Flowerfield Hand Towel

Cheerful blocks of color, like the orderly rows of a flower farm in bloom, grow across our Flowerfield Hand Towel. This free knitting pattern’s bouquet of color comes courtesy of Cotton Chirp, our 100% Peruvian Pima cotton yarn, packaged in 4-color bundles of colorful mini balls!

You’ll work your towels with a simple slip-stitch pattern, alternating colors every two rows. The right side ends up with a waffle-y checkered look, while the back has a lovely nubble… Marvelously touchable from both sides!

As you knit, you’ll create a super neat, super easy I-cord edge along each side. It’s totally straightforward and only requires some slip stitches. You’ll finish off with an I-cord loop for hanging, with our helpful I-cord Tutorial to walk you through it.

Cotton Chirp makes an ideal hand towel: non-mercerized for better absorbency and made from exceptional Pima cotton, which is beloved for its softness, durability, and luster, and it’s machine wash- and dry-able, too!

A pleasing light worsted/DK weight that works up quickly, Cotton Chirp is also super fun to knit. It is wonderfully soft in your hands, and its colors are so cute, you won’t want to stop knitting until you get to the next one. 

Each Flowerfield Hand Towel is made with one vivid, 4-color bundle of Cotton Chirp mini balls, plus one 100-gram ball of Heirloom White, and you’ll use up every last yard… Always a satisfying finish!

Pick from our 8 cheerful Cotton Chirp bundles for your Flowerfield Hand Towel and cast on to be transported to a colorful oasis of brilliant blooms every time you dry your hands!

If you love the yarn used in this project, you’ll love all of our other yarn, too! Explore our 35+ lovingly created yarn collections, in nearly every natural fiber and spectacular color you can imagine… Only available here at Purl Soho’s online yarn shop!

Designed by Purl Soho designer, Gianna Mueller. See more of Gianna’s designs on her Instagram!

Share your progress and connect with the community by tagging your pics with #PurlSoho, #PurlSohoBusyHands, #PurlSohoFlowerfieldHandTowel, and #PurlSohoCottonChirp. We can’t wait to see what you make!

Materials

To make one Flowerfield Hand Towel, you will need…

• Main Color (MC): 1 ball of Purl Soho’s 100-gram Cotton Chirp, 100% Peruvian Pima cotton yarn. Each ball of this light worsted/DK weight yarn is 232 yards/ 100g; approximately 232 yards required. NOTE: The 100-gram size only comes in Heirloom White.
• Contrast Colors 1–4: 1 of Purl Soho’s Cotton Chirp Bundles, 100% Peruvian Pima cotton. Each bundle includes four 58-yard, 25-gram balls of light worsted/DK weight yarn; approximately 232 total yards required. We used the Wild Poppy, Mint Citrus, and Ebb Tide bundles.
• US 5 (3.75 mm), straight or 24-inch circular knitting needles
• If using straight needles: Two US 5 double pointed needles for I-Cord

GAUGE

23 stitches and 43 rows = 4 inches in stitch pattern

NOTE: We used every last yard for our hand towels! To avoid running short, be sure to check your gauge, avoid cutting your swatch yarn and reuse it, and keep tails short.

SIZE

Finished Dimensions: Approximately 15 inches wide x 25½ inches long

NOTES

SLIP STITCHES

Slip all stitches purlwise with yarn in front.

STITCH MULTIPLE

This stitch works over an odd number of stitches.

PATTERN

With Main Color (MC) and using a basic Long Tail Cast On, cast on 85 stitches.

Set Up Row (wrong side): Slip 2 (see Notes), purl to last two stitches, slip 2.

Drop MC, but do not cut yarn.

Join Contrast Color 1 (CC1).

*Row 1 (right side): With CC1, k3, *slip 1, k1, repeat from * to last 2 stitches, k2.

Row 2: With CC1, slip 2, purl to last two stitches, slip 2.

Rows 3 and 4: With MC, repeat Rows 1 and 2.

Repeat Rows 1–4 sixteen more times, or until piece measures approximately 6½ inches from cast-on edge, ending with Row 4.**

Cut CC1 and join CC2.

Using CC2 instead of CC1, repeat from * to ** one time.

Cut CC2 and join CC3.

Using CC3 instead of CC1, repeat from * to ** one time.

Cut CC3 and join CC4.

Using CC4 instead of CC1, repeat from * to ** one time.

Cut CC4.

With MC, bind off knitwise to last 2 stitches, k2, leaving 3 stitches on right needle.

MAKE I-CORD

With remaining 3 stitches, work an I-Cord for 3 inches.

Bind-Off Row (right side): K1, knit 2 together, pass first stitch over second stitch and off right needle.

Cut yarn, leaving an 8-inch tail. Pull it through remaining stitch.

Thread tail onto a tapestry needle. Make a loop with I-cord and weave tail into fabric at base of I-cord, then weave it through looped I-cord, and back into fabric.

Weave in remaining ends and block as desired.

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!