Hello and welcome to Patchwork House . . . . .
my little corner of the world in England, where you will find me addicted to colour and playing with yarn!


2 February 2020

Granny Stripe Cowl Tutorial

Due to popular demand, here is a tutorial 
about how I make a granny stripe cowl.
This tutorial uses 
UK crochet terms


A cowl is another name for a snood or neck warmer.
It's basically a neater way of wearing a scarf!
The cowl measures approximately 33cm/13 inches in depth 
and 31cm/12 inches in width when measured flat.


Basically you are going to make a tube of crochet,
 which when worn wrinkles nicely around your neck,
 filling out that awful gap in your coat where the wind gets in.
There's no need to tie it, or fold it just simply stick it on!
It can also be folded in half and worn like a polo neck if you prefer.


A striped cowl is perfect for using up yarn scraps,
 of as many different colours as you like!


You need a yarn which is soft and cosy
 and one that will be comfortable to wear against your skin.
I have chosen Stylecraft Bellissima,
 you can read my yarn review about it

You can buy 3 colours and repeat them throughout as in the picture below. 
This is Stylecraft Bellissima DK in flaming fuchsia, totally teal and sugar snap.


A rainbow made with your favourite shades,
is sure to cheer away the winter blues!
In the picture below I have used Stylecraft Bellissima DK
 in rio red, totally teal, flaming fuchsia, mellow yellow,
 papaya punch, purple passion, raspberry riot and sugar snap.



You will need approximately 130g of DK yarn,
the correct hook for the yarn, I used 4mm, scissors and a darning needle.


The completed cowl weighs approximately 130g in Stylecraft Bellissima DK.
Digital scales are your best friend when you are working with scraps!
I calculated that each 2 row stripe, used approximately 7g of yarn,
 so I had great fun weighing my scraps and working out which I could use.


A notebook is always a good idea too,
 to write down what you do so in future you can look back.


The cowl is made up of 17 stripes.
However look closely and you will see that the top and bottom stripes
 are made of 1 row of grannies, 1 row of dc 
and an edging, so I will refer to these as the top and bottom edgings.
 The middle 15 stripes are each made of 2 rows of grannies.


To begin the bottom edging use a hook larger than 4mm.
 This is to make sure the chain is not tight,
 as it would be uncomfortable at the bottom of the cowl.


Start with a stitch on your hook,
 being sure to leave a tail of about 
4 inches / 10cm for sewing in later.


Working loosely chain 96.
If you want a looser cowl add more,
if you want a tighter cowl make less,
 but you must always have a multiple of 3.

 

Add 1 extra chain for turning.


Now change to your 4mm hook,
then dc all the way along.


You are now going to join into a loop.
Making sure that your work is not twisted,
 place your hook in the first dc made,
 yarn over and pull through both loops.


Use a darning needle and the starting tail


to join the first and last chain.
Sew the end in and trim.


We are going to work in a round now
 which removes any need for sewing up at the end.

Start with 3 chain to replace the first treble
 and make 2 trebles in the same place.


Miss 2 dc
and make 3 trebles in the next stitch


Continue around your loop making groups of 3 trebles
 and missing 2 dc between.


When you get back to the beginning


join with a slip stitch into the 3rd chain


Pull yarn through again and fasten off,
 cutting the yarn with a log tail of approximately
 4 inches / 10cm for sewing in later.
Remember that the bottom edging only needs 1 round of granny trebles.
 The fancy edging will be added at the end.


TURN YOUR WORK.
Take a new colour, make a stitch on your hook
 and working from the back attach your yarn.


Make 3 chain to replace the first treble
 and 2 more trebles in the same space.


Continue making groups of 3 trebles in each space 
all the way along.


Join with a slip stitch into the 3rd chain
 and you have completed the first row of this new colour.


Make 3 chain


now turn your work.


Make 2 trebles in the same space


and continue along till you get back to the beginning.
 Slip stitch into the 3rd chain and fasten off the yarn.


It is best to be disciplined and deal with the ends as you go along!
You can see above there are 2 pink ends, that need to be
 woven into the pink stripe. I deal with these together.
 First run each end into the centre of the pink stripe
 where my needle is in the picture above.


Make a reef knot to secure the 2 ends.


Then together they can be woven into the pink stripe,
 using the whole length of the ends.
The picture above shows the wrong side of the work.

In the picture below you can see the wrong side of the work at the top
 and the right side of the work at the bottom.


Keep going adding as many stripes as you wish.
I have 15 stripes
plus a top and bottom edging
which looks like 17 stripes at first glance. 


After I had added 15 stripes,
 I them made the top edging to match the bottom one.

Begin with 1 round of grannies.
Complete the round and make 2 chain for the first dc.
Turn your work


Make 1 round of dc.


When you have completed this round
keep the work facing this way.
You have the right side facing now.


To edge the cowl I add the simple edging,
 which you may have used before from my blog.


Make 3 chain, dc in the same stitch


miss 1 stitch and slip stitch in the next.


Repeat.
3 chain dc in same stitch,
miss a stitch slip stitch in next.


Complete the round and fasten off the yarn.
As before you will have 2 tails the same colour.
Run them to the same point, make a reef knot to secure them,
 then weave them into the same colour stripe.


So now your cowl is complete at the top


Turn it around to add the simple edging on the bottom.

 

Make sure you work from the right side,
which is inside in this picture.


Make a stitch on your hook


attach the yarn in any dc from the first row


make 3 chain, dc in the same stitch
miss a stitch slip stitch in next dc


Continue around and fasten off yarn,
 weaving in the ends with a darning needle.


Turn your cowl inside out and tadaa
there you have a granny cowl!


Wear it wrinkled or folded,
 however you please.
It's sure to become a favourite in your wardrobe
 and I'm sure you will be making more than 1
 to match with different clothes!


and 
 are the same yarn
and combined this gives us a choice of 
29 fabulous shades to play with!


Have lots of colour fun!

If you have enjoyed this free tutorial
please consider making a small donation
 to keep The Patchwork Heart going.
Tutorials like this take days and days to make,
 time when I cannot be making items to sell and so not earning.
You will find a Paypal donate button
on the sidebar.



If you don't have time to make your own cowl,
 you will find many available to buy in my Etsy shop

Thank you.

Heather
x x x





4 comments:

Hazel said...

Great tutorial Heather! Love the colours x

selina said...


very generous tutorial & very beautiful neck warmers! such lovely colours!
also so very simple & elegant!

thanx for sharing

Teresa Halminton said...

Love your color choices! Thank you for the tutorials!
gmail email login

bizzie.lizzie.creations said...

Hello Heather! Thank you for inspiring me to use up my 'spare' yarn. After making some more complicated patterns, this granny cowl is perfect! I love the simple edging to finish the cowl off. I've used Bellisima for a baby blanket. You're right; it's a lovely yarn.
I follow you on Facebook and love the fact you match your makes to your mugs. Happy hooking! Best wishes Lizz

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