Shawls & Snood in King Cole Riot DK - 4235 - Downloadable PDF

Shawls & Snood Knitted in King Cole Riot DK – Pattern 4235

This downloadable PDF knitting pattern from King Cole includes instructions for three distinct accessories: a Snood, a Chevron Shawl, and at least one additional shawl design, all worked in the popular King Cole Riot DK yarn. The pattern is rated as intermediate in difficulty, making it a rewarding project for knitters who are comfortable with basic techniques and ready to explore more textured and shaped constructions. Each design makes excellent use of the self-striping, variegated colour effects that King Cole Riot DK is celebrated for, meaning the yarn itself does much of the decorative work as you knit.

About the Yarn and Materials

All three designs in this pattern are worked in King Cole Riot DK, a double knitting weight yarn well known for its vibrant, self-striping colourways that create eye-catching gradients and colour sequences without the need for manual colour changes. The recommended needle size for the Snood is 5 mm needles, while the Chevron Shawl uses a different needle size suited to achieving its specific tension. Knitters should always check their tension swatch before beginning and adjust needle size accordingly — using thinner needles if fewer stitches than stated are achieved, or thicker needles if more stitches result.

Tension

Achieving the correct tension is essential for each design, as each has its own stated gauge:

• Snood: 19 stitches and 20 rows to 10 cm (4 inches), measured over pattern on 5 mm needles when slightly stretched.
• Chevron Shawl: 23 stitches and 25 rows to 10 cm (4 inches), measured over the chevron ridge pattern.

Because these are accessories rather than fitted garments, tension primarily affects the overall dimensions, drape, and finished size of each piece. Working to the stated tension ensures the shawls have the correct spread and the snood the right circumference and depth.

The Snood

The Snood is a circular, cowl-style neck accessory designed to be worn looped around the neck for warmth and style. Snoods are typically worked either in the round or flat and seamed, creating a continuous tube of fabric. This design is worked in a textured pattern stitch that, when slightly stretched, achieves the stated tension of 19 stitches and 20 rows to 10 cm on 5 mm needles. The self-striping nature of King Cole Riot DK means the finished snood will display beautiful, automatic colour transitions throughout.

Techniques and Stitches – Snood

• Pattern stitch worked to a specific repeat, creating texture across the fabric
• Knit (k) and purl (p) stitches as the foundation of the pattern
• Slip 1 stitch knitways (s1) used within the pattern for neat stitch manipulation
• Pass slipped stitch over (psso) for decreases that shape or texture the fabric
• Yarn forward (yfwd) to create decorative eyelets or to maintain stitch count after decreases
• Working on right side (rs) and wrong side (ws) rows
• Finishing by covering with a clean, damp tea towel and leaving until dry — a gentle blocking method suited to the yarn

The Chevron Shawl

The Chevron Shawl is a statement accessory featuring the classic zigzag chevron ridge pattern, a beloved knitting technique that creates bold, repeating V-shaped lines across the fabric. Chevron patterns are achieved through a careful combination of increases and decreases placed at regular intervals within each row, causing the knitting to peak and valley rhythmically. This produces a fabric with natural visual movement that is further enhanced by the colour-shifting properties of King Cole Riot DK, as each stripe of colour follows the chevron lines for a striking effect.

The tension for the Chevron Shawl is 23 stitches