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Free Knitting Pattern: White Caps Cowl

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white caps copwl purl beeIt’s amazing what you can do with simple stitches and a well-chosen yarn. Or, in the case of the White Caps Cowl from the Purl Bee, a couple of well-chosen yarns.

This striking cowl is simple stockinette stitch, with a bit of shaping, but it looks like so much more than that thanks to the yarns: a slubby cotton yarn thick and thin and a smooth ribbon of silk. Alternating these two yarns not only makes stripes of color but of texture, and the slubby yarn and differing gauges means you get parts of the cowl that look more solid and parts that are more airy.

I love this piece in white but it would be lovely in any of the available colors. You could even amp up the contrast even more by choosing different colors in each fiber, if you wanted.

By the way, it turns out I’m not the only person in love with this piece: both of the yarns used to create it are out of stock at Purl Bee as I write this. Nothing wrong with being popular!

[Photo by the Purl Bee.]

Looking to buy your Yarn online? Check out these online yarn specials.

Specific to knitters, you can join our Knitting Patterns Only group to get, well, knitting patterns, ask questions and gain inspiration for what to knit next.

Check out these books dedicated to Knitted Cowl Patterns still looking for more cowl patterns? Check these out on Etsy.

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Practice Colorwork on a Cute Knit Bunny

Sometimes I feel like knitters get intimidated to try new things because they think they need to start with a big project. Your first time working in the round doesn’t need to be a sock, and your first colorwork doesn’t need to be a sweater, for example. You can find little projects that use the skills you want to learn to build your confidence before you move on to something that requires more time commitment.

This adorable knit bunny, for example.

The colorwork bunny from Knit Picks was designed by Amy Munson and is a kind of bowling pin shaped bunny complete with a knit hat, contrasting inner ears and a little stranded colorwork on its body. Note that the ears are attached the the hat not the bunny, but you could stitch them to the bunny if you’d rather.

It’s worked from the bottom up and also has a tiny pompom tail you can’t see in the picture but it’s a really cute touch. There are a variety of little fair isle patterns to choose from to make the best bunny for you.

The bunny comes out about 8 inches tall (or just over 20 cm) and use several colors to complete the colorwork, depending on the design you choose.

You can purchase the pattern by itself from Knit Picks, or make a kit that includes sport weight yarn in all the colors you need for your creation. There are gray and brown options for the main body of the bunny, but of course if you’re using your own yarn you can make it whatever color you like.

Once you’ve tried colorwork (maybe also working in the round and shaping if those are skills you haven’t used before) in a little project like this you’ll be ready to take on something bigger in no time.

Check out the pattern on Knit Picks.

[Photo: Knit Picks]