Free knitting patterns for cowls designed to use up leftover and scrap yarn. Updated 9/30/24
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These patterns are not my designs but links to other designers who have generously shared their patterns. If you have questions about how to knit a specific pattern, please contact the designer directly.
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Free Patterns
Belsley Cowl or Scarf
Stash buster cowl knit flat in garter stitch designed to use up leftover Bulky weight of yarn. Options include 3 widths, 3 lengths and 3 styles. Designed by Taiga Hilliard Designs.
Cornucopia Cowl
Quick cowl knit in an easy fair isle pattern. Designed for 5 colors it's perfect for stash busting Super Bulky weight of yarn. Designed by Hannah Ollenburger.
Candy Dots Cowl
Graphic colorful cowl in 2 sizes with polka dots and zigzag stripes. 2 sizes: a single-wrap cowl or a longer infinity scarf. Great for leftover Fingering weight of yarn. Designed by Brandy Velten for Knitty.
Bay Area Cowl
Sampler cowl knit with 10 different stitch patterns so it's perfect for learning new stitches and stash busting. 4 Sizes. Sport weight of yarn. Designed by Nancy Victorino. It was originally a KAL so there are several files to download.
Kauai Beach Cowl
Striped cowl with slipped stitches for extra color interest in a 8 round repeat with three colors. Great use for leftover Sport weight of yarn. Designed by Laurie Beardsley.
Serrana Collar
Colorful cowl with an easy grid pattern created with slip stitch colorwork (one color per row) in a 4 round repeat. You can either knit with a self-striping yarn and contrasting solid or stripes of different colors of leftover DK weight of yarn. Designed by Agasalhos e Bugalhos.
Over the Rainbow Cowl
Stash buster houndstooth patterned cowl knit flat with a 4 row repeat stranded design. Designed for 5 colors it's a great use for leftover DK weight of yarn. Designed by Spruce Hill Knits.
Forest Animal Cowl
Knit a woodland scene reminiscent of tapestries with your scrap yarn starting with sun and clouds, followed by birds, trees, squirrels, rabbits, deer, hedgehogs, flowers, ladybugs, mushrooms, and fish, surrounded by leafy vines. The pattern also includes a version with dinosaurs. Fingering weight of yarn. Designed by Geriellen Dow.
Gladstone Temperature Cowl
Easy tubular stash buster cowl that tracks the changing seasons of an entire year. Knit one round per day in the colour corresponding to that day’s temperature and enjoy this wearable work of art! Fingering weight of yarn. Designed by Galt House of Yarn.
More Free Patterns
Flashdance Cowl
Stash buster cowl knit with a 2 round repeat with gradient shifts between colors. Designed for 10 colors mini skeins, it's also a perfect stash buster for leftover yarn. Fingering weight of yarn. Designed by Amazing Threads.
Dots and Dashes Cowl
Stash buster cowl designed with two 8 round repeat slipped stitch color patterns using only one color per round. Perfect stash buster for using orphan balls. It works with pretty much any weight of yarn. Designed by Melody Johnson.
Marigram Cowl
Inspired by the incoming tide, this cowl is knit with wave lace in gradient stripes of 6 colors. 2 sizes, short or long. Stash buster for Fingering weight yarn. Designed by Debbie Sullivan.
Yarn Leftover Chunky Cowl
Easy beautiful, one-of-a-kind, chunky snood made with leftover yarn. Designed by Yana Smolina.
Clarabelle Cowl
Clarabelle is a name of Latin origin that translates to “bright” and “beautiful” just like this striped cowl knit in the round in all knit stitches. Designed for 6 colors, it's a great stash buster for DK weight yarn. Designed by Angeline Webb of Knitrelief Designs.
Hopscotch Cowl
Cowl knit with cog like stripes created with stranded colorwork. Designed for 8 colors, it's a perfect stash buster for DK weight yarn. Designed by Irina Poludnenko.
Day Dreamer Cowl
Cowl knit with garter stitch stripes. Designed for 8 colors, it's a perfect stash buster for DK weight of yarn. Designed by Pippin Poppycock.
Trapezoid Cowl
Cowl in two sizes, longer and short, with trapezoid sections shaped with short rows. Designed for 5 colors, it's a perfect stash buster for DK weight of yarn. Designed by Elizabeth Fallone.
Patterns for Purchase
Weston Loop
Stunning cowl with striped garter stitch that flows into stripes of rippled lace and finished with the lace shaped border. Designed for 5 colors, it's great for stash busting fingering weight yarn. Designed by Carina Spencer.
Misha Cowl
Easy garter stitch cowl designed for leftover yarn so it's a great stash buster. Worsted or Bulky weight yarn. Designed by Grace Rose.
Scrap Cowl
Designed for leftover yarn, this slipped stitch jaquard stitch is much easier than it looks. Knit in stripes of the same color for 5 rows but the slipped stitches make it look like more complex colorwork. Size is easily customized. Designed by Irina Eberhardt. Worsted weight yarn.
Greenwich Cowl
Buttoned neckwarmer with fringe. Great for stash and leftover yarn. Designed by AuntJanetsDesigns
Easy Dunkelbunt Cowl
This colorful cowl is worked flat in mosaic / slip stitch colorwork. A great way to use up leftover yarn in your stash!
Coral Reef Cowl
A great stash buster, this shoulder cozy cowl is knit using slip stitches, with only one colour worked at a time, with a picot edge. Designed for mini skeins, it's also a great way too use up fingering weight scraps. Designed by Bea Naretto.
Surplus Stripes Cowl and Mitts
Stash buster set for striped fingerless mitts, the mittens, and cowl. This pattern is ideal for using up leftover scraps of worsted weight yarn. Designed by Bonnie Sennott.
