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Rosebud Shawl
Scattered with delicate petals that seem to float above its surface, our Rosebud Shawl pattern brings out the luminous beauty of our new hand-dyed Goldenberry Alpaca yarn, cloud-soft and captivatingly aglow.
The unusual shape of this shawl could be described as a triangular shawl without the bottom tip, or for geometry whizzes, picture an isosceles trapezoid. Either way, it’s very beautiful and a delight to wear! You’ll start your shawl along the short side, then increase at either end to shape that trapezoid. Follow written instructions or a simple chart as you watch new rosebuds emerge in staggered rows.
The textured buds themselves are surprisingly easy to knit with straightforward increases and decreases, far simpler than bobbles. The joy of watching them bloom against a reverse stockinette background will carry you happily along… Surely you have time to finish just one more repeat? The incredible hand-dyed colors of Goldenberry Alpaca add even more fascination, making each floret as unique as one rose is from its fellows on the bush.
A dreamy single ply of softest baby alpaca suffused with a halo of light, Goldenberry Alpaca knits up into a soft, opulent fabric with flowing drape, perfect for this elegant shawl. The yarn readily absorbs color on its surface while leaving a subtle warm white core that illuminates each color from within. You’ll need six skeins to knit the larger size, or just three to make a smaller scarf.
Choose from a palette of 19 hand-dyed colors from rosy Vintage Pink to radiant Yellow Sultana and cast on for your own Rosebud Shawl. Every skein is a one-of-a-kind treasure, holding layers of beauty waiting to be revealed… Yours to enjoy, stitch by stitch!
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!
Pattern designed and written by Purl Soho designer, Hiromi Glover. See even more of Hiromi’s work on her Instagram!
Story written by Andrea Lotz for Purl Soho.
Want to print this pattern? On desktop, find the “print” icon in the right margin, and on mobile, scroll to the end of the pattern for it. Use the on-screen instructions to remove anything you don’t want to print!
Materials
- 3 (6) skeins of Purl Soho’s Goldenberry Alpaca, 100% baby alpaca yarn. Each skein of this light worsted/dk-weight yarn is 219 yards/ 100 grams; approximately 610 (1205) total yards required. We used the colors Yellow Sultana and Mauve Quartz.
- US 5 (3.75 mm), 40- or 47-inch circular knitting needles
GAUGE
19 stitches and 32 rows = 4 inches in stitch pattern
SIZES
Scarf (Shawl)
- Finished Length of Long Side: 50¼ (73) inches
- Finished Length of Short Side: 27½ (42¾) inches
- Finished Width: 13½ (18) inches
SAMPLES: The Yellow Sultana sample is the Scarf size and the Mauve Quartz one is the Shawl.
NOTES
STITCH MULTIPLE
This pattern is worked over a multiple of 6 plus 5 stitches.
SLIP STITCHES
On right side: Slip stitches knitwise with yarn in back (wyib).
On wrong side: Slip stitches purlwise with yarn in back (wyib).
INC4 (INCREASE 4)
[K1, yarn over (yo), k1, yo, k1] into next stitch. [4 stitches increased]
Tip: As you work into the stitch, leave it on the left needle until you’ve finished the final k1, at which point you can allow the stitch to come off the needle.
DEC4 (DECREASE 4)
Slip 3 stitches together knitwise, knit two together (k2tog), pass the slipped stitches together over the k2tog-stitch and off the needle. [4 stitches decreased]
PATTERN
BEGIN
Cast on 131 (203) stitches. We used a basic Long Tail Cast On.
Set-Up Row (wrong side): Slip 1 (see Notes), knit to last stitch, p1.
Work Rosebud Pattern either from Written Instructions or Chart, both below.
ROSEBUD PATTERN: WRITTEN INSTRUCTIONS
NOTE: On Row 1 of this pattern, the total stitch count increases by 4 stitches for every INC4 worked. This increase in stitches is temporary because on Row 5, the total stitch count decreases by 4 for every DEC4 worked. Between Rows 1 and 5, these INC4 stitches will be counted as 1 stitch.
Row 1 (right side): Slip 1 (see Notes), yarn over (yo), p1, *INC4 (see Notes), p5, repeat from * to last 3 stitches, INC4, p1, yo, p1. [2 stitches increased]
Row 2 (wrong side): Slip 1, k1 through back loop (k1 tbl), k1, *p5, k5, repeat from * to last 8 stitches, p5, k1, k1 tbl, p1.
Row 3: Slip 1, yo, p2, *k5, p5, repeat from * to last 8 stitches, k5, p2, yo, p1. [2 stitches increased]
Row 4: Slip 1, k1 tbl, k2, *p5, k5, repeat from * last 9 stitches, p5, k2, k1 tbl, p1.
Row 5: Slip 1, yo, p3, *DEC4 (see Notes), p5, repeat from * to last 9 stitches, DEC4, p3, yo, p1. [2 stitches increased]
Row 6: Slip 1, k1 tbl, k to last 2 stitches, k1 tbl, p1.
Repeat Rows 1–6 seventeen (23) more times. [239 (347) stitches; 39 (57) Rosebuds]
Go on to Finishing section below.
ROSEBUD PATTERN: CHART
NOTE: New to reading charts? Learn everything you need to know with our Reading A Chart Tutorial!
Starting in the bottom right corner of the Chart below, work right-side (odd number) rows from right to left and wrong-side (even number) rows from left to right.
NOTE: On Row 1 of this pattern, the total stitch count increases by 4 stitches for every INC4 worked. This increase in stitches is temporary because on Row 5, the total stitch count decreases by 4 for every DEC4 worked. Between Rows 1 and 5, these INC4 stitches will be counted as 1 stitch.
Work Rows 1–6 eighteen (24) times. [239 (347) stitches; 39 (57) Rosebuds]
KEY
CHART
NOTE: Want to see it bigger? Download these charts (and key) as a PDF!
FINISHING
With right side facing you, bind off knitwise.
Weave in the ends and gently wet block.
Share your progress and connect with the community by tagging your pics with #PurlSoho. We can’t wait to see what you make!
Learn About Goldenberry Alpaca + All Our Beautiful Yarns
Goldenberry Alpaca brings hand-dyed beauty to this project! A light worsted/DK weight yarn, it is a luminous single ply of softest baby alpaca with a delicate, cloud-like halo. Goldenberry Alpaca glows with a warm white core that shines through shifting tones, adding movement and depth to a hand-dyed palette of colors drawn from nature’s treasures. Knit elegant fabric where light and shadow flow across every row, revealing luminous depth stitch by stitch!
More Free Knitting Patterns
- Be sure to explore our growing collection of Goldenberry Alpaca knitting patterns and cast on!
More Light Worsted/DK-Weight Yarns
- Shop our entire collection of light worsted/DK-weight yarns (What does DK-weight yarn mean, really? Our guide to DK yarn will answer your questions and demystify.)
- 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 and our Yarn Substitution article for lots of helpful information.
More Yarns With Similar Fiber
- Shop alpaca yarn
- Shop hand-dyed yarn
Looking for more inspiration? Explore all of our knitting patterns (including tons of 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!
Love this shawl, Rosebud pattern. How can I make it longer for a better fit for me?
Hi Charlene,
We’re so thrilled this pattern caught your eye! That’s a great question! To make this project longer, you can repeat the six rows of the Rosebud Pattern (Rows 1 – 6) more times until the project reaches your preferred length. We hope you have fun knitting this shawl!
Kind regards,
Cat
This is so gorgeous. Yarn, pattern, photography, everything 💛. A treat for the eyes.
Hi Francesca,
Thank you so much for your super kind comment, we truly appreciate it! We hope you give this project a try!
Kind regards,
Cat
Merci pour ce fabuleux modèle.
Ce point de bouton de rose est splendide. J’ai des pelotes qui n’attendaient que ce point pour être tricotées.
Bon dimanche.
Hi Cleo,
We are so happy you love this design as much as we do! Happy knitting, friend!
All the best,
Gavriella
Do you have a tutorial for the INC4 and DEC4 in the Rosebud Shawl? Thanks – ginny
Hi Ginny,
We don’t currently have video tutorials for these stitches but we’d be happy to help walk you through exactly how these stitches are done. The INC4 is created by Knitting a stitch and leaving it on your needle, yarn over, insert your needle again into the same stitch to k1 also leaving it on your needle, yo once more leaving all loops on your needle, and then k1 once more into the same stitch. This will create 4 new stitches for a total of 5 stitches knit into the same stitch. From here you can find the DEC4 stitch instructions written out the NOTES section of the pattern. I hope this helps!
All the best,
Gavriella
I tried this stitch and I am doing something wrong. When I do the return row after, the stitches just fall and are elongated and loose. I need a video. I can’t figure it out. I am knitting into same stitch and then pulling it off.
Hi Andrea!
Thank you for writing in! I’m sorry to hear this stitch is giving you trouble. It can definitely feel tricky at first. We’d be happy to walk you through it! You can email us at [email protected] for help, or you can sign up for our free 1-On-1 Help, which is a scheduled Zoom call with one of our experts. I’m sure we can get you back on track in no time!
Warmly,
Megan
Good Morning- would this pattern work to mix in a skein of tussock or would it get lost in the alpaca? Beautiful pattern-thanks!
Hi Kerry,
You could definitely use a skein of Tussock for an added halo but we found the Goldenberry did just the trick.
Happy knitting,
Gavriella
Hi..I would like to use season alpaca, sport weight for the beautiful rosebud shawl. Would i still use a US 5 needle?
Hi Janet,
I’d recommend going down a needle size to accommodate for the thinner strands. From there you can modify your stitch count by casting multiple of 6 plus 5 stitches for a larger or smaller size shawl. I hope this helps!
All the best,
Gavriella
Hi! How can I do this pattern for a scarf?
Hi Vanessa,
Thanks so much for asking! To work this pattern as a scarf, simply cast on a multiple of 6 stitches and follow the repeat section of the stitch pattern chart, leaving out the increases. I hope this helps, and happy knitting!
Happy knitting!
Gavriella
I love this pattern and have made a beautiful smaller scarf that is warm and wonderful – and gets tons of compliments.
Is there a way to modify it into a rectangle to make a blanket in this pattern? Or does the rosebud placement depend on the increases?
Hi Emmy!
Thank you for writing in — we’re so happy to hear how much you’ve enjoyed the pattern, and that your scarf is getting so many compliments!
Yes, you can turn this into a rectangular blanket. The rosebud placement in the original does rely on the shaping from the increases, but you can absolutely recreate the look in a flat rectangle by following the chart and staggering the rosebuds manually. As long as you cast on a multiple of 6 + 5 stitches, the stitch pattern will line up correctly.
If you’d like help planning out the repeat for your blanket size, we’re happy to walk through the adjustments with you!
Warmly,
Megan