienced knitter and I found it impossible to make the connection for the circle with a 24 inch circular needle. I added 5 stitches and then it was possible. For the second one I purchased an 8 inch cable that connected to # 19 points. Cable was a little short but doable.
Love the yarn and the patterns! I have knitted 4 already and have 2 more to go! I made one for myself and have it on right now – it’s so soft and comfortable. Thanks for the inspiration!
Hello
This the mock cable rib is a beautiful stitch but the video tutorial does not match the written patter.
Hi Jacqueline,
Thanks for reaching out. You’re right that our Mock Cable Rib tutorial doesn’t match the written pattern, because it’s not the exact same stitch! This pattern is worked in the round, whereas the swatch in our tutorial is worked flat. The reason we provided a link to the tutorial, even though it’s different, is to demonstrate the right twist stitch used in the Spiral Rib version! I hope this clears things up.
All the best,
Lili
Loveliest design and very interesting technique! I would like to knit the SPIRAL RIB on straight needles, should I purl the RT on row 2 and 4 etc? Thank you!
Hi Margarita,
Thanks for reaching out. You can definitely knit the Spiral Rib stitch pattern flat on straight needles, but I would recommend doing it slightly differently! Instead of inverting Rows 2 and 4, I would invert Rows 1 and 2 instead. So on Rows 1 and 3, you would purl the knit stitches and knit the purl stitches. But you would keep Rows 2 and 4 the same. I hope this helps!
All the best,
Lili
Hello
Would you please tell me what does it mean to “Bind off in stitch pattern” ? Is this just the regular bind off in knit?
Thank you.
Hi Laurie,
Thanks for writing in! To bind off in stitch pattern simply means to follow the stitches as they are oriented to bind off, this will maintain the stitch pattern, so, if it is a knit stitch, you will knit it, if it is a purl stitch, you will purl it. For example, if you were making the 2×4 RIB COWL, to bind off in stitch pattern you would K2 pass first stitch off and over, p1, pass first stitch off and over, p1, pass first stitch off and over, p1, pass first stitch off and over, k1, pass first stitch off and over, k1, pass first stitch off and over and repeat until you have bound off every stitch following the stitch pattern.
I hope this helps clear things up!
Gianna
Hi,
I am trying to get my gauge swatch to work. When I knit with size 19 needles I get 6 stitches to 4 inches. When I knit with size 17 I get 7stitches in 4 inches. I can not find a size 18, 24 inch needle to purchase.
Hi Sue,
I’m sorry to hear that you’ve been having difficulty achieving gauge for this pattern! Have you blocked your swatches yet? I have a feeling that if you block the swatch knit up on the size 17 needles, then you’ll be able to stretch it horizontally a bit to achieve 6.5 stitches in 4 inches. Then, once you knit your cowl, you can block it in the same way, and it will come out to the correct size!
All the best,
Lili
Thanks Lili! That should work.
Sue
Hello! What does 6 ½ stitches means for the gauge. What is the ½?
Thank you for answering!
Love the patterns.
Hi Sylvie,
Thanks for reaching out! The gauge for this pattern means that there should be 6 1/2 stitches within 4 inches when knitting in stockinette stitch. The 1/2 is just half a stitch! It would appear as one side of the knit “V” stitch. Hope this helps clarify things!
All the best,
Lili
Hello there! I already sent a question but I think I might have made a mistake while sending it. So, in case, there it is:
I don’t understands what is the 1\2 in the 6 1\2 stitches in the gauge. Thank you for explaining.
Sylvie
Hi Sylvie,
I believe I just replied to your comment! My answer should appear right above this one, but please let me know if you still aren’t seeing it.
All the best,
Lili
Hi, Lili! I understand now! Thank’s a lot for turning on the light for me!
Take care now!
Sylvie
You’re very welcome, Sylvie!
All the best,
Lili
Hi there,
lovely patterns. But I have the same issue with the length of the recommended circular cable need as some others above. When I cast 30 stitches onto a US 19, 24 inch circular cable needle the stitches fill about half of the available cable length. There is absolutely no way to join in the round. I’m wondering if perhaps it was meant to be a 16 inch circular?
Thanks!
Hi Damara,
Thanks for reaching out, although I’m sorry to hear that you’re having trouble getting this pattern started! We knit our samples on 24″ circular needles, and while it did mean that the stitches felt pretty stretched around the needles at first, it was possible. If you have US 19 16″ circulars on hand though, you’re welcome to use them, and another option would be to use DPNs!
All the best,
Lili
I got all the gear to make 6 of these as gifts, but it seems the 24 in needles are way way too long! Am I missing something? PLEASE HELP! I’m really disappointed- was hoping to bang these out in time for delivery!
Hi Elizabeth,
Thank you for reaching out! We are sorry this seems to be giving you trouble but we can confirm that we used the 24″ cable to create each of these cowls. The stitches felt a bit tight at cast on but once you are a couple rounds in, they will become more comfortable to work with. If you have US 19 16″ circulars on hand though, you’re welcome to use those or DPNs if you have them!
Warmly,
Gavriella
I SEE! Ok – the needle tubing has to buckle for a few rounds. A bit awkward but not a big deal at all. I have not come across this challenge in my round-knitting adventures as of yet and now i know. Thanks!
Yes, that is exactly right! I am happy to help and please let us know if you have any other questions!