How to Knit a Falling Leaves Cowl

A chart is provided, comprising half the number of stitches in each round. Work across the chart from right to left twice in order to complete each round, progressing from the bottom of the chart to the top. Written instructions are provided below, but you will need the chart to work the leaf-pattern section.

As you'll see from the chart, there will be some pretty l-o-n-g floats behind the active yarn colour in this pattern. Rather than the conventional method of trapping them as you go, I recommend leaving them (yes, really!) and then trapping floats exceeding 5 stitches as you work the next round, doing so at 5-stitch intervals. To do so, insert your needle as normal, but then also under the float from the previous row, then continue to work your stitch, making sure you pull through the colour from the current row only.

Two colours are used for each round of the leaf design. In this case, the background (cream) remains consistent, but the foreground colour changes. Sometimes a foreground colour only swaps out for one row, then reappears again: in this case, you don't need to cut your yarn, just leave that colour temporarily and pick it up again when needed. But when you finish with a shade that doesn't reappear for some time, you'll need to cut the yarn, and weave in the ends.

In cream, cast on 176 sts. Insert stitch marker and join in the round, being careful not to twist.

Rounds 16-87: Work leaf pattern from chart if you're not doing so already, beginning at row 16 on the chart and working every round twice from right to left. (Each chart row comprises only half as many stitches as each round of the cowl.) Work upwards on the chart