Arpeggio Cowl
Our Nine-Note Bundles always strike a beautiful chord, and with the rhythmic texture of our Arpeggio Cowl, each rising note has its moment to shine.
This cowl has loads of beauty and character packed into a very simple, beginner-friendly combination of knits and purls.
Stitches work together in an easy six-row progression, creating cascading triangles that rise and fall across the fabric’s surface… Movement which highlights the color shifts of our extraordinary Nine-Note Bundles.
Each Nine-Note Bundle is a carefully calibrated scale of nine skeins, ranging from very pale to very saturated. The fiber is an incredibly soft mix of 80% extra fine merino and 20% baby alpaca, which lends the perfect warmth and drape for a wrapped cowl.
We now have nine gorgeous Nine-Note palettes, including this punchy Pomelo and fresh-flower Begonia, so cast on and strike a chord with your favorite!
Designed by Purl Soho designer, Keith Foster. Click here to see even more of Keith’s work!
Share your progress and connect with the community by tagging your pics with #PurlSoho, #PurlSohoBusyHands, #PurlSohoArpeggioCowl, and #PurlSohoNineNoteBundle. We can’t wait to see what you make!
Materials
A Purl Soho Nine-Note Bundle, which includes…
- 9 skeins of 80% extra fine merino wool and 20% baby alpaca yarn. Each skein is 100 yards/ 50 grams; approximately 710 yards required. We used the colors Pomelo and Begonia. NOTE: This yarn is only available in the Nine-Note Bundle.
You will also need…
- US 6 (4 mm), 32-inch circular needles
- Stitch marker
GAUGE
21 stitches and 36 rounds = 4 inches in Stitch Pattern (see Notes)
SIZE
Finished Dimensions: Approximately 12 inches high x 55 inches in circumference
NOTES
COLORS A–I
The darkest color skein is Color A; the next darkest skein is Color B; the next darkest skein is Color C, and so on to the lightest color skein, Color I.
STITCH PATTERN
Written Instructions
Worked over a multiple of 6 stitches, in the round.
Round 1: *K5, p1, repeat from * to end of round.
Round 2: P1, *k3, p3, repeat from * to last 5 stitches, k3, p2.
Round 3: P2, *k1, p5, repeat from * to last 4 stitches, k1, p3.
Round 4: K2, *p1, k5, repeat from * to last 4 stitches, p1, k3.
Round 5: K1, *p3, k3, repeat from * to last 5 stitches, p3, k2.
Round 6: *P5, k1, repeat from * to end of round.
Work Rounds 1–6 for pattern.
Chart Instructions
NOTE: New to reading charts? Unravel the mysteries with our Reading A Chart Tutorial!
Begin this chart in the bottom right corner. Read every row from right to left. Work your way up the chart to the top line.
Worked over a multiple of 6 stitches, in the round.
Work Rounds 1–6 for pattern.
Key
Chart
NOTE: Want to see it bigger? Download this chart (and key) as a PDF!
PATTERN
With Color A, cast on 288 stitches. We used a basic Long Tail Cast On.
Place stitch marker and join for working in the round, being careful not to twist the stitches.
Knit 6 rounds even.
Continuing with Color A, work Rounds 1–6 of Stitch Pattern (see Notes) 1 time.
Cut Color A and join Color B.
With Color B, work Rounds 1–6 of Stitch Pattern 2 times.
Cut Color B and join Color C.
With Color C, work Rounds 1–6 of Stitch Pattern 2 times.
Cut Color C and join Color D.
Continue in this pattern, working Rounds 1-6 of Stitch Pattern 2 times for Colors D-H.
Cut Color H and join Color I.
With Color I, work Rounds 1–6 of Stitch Pattern 1 time.
Knit 6 rounds even.
FINISHING
Bind off knitwise.
Weave in ends and gently wet block.
I really love this cowl but would prefer a wrap. The Nine-Note Seed Stitch Wrap doesn’t have as subtle a color transition. Do you think I could knit the Arpeggio Cowl as a scarf/wrap if I just swapped knit stitches for purls (and vise versa) on the even rows and kept my stitches to a multiple of 6? That solution seems too simple to be true.
Hi Kathleen,
You have exactly the right idea, but it is slightly more complicated than that! In addition to swapping the knit stitches for purls, you would also need to work each round (now, each row) backwards, since it’s going in the opposite direction.
I’d say that the easiest way to convert this pattern into a scarf/wrap that’s knit flat is to follow the chart, and not the written instructions. That way, you can see exactly where each stitch needs to line up. If reading a chart is daunting, I’d recommend taking a look at our tutorial, Reading A Chart!
Another thing you may want to consider when converting this pattern to be knit flat is symmetry! To make the pattern completely symmetrical when knit flat, the stitch multiple for the stitch pattern itself would be 6 + 5. You might also consider adding a few selvedge stitches to neaten up the edges, which would also change the stitch multiple depending on how many you add!
All the best,
Lili
Ah, yes, I knew I was simplifying too much. Thank you for your help. Purl Soho is really the best!
Good morning,
This is a lovely pattern with such beautiful choices of color. I am wondering if this pattern can be knitted flat?
Hi Susan,
Yes, this pattern can definitely be knit flat! I’d say that the easiest way to convert this pattern to be knit flat is to follow the chart, and not the written instructions. You can follow it as you would follow a chart for flat knitting! The blank squares would be knits on the right side and purls on the wrong side, while the dots would be purls on the right side and knits on the wrong side. That way, you can see exactly where each stitch needs to line up. If reading a chart is daunting, I’d recommend taking a look at our tutorial, Reading A Chart!
Another thing you may want to consider when converting this pattern to be knit flat is symmetry! To make the pattern completely symmetrical when knit flat, the stitch multiple for the stitch pattern itself would be 6 + 5. You might also consider adding a few selvedge stitches to neaten up the edges, which would also change the stitch multiple depending on how many you add!
All the best,
Lili
How many cowls can you make with one 9-note bundle?
Hi Sheila,
Thanks for reaching out! Since each bundle has a total of 900 yards, and 1 cowl uses up 710 yards, you will only be able to make 1 cowl with a bundle. However, I can see the possibility of making a much smaller, once-around cowl in this same stitch pattern with the leftover yarn!
All the best,
Lili
This is so pretty. Is there a pattern available for a much smaller size? I don’t like having to wrap a cowl around my neck multiple times, I’d prefer a simpler, smaller cowl.
Hi Michelle,
Thanks for reaching out. While we haven’t designed different sizes for this cowl, you can easily modify the pattern for a version that only wraps once around your neck! To do so, just change the number of stitches you cast on.
To figure out your new cast-on number, just multiply the number of stitches per inch (5.25 stitches, based on the gauge of this pattern) by the circumference that you would like and cast on the nearest multiple of 6. Then you can follow the pattern as written!
All the best,
Lili
Liking the idea of a once around cowl. What finished circumference should I aim for?
Hi Bonnie,
Thanks for reaching out! I’d say that anywhere between 20 and 25 inches would be a good circumference for a once-around cowl. Hope this helps!
All the best,
Lili
How many stitches do you cast on?
Hi Joan,
Thanks for writing in! For this pattern, you are casting on 288 stitches starting with Color A. I hope this helps!
All the best,
Cat
One skein to make this cowl?
Easy for a beginner?
Thanks
Hi Linda,
Thanks for your comment! This cowl is designed featuring our Nine-Note bundles, so you would need the nine skeins included in each of the bundles for this project. And this project is great for beginner as well as more experienced knitters! It’s also a great way to get into reading knitting charts if you haven’t explored that yet already. The stitch pattern creates a beautiful fabric and the color changes are just magical!
I hope this helps!
All the best,
Cat
That is absolutely Georgetown and I don’t like pink!
Georgetown?!?! Sometimes I hate autocorrect.
How about Gorgeous!
That’s so funny! We weren’t sure what you meant at first but got a good laugh out of knowing now. We’re glad you think it’s gorgeous too and appreciate the compliment!
All the best,
Zha Zha
I love the pattern and bundle. It’s easy, fast, and changing colors keeps it from being boring. I just might make another one!
Well done, purlsoho❣️
Hi Sue,
Thank you so much! We’re truly so happy to hear that you’re enjoying this pattern and appreciate you taking the time to share such a kind comment.
All the best,
Cat
The yarn is ridiculously soft! I love it. Which of your single skein yarns would you say is the most similar to the yarn in the nine note bundle?
Hi Kate,
We’re so happy to hear you’re a fan of the Nine-Note Bundles! From our yarn catalogue, I’d say that Plenty (https://www.purlsoho.com/plenty.html) has the most similar feel and construction to the yarn in the bundles. It’s so unbelievably soft! Plenty is a worsted/aran weight yarn, though, so it’s thicker than the Nine-Note Bundle yarn, which is a DK weight. From our DK weight yarn selection, I’d recommend our Cashmere Merino Bloom (https://www.purlsoho.com/cashmere-merino-bloom.html) as a similar option. It’s soft as a cloud! Hope this helps!
All the best,
Cat
Does this stitch have a name? It looks so pretty and I would look for other patterns that use it! Love PurlSoho!
Hi Diane,
Thanks for the kind words! I believe that our design team came up with this particular stitch pattern themselves, so it doesn’t have an official name. But I agree that it’s super pretty!
All the best,
Lili
Hi, I would love to make this for my 10 year old grand daughter, any advice ? Emily
Hi Emily,
Thanks for writing in! If you’d like to make this cowl a bit smaller, it’s actually quite easy to modify. All you’d need to do is adjust the number of stitches you cast on.
To figure out your cast-on number, you can multiply the number of stitches per inch (5.25) by by the circumference that you would like and cast on the nearest multiple of 6. Then you can follow the pattern as written! If you’d like to make it a bit shorter as well, you can change to each next color a bit sooner, so that you work fewer rounds with each.
Hope this helps!
All the best,
Lili
I was just looking at the instructions for long-tail cast-on and it says pull off 3.5 times the width of the item you’re going to knit. In the case of the cowl, would it really require 3.5 times the circumference of the cowl? It can’t possibly mean 3.5 times the height but 3.5 times the circumference seems like it would take almost a whole color. Could I just start with a knitted cast-on?
Thank you.
Hi Carol,
For the long tail cast-on, it is 3.5 times the circumference of the cast-on! In this pattern, that would be 165 inches. But a knitted cast-on would work perfectly as well, so you can absolutely use that method if you prefer it!
All the best,
Lili
Is it necessary to knit a gauge swatch for this cowl? I started to & now that I’m starting to see the stitch pattern, I’m wondering how to go about counting the stitches because they don’t run straight across. Hope this makes sense. Thank you!
Hi Betty,
I would recommend knitting a gauge swatch for this pattern, since it will ensure that your cowl comes out to the correct size and also that you don’t run out of yarn too early! This stitch pattern is a bit tricky to measure gauge in, since each row contains both knit stitches and purl stitches, but it is possible. I’d recommend placing a ruler (rather than a measuring tape) along the row or column you’re measuring, which will help determine exactly which stitches to count while making sure the swatch doesn’t get skewed as you count. Hope this helps!
All the best,
Lili
I am going to knit this flat as you suggested above. How many stitches would I cast on since you say the pattern is multiples of 6+5? 6 seems to divide into 288 equally.
Hi Gail,
When knit in the round, the stitch multiple is 6, but I recommend a multiple of 6 + 5 since you’d modifying it to knit flat instead. As I recommended above, you might also consider adding a few selvedge stitches to neaten up the edges, which would also change the stitch multiple depending on how many you add! After you decide how you want to deal with the edges of the knit fabric (as well as how wide you’d like it to be), that will give you a better idea of how many stitches to cast on.
All the best,
Lili