Rose Shawl in Rowan Cotton Wool - RB003-00002-ENP - Downloadable PDF

Rose Shawl in Rowan Cotton Wool – A Detailed Pattern Summary

The Rose Shawl is a beautifully crafted knitted shawl designed by Georgia Farrell and published by Rowan. Available as a downloadable PDF (pattern reference RB003-00002-ENP), this design is rated as intermediate in difficulty, making it an ideal project for knitters who are comfortable with basic lace and decrease techniques and are ready to explore more intricate stitch patterning. The finished shawl is a generous, wearable accessory that combines elegance with tactile softness.

What Is Being Made

This pattern produces a large, statement knitted shawl, falling within the shawls and wraps category. The finished piece is substantial in size, measuring 136.5 cm (53¾ in) along the row-end edge, 127.5 cm (50¼ in) along the cast-off edge, and approximately 187 cm (73½ in) at its widest or longest point. These generous dimensions make the Rose Shawl a truly versatile wrap — suitable for draping over the shoulders, wearing as a stole, or folding into a cosy neck wrap across different seasons.

Yarn and Materials

The pattern calls for Rowan Cotton Wool, a DK weight yarn sold in 50g balls. The sample shawl shown in the pattern photography is worked in the colourway Piglet 207, a soft, warm tone that complements the delicate lace motifs beautifully. Rowan Cotton Wool is a blended yarn that combines the breathability and stitch definition of cotton with the gentle elasticity and warmth of wool, making it particularly well suited to lace knitting where stitch clarity is important.

Knitters should note that yarn substitution is possible, but choosing a yarn with similar fibre content and stitch definition will help replicate the drape and clarity of the original design.

Needles and Tension

The pattern is worked on one pair of 4mm (no 8) (US 6) needles. Achieving the correct tension is essential for this project, particularly given the large finished dimensions. The stated tension is 20 stitches and 37 rows to 10 cm, measured over pattern using 4mm (US 6) needles. Because this is a lace-based fabric, knitters are encouraged to work a generous tension swatch and block it before measuring, as blocking opens up lace stitches considerably and can significantly affect the final dimensions of the shawl.

Techniques and Construction

The Rose Shawl is constructed using flat knitting on a single pair of straight needles. The shaping and stitch pattern are built row by row, with right-side and wrong-side rows clearly differentiated in the instructions. A notable construction feature is the use of yarn forward (yfwd) increases at the beginning of right-side rows, which creates the gradual shaping of the shawl as well as contributing to the lace pattern itself.

The wrong-side rows in the lace section are worked as knit rows, which gives the fabric a distinctive garter-stitch base texture that enhances the openwork motifs on the right side. This approach also makes the wrong-side rows straightforward to work, allowing knitters to focus their attention on the patterned right-side rows.

Stitches Used

The Rose Shawl employs a range of knitting stitches and techniques that are characteristic of traditional lace knitting:

• Knit stitch (K) – the foundational stitch used throughout the pattern and on all wrong-side rows
• Yarn forward (yfwd) – used both as a decorative lace increase to create eyelets and as a shaping increase along the edges of the shawl
• K2tog (knit two together) – a right-leaning decrease used extensively within the lace motifs to balance the yarn-forward increases and create the characteristic leaf or petal shapes
• Sl 1, K2tog, psso (slip one, knit two together, pass slipped stitch over) – a central double decrease that creates a sharper, symmetrical point within certain lace repeats, adding definition to the pattern