Stash Potion Cowl & Scarf

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Concoct a little stash-busting magic with this texture- and colour-shifting design!

Use up your odds-and-ends of worsted- and fingering-weight yarn to make a cowl or scarf that’s as mesmerising to look at as it is cozy to wear. Seed, basketweave, and half-basketweave stitch alternate for subtle changes in texture. Colours grade as you move from one yarn end to the next, especially if you incorporate self-patterned or colour-shifting yarns. Or choose a solid colour and let the texture shine.

Knit flat (back and forth) to desired length, then bind off for the scarf or graft for the cowl. Gauge is flexible, just like this pattern!

So dig into your stash and cast on today!

PROJECT LEVEL: Advanced Beginner

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Digital download includes:

PDF (standard) - best for printing or for sighted knitters

See “Accessibility” for more information about file types.

About Design

Construction

Scarf and cowl are worked by casting on at one end and working back and forth. Scarf is bound off. Cowl is grafted to cast on stitches.

Variants

Single- or double-wrap cowl
Scarf

Sizes

Single-wrap cowl: 30 inches (or 75 cm)
Double-wrap cowl & scarf: 60 inches (or 150 cm)

Supplies

Yarn

This pattern is designed to use up bits of common yarn weights you probably have in your stash. To do that, choose a combination of one of the following, which will be held together and knit on chunky needles:

2 worsted-weight yarns
1 worsted-weight yarn and 2 fingering-weight yarns
4 fingering-weight yarns

You will need approximately 250 yards (or 229 metres) of the bundled yarn for the double-wrap 60-inch (or 150-cm) cowl or scarf (half this for the single). In other words, each yarn in the yarn bundle will need 250 yards (or 229 metres). (E.g., if you use 2 worsted-weight yarns, you will need 250 yards [or 229 metres] of each strand, not a total of that much.)

Because different fibres have different weights, I can’t include an accurate weight to go by. You’ll have to do the math. But if you have plenty of stash yarn to choose from, just keep going until you finish the pattern.

Yarns can all be the same colour (if you have enough), or you can create a fun colour shift by working in different colours as you go. Variegated or self-patterning yarns add another twist. Have fun with it! That’s why it’s a potion!

(Just to give you some idea, if you want to use two worsted strands, you will likely need between 250 to 300 grams of yarn. My multicolour sample, which was made with four strands of wool-blend sock yarns from various manufacturers, weighs 323 grams.)

Needles

10.0 mm (or US 15) straight needles. (12 inches [or 30 cm] long is best.)

Notions

Yarn needle

Gauge:

12 to 12.25 stitches and 17 rows = 4 inches (10 cm) over stockinette stitch. Gauge is not extremely important for this pattern.

About Samples

Multicoloured Cowl:

Four strands of wool-blend sock yarns from various manufacturers held together. Colourways shifted throughout the cowl. Overall, more than eight different yarns were used.

Variant: Double-wrap cowl

Black Scarf:

Two strands Bernat Satin Solids held together, a 100% acrylic aran-weight yarn with 183 metres (or 200 yards) in 100 grams (or 3.53 ounces) that works up to 18 stitches in 4 inches (or 10 cm) on 5.0 mm (US 8) needles. Used most of four balls.

Colourway: Ebony
Variant: Scarf

Techniques & Resources

Skills you will need:

Knit
Purl
Make a gauge swatch in stockinette stitch

All other required stitches are explained.

Techniques used:

Included resources:

A comprehensive list of links to online tutorials on my website for necessary skills. Tutorials are screen-reader accessible, with instructions relayed fully in text, and also include videos and downloadable photo tutorials.
Full glossary
Written instructions

Publishing Information

Release Date: 2019

Publisher: My Secret Wish Publishing

Knitting pattern type: Multiple Design Options, Multiple Yarn Weight Options

Project type: Cowl, Scarf

Page Count: 5

COPYRIGHT AND LICENSING NOTICE: This pattern is copyright My Secret Wish by Talena. Your purchase of this pattern gives you the right to use it for personal, non-profit use only. To license the pattern to use for profit, please e-mail me for permission. You do NOT have the right to print the pattern for other people (unless they reside in your household) or to transfer the digital file to any other person. This pattern may not be sold, copied, or distributed in any way.

Update History

May 31, 2023:

Revised formatting of PDF to align with current template style.
Clarified language where necessary.
Converted PDF to be screen reader accessible.
Updated URLs for new store and social links.

You will get a PDF (2MB) file

FAQs

Your instant download is a ZIP folder containing your pattern files.
If you need help unzipping and accessing your downloaded files, see the instructions on this page: Access Downloaded Files.
It is impossible to accept returns on digital items. However, I want you to be happy with your purchase, so if you are dissatisfied for any reason, please contact me and I will do my best to see that you are.
All Formats
Colour Blind Accessible: All text is black or very high-contrast, and no colour is used to relay pattern instructions.
Left-Handed Mirror Knitting Inclusive: Instructions are given in terms of hand dominance and working needles, not right and left hands.

Please check the pattern description to see which of the following apply to this design.
PDF (standard)
- This document can be navigated using bookmarks that link directly to various sections.
- All images have ALT-text descriptions.
- Fonts are embedded in the document, and it retains its original formatting.
- Any charts are also fully written out.
- Text uses minimal abbreviations to make the pattern easier to understand, and is written in plain language.
- Best for printing or sighted knitters.
PDF (Screen Reader Accessible Large-Print)
This document is a screen-reader-accessible PDF which can be read aloud using text-to-speech options and navigated via document headers. However, fonts may not be embedded and may display improperly. The document uses Verdana font at minimum 24 points. All text is in a single column and left-justified with no italics. Text uses plain language with no abbreviations.
All images have ALT-text descriptions. Any charts are also fully written out. If this pattern contains charts, they are at an appropriate scale for Large Print. If the chart is large and will need to be pieced from several pages, the chart will be available separately.
The document was tested using Adobe Reader on a PC and an Android phone.
Plain-Language EPUB
This document has been edited so text makes sense and flows smoothly when read aloud, and no abbreviations are used. Each section is bookmarked as a chapter. It can be read aloud by an eReader or the font can be resized using eReader settings. The pattern sections can be read straight through without having to return to earlier sections unless you need to refer to something such as a note, technique, or stitch explanation. All images have captions to explain context, but they are not necessary to understand the pattern. If the pattern includes charts, large-scale charts are also available in a separate Large-Print PDF, and all charted instructions are also written out.
EBooks are tested on a Windows PC (using the free Calibre e-reader, which you can get on their website here) and an Android phone using the Google Play Books app.
I’m here to help. If you have questions about this item or your transaction or you need pattern support, please contact me, and I'll get back to you as soon as possible. – Talena

Talena Winters wears a textured scarf and smiles at the camera.

About My Secret Wish Knitting

Hi! I’m Talena Winters (a.k.a. the Yarn Mermaid).

I started My Secret Wish Knitting in 2010 to empower and delight knitting heroes like you who want to elevate your knitting and make magic with yarn. When I’m not concocting new yarn potion recipes, I’m creating story magic as a fantasy and romance author and fiction editor (at talenawinters.com). I live with my family and pets in the Peace Country of northern Alberta, Canada, where sweater weather lasts at least nine months a year and my closest neighbours are bears and wood nymphs.

This website is a labour of love by a team of one (me!). If you found value here, please support the effort by purchasing a pattern. If you want more knitting magic, check out my community events and newsletter in the Knitting Circle. We’d love to have you!