Hawke Cowl Knitting Pattern

Hawke Cowl in Rowan Island Blend Fine

What is Being Made

The Hawke Cowl is a circular knitted cowl designed by Martin Storey for Rowan. This intermediate-level project creates a finished cowl measuring 70.5 cm (27¾ inches) all around with a depth of 31.5 cm (12½ inches). The cowl is worked in the round using a seamless construction method, making it an ideal accessory for adding warmth and style to any wardrobe.

Knitting Techniques Used

The Hawke Cowl employs several key knitting techniques to achieve its finished design:

• Two-Colour Rib: The cowl begins and ends with a two-colour rib pattern that creates a textured, elastic edge. This rib is worked for 10 rounds at both the cast-on and cast-off edges, providing structure and definition to the cowl's boundaries.
• Fairisle Technique: The main body of the cowl features a fairisle colour pattern worked entirely in stockinette stitch. This traditional technique involves stranding yarn not in use across the wrong side of the work, allowing multiple colours to be incorporated into a single round without cutting the yarn.
• Circular Knitting: The entire project is worked in the round using a circular needle, eliminating the need for seaming and creating a seamless, professional finish.

Stitches Used

The Hawke Cowl utilizes fundamental knitting stitches combined in strategic ways:

• Knit Stitch (K): Used throughout the fairisle patterned sections, with every round worked in knit stitch to create stockinette stitch in the round.
• Purl Stitch (P): Incorporated into the two-colour rib sections, alternating with knit stitches to create the textured rib pattern.
• Fairisle Patterning: The main design features a repeating 6-stitch pattern repeat that is worked 33 times around each round. An 18-round pattern repeat from the provided chart is repeated 4 times in total, followed by rounds 1 through 9 of the chart again, creating a cohesive colour-work design.

Materials and Tools

The Hawke Cowl is worked using Rowan Island Blend Fine yarn, a premium yarn choice that provides excellent stitch definition for colour-work projects. The pattern calls for three yarn colours:

• Yarn A (Vellum 101): 2 x 50gm balls
• Yarn B (Tungsten 110): 2 x 50gm balls
• Yarn C (Wedgewood 103): 1 x 50gm ball

The project requires a single 3¼mm (US 3) circular needle, no more than 50 cm in length. The shorter needle length is essential for working the cowl in the round without excessive fabric bunching.

Tension and Finished Dimensions

The pattern is designed to be worked at a tension of 28 stitches and 32 rounds to 10 cm when measured over the fairisle pattern using 3¼mm (US 3) needles. Achieving the correct tension is critical for ensuring the cowl reaches its intended finished dimensions and drapes properly when worn. The completed cowl measures 70.5 cm all around with a depth of 12½ inches, making it a generous, versatile accessory suitable for various styling options.

Skill Level and Construction Overview

Rated as an intermediate project, the Hawke Cowl is suitable for knitters with foundational skills who are comfortable working with circular needles and colour techniques. The pattern combines the relatively straightforward two-colour rib with fairisle colour-work, offering an excellent opportunity to develop or refine colour-knitting skills. The seamless in-the-round construction and the use of stranding techniques rather than intarsia methods make this a manageable introduction to more advanced colour-work projects.