Burnt out on sweaters? Knitted too many cables lately? Too much lace? Done too much colorwork? Spent too long on sleeve island? Working on/just finished a project that dragged on forever? Knit a man-sized sweater?
This is the antidote - bulky yarn, garter stitch, a few short rows, a button, and a couple of hours gets you this fun little scarf/cowl. Find that pretty single skein of bulky hand-dye and that awesome button you picked up at the last festival and whip this up in no time!
Skills used: short rows, buttonhole
Note: If you’re using Madelinetosh A.S.A.P. and only have one skein, you may have to bind off one or two rows earlier to keep from running out of yarn. The sample used about a yard of a second skein.
Finished measurements: approximately 63.5 cm long and 9-20.5 cm tall
Gauge: 11 stitches and 22 rows to 10 cm in garter stitch
Note: Though conversions to the metric system have been made on this page for your convenience, the pattern itself uses American measurements.
Contains:
- Knitting pattern for a simple, quick cowl with a twist
- Schematic included
- Suitable for advanced beginners
Materials you need at home:
- Approximately 91.5 m of bulky-weight yarn. Sample was knit in Madelinetosh A.S.A.P. (bulky superwash merino single-ply)
- 8.0 mm/US 11 needles, either straight or circular
- 4 or 4.5 cm button, plus needle and thread for attaching it
- Tapestry needle for weaving in ends

Laura Aylor
If ‘knitting designer’ had been one of the job choices for those aptitude tests they give you in high school, I wouldn’t have spent so many years trying to decide what I wanted to be when I grew up. My best subject in high school was math; my best classes in college were logic, drawing, and a commercial art class. After careers in computer programming/analysis and child-rearing, knit design snuck up on me, but I think it’s the perfect use of my odd skill set! I love every step of the process, from figuring out how to actually make what I’ve envisioned to putting the finishing touches on a pattern, not to mention all the knitting that comes in between!
I also love reading and hiking and spending time on Brier Island in Nova Scotia every summer.