Bravado

Bravado Knit Shawl by Taiga Hilliard Designs

What is Being Made

Bravado is a crescent-shaped knit shawl featuring a classic slip stitch color work pattern worked in two contrasting colors. This intermediate-level design offers an accessible introduction to two-color knitting techniques while creating an elegant, wearable accessory. The crescent silhouette makes it a versatile garment suitable for layering and styling.

Yarn and Materials

This shawl requires 500 yards total of yarn, divided equally between two colors at 250 yards each. The pattern is designed for sport weight yarn, though DK weight yarn also works well. The original design showcases Anzula Cricket yarn in Royal (main color) and Key Lime (contrast color), providing a striking color combination. Knitters are encouraged to experiment with their own two-color pairings to customize the finished piece.

Needles and Gauge

Knitters should use US size 8 (5.00 mm) needles, or whatever needle size is necessary to achieve the correct gauge. The pattern requires a gauge of 14.0 stitches over 4 inches to ensure proper fit and drape of the finished shawl.

Knitting Techniques and Stitches

Bravado employs slip stitch color work as its primary technique, a method that creates color patterns without requiring complex color changes or multiple yarns held simultaneously. This approach simplifies two-color knitting while producing visually striking results.

The pattern uses the following fundamental knitting stitches and techniques:

• Knit (K) – Basic knit stitch worked on the right side
• Purl (P) – Basic purl stitch for texture variation
• Yarn Over (YO) – Creates decorative eyelets and increases stitches for shaping
• Slip Stitches – The foundation of the color work pattern; stitches are slipped as if to purl with yarn held in back (on right side rows) or with yarn held in front (on wrong side rows)
• Knit Front and Back (KFB) – An increase technique that creates two stitches from one
• Purl Front and Back (PFB) – A purl-based increase used for shaping

Pattern Notes and Construction Tips

The pattern provides helpful guidance for clean, professional finishing. When working with two colors, there is no need to cut the main color yarn between color sections; instead, knitters simply carry it up the side edge of the work. For the neatest edge appearance, knitters should bring the old color yarn under the new color when bringing yarn up the side, preventing visible jogs or loose edges in the finished piece.

The slip stitch color work technique creates a fabric with excellent stitch definition and color clarity, making the two-color pattern pop visually while remaining simple enough for intermediate knitters to execute successfully.