Sprinkle Cowl
Fluffy as a cloud and dappled with hand-dyed color, our free Sprinkle Cowl pattern is perfectly plush in Pepper, our joyful, new 100% superwash merino yarn.
Pepper’s pearlescent luster is on display in this simple dimensional stitch pattern that covers the fabric in diagonal clusters. You’ll have the 4-round repeat memorized in no time, and two of those four rounds are just knitting!
Textural stitch patterns are one of our favorite ways to use hand-dyed yarns… They’re just the thing to break up pools and make every stitch a surprise!
Not too thick and not too thin at a light worsted/DK weight, this yarn is made in Peru from Uruguayan superwash merino fleeces, some of the most beautiful in the world (and indeed, “superwash” means you can machine wash your finished knit!). A single-ply spin preserves the incredible softness of the fiber, as wonderful to knit as it is to wear.
Pepper’s whimsical palette is made by sprinkling dye onto a creamy white base. Three cool shades give this Cloudy Sky colorway its mesmerizing depth, or choose from eight other inspiring hand-dyed colors. You’ll need two skeins for a cowl that goes once around your neck, or four skeins for the twice-around version shown here.
Perfect as a gift or as a delightful treat for yourself, our super soft Sprinkle Cowl is a wonderful scattered shower of color!
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, Hiromi Glover. See even more of Hiromi’s work on her Instagram!
Share your progress and connect with the community by tagging your pics with #PurlSoho, #PurlSohoBusyHands, #PurlSohoSprinkleCowl, and #PurlSohoPepper. We can’t wait to see what you make!
Materials
- 2 (4) skeins of Purl Soho’s Pepper, 100% superwash merino wool yarn. Each skein of this light worsted/dk-weight yarn is 218 yards/ 100 grams; approximately 370 (872) total yards required. We used the color Cloudy Sky.
- US 7 (4.5 mm), 16- or 40-inch circular needles, depending on size you are making
- A stitch marker or scrap yarn
NOTE: We used every last yard for our Twice-Around version, so if you definitely want your cowl to be exactly 11 inches tall, consider ordering an extra skein. If you don’t end up needing it, you can return unwound yarn for a refund within 30 days of purchase, or within 6 months for store credit. Our Return Policy has all the details!
GAUGE
25 stitches and 36 rounds = 4 inches in stitch pattern
SIZES
Once-Around (Twice-Around)
Finished Dimensions: 23 (58) inches circumference x 11 inches tall
Sample: We knit the Twice-Around version.
NOTES
STITCH MULTIPLE
This pattern is worked over a multiple of 2 stitches.
PATTERN
Cast on 144 (362) stitches. We used a basic Long Tail Cast On.
TIP: If you’re casting on for the Twice-Around cowl, it really helps to place a marker or piece of scrap yarn every 50 stitches. That way, when you lose count (which you will!), you won’t have to recount all the stitches. Just remember to remove these markers when you work the first round.
Place a stitch marker and join for working in the round, being careful not to twist the stitches.
Round 1: Knit to end of round.
Round 2: *Knit 2 together (k2tog), leaving stitches on left needle, bring yarn to front of work and purl 2 together (p2tog) through same stitches, drop stitches from left needle, repeat from * to end of round.
Round 3: Repeat Round 1.
Round 4: K1, *k2tog, leaving stitches on left needle, bring yarn to front of work and p2tog through same stitches, drop stitches from left needle, repeat from * to last stitch, k1.
Repeat Rounds 1–4 until piece measures 11 inches from cast-on edge, ending with Round 4.
Bind off knitwise.
FINISHING
Weave in the ends and gently wet block.
LEARN ABOUT PEPPER + ALL OUR BEAUTIFUL YARNS
A plush, single-ply yarn like Pepper is perfect for this project, with its luminous glow and incredible softness. 100% superwash merino wool (yes, that means you can put it in the washing machine!), Pepper knits up at a sport to light worsted/DK weight, with surprising pops of hand-sprinkled color to charm you all along the way. Cast on with this zesty delight!
More Free Knitting Patterns
- Be sure to explore our growing collection of free Pepper knitting patterns and cast on!
More Light Worsted/DK-Weight Yarns
- Shop our entire collection of light worsted/DK-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 superwash wool yarn
- Shop machine washable yarn
- Shop merino wool 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!
Regarding the stitch pattern!
Do you literally drop the stitch off after purling in the same stitch & not put it on the right hand needle?
Hi Diane,
Thank you for your question! After you purl those two stitches together, you can let them fall off the left hand needle. Because you knit and purled them together, the stitches that result from that will now be on the right hand needle, meaning that those two stitches on the left hand needle will not be going anywhere after they leave the left hand needle!
I hope this helps, and please let us know if you have any other questions!
All the best,
Cat
Is there a tutorial for this? I am confused about the purl. Do you only purl the two stitches that you just knit together? Is this a decrease? Thank you for your beautiful, free patterns, I’ve created many beautiful gifts thanks to PurlSoho.
Hi Lisa,
Great question! While we haven’t made a tutorial for this stitch, it’s called the rosette stitch, so you will definitely be able to find some great visualizations online by searching that name. You are working both a k2tog and a p2tog into the same two stitches, so it actually does not decrease at all! You start with 2 stitches, work a k2tog into those (creating 1 stitch) and then work a p2tog into the same 2 stitches (creating a second stitch). Hope this helps clarify things!
All the best,
Lili
Sorry – but the pattern makes no sense. If you knit 2 together, you have only ONE stitch to pass back to the I’m left needle. So how do you somehow purl the same two stitches together?
Also if you keep knitting two stitches together across, your piece will keep getting smaller.
In order to keep the same number of working stitches, after you knit two together, you’d have to create a stitch somehow. Make 1R or L, or knit front and back. You could yarn over, but that would make a more lacy effect, which doesn’t show in your finished sample.
So please re-write to clarify, and publish the corrections.
Thank you.
Hi Vie,
Thanks for writing in, and I’m happy to help explain how this stitch pattern works! You are working both a k2tog and a p2tog into the same two stitches, so it actually does not decrease at all. You start with 2 stitches, work a k2tog into those (creating 1 stitch) and then work a p2tog into the same 2 stitches (creating a second stitch). Hope this helps clarify things!
All the best,
Lili
Can I cast on less stitches, as long as it is an even number, to make the cowl a little tighter fit? Sometimes the finished cowls are too floppy for me.
Hi Suzanne,
That is correct! You will just want to make sure you are working over any multiple of two!
Happy making,
Gavriella
Hi there, I have been practicing trying to get a handle on the pattern, however my knits and purls are so tight that I can hardly get my needle in my work! Do you have any recommendations? It seems to happen every single time I start over. Thank you so much!! Lucy
Hi Lucy,
It sounds like you may be pulling your working yarn a bit too tight on the k/p2tog stitches. I’d recommend swatching while trying to loosen your tension to see if that helps. Another thing you could try is going up a needle size for your project. I hope this helps!
All the best,
Gavriella
Researching the “rosette” stitch online, most videos Purl 2 together then Knit 2 together. But for the Sprinkle Cowl, the instructions are to knit 2 stitches and then purl 2 in the same stitch. Just making sure I am reading this correctly. I can’t wait to begin!
addendum – realizing I am knitting in the same stitch irrespective of whether the purl 2 OR knit 2 begins the stitch. Just making sure that the knit 2 is indeed first.
Hi Kristie,
Thank you for writing in! That is correct, you will indeed work a k2tog first!
Happy knitting,
Gavriella
Can it be knit flat?
Hi Annie,
To knit the pattern flat, you can follow the instructions for our Snowflake Scarf!
Happy making,
Gavriella
Hi Gavriella!
Thank-you so much for your reply!
I will defiantly do the Snowflake scarf!
Sincerely, Annie
You are very welcome!