Afghan in Schachenmayr Merino Extrafine 40 - S9033 - Downloadable PDF

Afghan and Cushion in Schachenmayr Merino Extrafine 40 – Pattern S9033 & S9034

This free downloadable knitting pattern (Design S9033 and S9034) from Schachenmayr includes instructions for a square afghan (Plaid) and a coordinating cushion cover (Kissen). Both pieces are worked in Schachenmayr Merino Extrafine 40, a luxurious chunky-weight merino wool yarn, making this an ideal project for knitters who want a cozy, warm, and visually striking home accessory.

The Afghan (Plaid) – Design S9033

The finished afghan measures a generous 105 x 105 cm, creating a large, square throw that works beautifully as a sofa blanket or bed accent. The design combines two complementary stitch patterns to produce a richly textured fabric with both structural and decorative interest.

Techniques and Stitches Used

• Zopf-Ajourmuster (Cable and Eyelet Pattern): The main body of the afghan is worked in a cable and openwork (lace) combination stitch. This Zopf-Ajourmuster is worked over a repeat of 17 stitches plus additional edge stitches, creating a rhythmic pattern of twisted cables interspersed with decorative yarn-over eyelets. The pattern is charted and worked over an 8-row repeat, with right-side rows following the chart and wrong-side (return) rows worked as the stitches appear, with yarn-overs purled.
• Kraus rechts (Garter Stitch): All stitches are knitted on both right-side and wrong-side rows to produce a dense, reversible garter stitch fabric. This technique is used for the border edging applied to all four sides of the afghan.
• Cable Needle Crossings: A cable or auxiliary needle is required to work the twisted cable sections within the Zopf-Ajourmuster, crossing stitches to create the characteristic rope-like cable effect.
• Mitered Border Construction: Once the main body is complete, a garter stitch border (Blende) is picked up and knitted separately along each of the four sides. Corner shaping is achieved by working yarn-overs and slipped stitches on either side of the border every second row, building a neat mitered corner. The slipped stitches are purled on return rows, and the four corners are then sewn together so that the two slipped stitches of adjacent borders sit neatly side by side.
• Cast-Off with Decreases: When binding off after the main body, stitches within the cable sections are decreased — working 2 stitches together three times per cable — to compensate for the extra stitches created by the cable pattern and return to the original stitch count of 128 stitches before casting off.

Construction Overview

The afghan begins by casting on 128 stitches, with an initial purl return row. The first increase section (rows 1–8) is worked once, expanding the stitch count to 152 stitches to accommodate the full cable and eyelet repeat. The central body (rows 9–68) is then worked 2½ times, ending on row 30 of the pattern repeat. After binding off with the internal cable decreases, garter stitch borders are picked up along each edge and worked for 12 rows with mitered corner shaping before a final knit cast-off secures the edging.

Materials Required

• Yarn: Schachenmayr Merino Extrafine 40 — 1450 g in Orange, shade 00325. This chunky-weight, 100% merino wool yarn offers excellent stitch definition, warmth, and a soft hand feel, making it well suited to both the textured cable pattern and the smooth garter stitch border.
• Needles: A Milward circular knitting needle, 8 mm, 80 cm long. The circular needle is used flat (back and forth in rows) to accommodate the large stitch count of the afghan comfortably.
• Notions: 1 cable needle or auxiliary needle for working the cable crossings, and 1