This is a gorgeous cowl inspired by the badass archer heroine we all know and love. It’s postapocalyptic chic at its very best. Knitted in the wonderfully textured herringbone stitch, it drapes like a dream and looks like a piece of modern armor. For the revolutionary in all of us!

This took me about a day to knit, so dont be afraid to go for it! There’s a detailed tutorial on how to do the neckline with step-by-step instructions and pictures.

This will use up about two and a half balls of Lion Brand Wool Ease Thick and Quick. The construction is quite simple, with a circular neckline worked in the round from the top down, and two identical body pieces worked flat.

This pattern is for personal use only, you cannot resell this pattern or sell finished items without permission from the designer.

NOTES ON GAUGE AND CONSTRUCTION
Now that quite a few people have knitted the pattern, I’ve been hearing that lots of people are having trouble getting the gauge specified in the pattern. When I knit the Herringbone Stitch, I knit EXTREMELY loosely, stretching out each stitch individually. If you can’t get gauge, don’t worry! The pattern will work with any even number of stitches. Just cast on more if you need to. Also, I recommend blocking this like crazy! It’s a fat yarn, and it needs serious blocking so it’ll drape. However, if you want a denser fabric, just cast on more stitches and knit tighter, and be gentler with your blocking.

Now, about construction! The way I personally constructed mine is that I knit two isosceles right triangles and sewed one of the short sides to the shoulder portion of the cowl while the other two short sides wrapped under my arm. The hypotenuse of the triangle (the cast on edge) wrapped across my chest, giving diagonal lines across the chest. I’ve seen several where the cast on edge was sewed to the neck part, and it looks wicked cool! It’s really whatever you prefer, and whatever fits you best. I love that each person is adapting it to their own style.

Reference Videos

Herringbone Stitch in the Round:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFFLhpklrNY

Herringbone Stitch Worked Flat:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MRGAavTZ0Q

Copyright Lauren McClain 2013

UPDATE If you’re just desperate to have one of these, and don’t know how to knit, I also custom make them and they are available in my Etsy Store.