Mosaic Shawl in Rowan Felted Tweed - Downloadable PDF

Mosaic Shawl in Rowan Felted Tweed by Lisa Richardson – Knitting Pattern Summary

What You Are Making

This pattern by Lisa Richardson guides knitters through the construction of a long, elegant mosaic shawl. The finished piece measures approximately 25 cm (9¾ in) wide by 200 cm (78¾ in) long, making it a generously sized wrap that can be styled in multiple ways. The design is offered as a downloadable PDF and is rated as an intermediate skill level project, making it well suited to knitters who are comfortable with basic techniques and ready to explore more decorative stitch patterns.

Design Overview

The shawl is worked as a long, narrow rectangle with distinct sections that create visual interest through the interplay of colour and texture. The pattern is divided into clearly labelled sections — including Section A and Section B — each contributing to the overall mosaic effect. Garter stitch bands are used to frame and separate the textured pattern repeats, providing structure and a clean finish throughout the piece.

Techniques Used

The defining technique in this pattern is mosaic knitting, a method of creating colourwork without stranding or carrying multiple yarns across the same row. Instead, only one colour is worked at a time per row, with stitches from the alternate colour being slipped rather than knitted. This approach produces a rich, interlocking geometric appearance while keeping the construction straightforward. Key techniques include:

• Mosaic colourwork — working one colour per row and slipping stitches to create a two-colour pattern
• Slipping stitches with yarn in back (wyib) — used on right-side rows to carry the contrast colour cleanly
• Slipping stitches with yarn in front (wyif) — used on wrong-side rows to maintain the mosaic structure
• Garter stitch — worked in plain knit rows to create transitional bands between pattern sections
• Decreasing — a K2tog decrease row is used at a key transition point to adjust the stitch count, for example reducing to 49 stitches at the end of one section
• Colour management — breaking off yarns at designated points and rejoining as directed by the pattern

Stitches Used

• Knit stitch (K) — the foundation of both the garter stitch sections and the mosaic pattern rows
• Purl stitch (P) — used on wrong-side rows within the textured mosaic pattern
• Slip stitch (sl) — central to the mosaic technique, worked with yarn held either in front or in back depending on the row
• K2tog — a right-leaning decrease used to shape and transition between sections
• Garter stitch — achieved by knitting every row, creating a ridged, reversible fabric

Stitch Pattern Structure

The textured mosaic pattern is set over an 8-row repeat. Within this repeat, colours are alternated every two rows, with slipped stitches creating the characteristic interlocked mosaic design. Once the 8-row repeat is established, the pattern instructs knitters to work a further 10 repeats of the same sequence before transitioning to a garter stitch band and then the decrease row. This structured repetition makes the pattern rhythmic and satisfying to work once the sequence is memorised.

Yarn and Materials

The pattern is written specifically for Rowan Felted Tweed, a DK weight yarn sold in 50g balls. Three colourways are used in the design:

• Yarn A — Alabaster 197: 2 balls
• Yarn B — Black 211: 2 balls
• Yarn C — Mineral 181: 1 ball

Rowan Felted Tweed is a popular choice for textured knitting projects due to its slightly felted, tweedy character