Re-Leaf Double-Knit Reversible Cowl in SweetGeorgia Cashluxe Fine - Downloadable PDF

Re-Leaf Double-Knit Reversible Cowl by Amanda Bell – Pattern Summary

The Re-Leaf Double-Knit Reversible Cowl is a beautifully crafted knitting pattern designed by Amanda Bell and worked in SweetGeorgia Yarns CashLuxe Fine. This pattern produces a luxuriously soft, graphic cowl featuring a delicate leaf motif and subtle embroidery details. The finished piece measures approximately 5¾ inches / 14.5 cm high and 18¾ inches / 47.5 cm in circumference, making it an elegant and wearable accessory. The design is fully reversible, meaning both sides are equally attractive and polished — a hallmark of the double-knitting technique.

What Is Being Made

This pattern creates a reversible knitted cowl worked in the round. The cowl's graphic leaf design is achieved through double-knitting, which simultaneously creates two fabric layers that are mirror images of each other. Because the two layers are knitted together as one seamless tube, no lining or finishing is needed to hide the "wrong" side — there simply isn't one. The result is a thick, cozy, and visually striking cowl that can be worn with either face showing. Knitters can also customize the size by adding or subtracting pattern repeats to achieve a larger or smaller circumference.

Techniques Used

• Double-knitting in the round: The central technique of this pattern. Double-knitting involves working two layers of fabric simultaneously on a single needle, alternating stitches between the two layers. Each stitch on one layer has a corresponding stitch on the other, and the yarn is brought forward and back between stitches to create the two-sided fabric. The result is a fully reversible, double-thickness textile.
• Knitting in the round: The cowl is worked circularly on a 16-inch / 40.5 cm circular needle, eliminating the need for seaming and maintaining the tubular structure essential to double-knitting.
• Grafting: Referenced in the abbreviations, grafting (also known as Kitchener stitch) is used to join live stitches invisibly, likely to close the double-knit fabric at one or both ends without a visible seam.
• Embroidery: The pattern incorporates hints of embroidery as decorative accents, adding a handcrafted, artisanal dimension to the finished cowl beyond what is achievable through knitting alone.
• Motif knitting: A repeating leaf motif is worked throughout, requiring knitters to follow a charted or written pattern repeat. The ability to add or subtract repeats makes this a flexible, customizable design.

Stitches Used

• Knit stitch (k): The foundational stitch of the pattern, used throughout the double-knit fabric construction.
• Purl stitch (p): Equally essential in double-knitting, purl stitches form the corresponding layer on the reverse side of the fabric. The alternation of knit and purl stitches between the two layers is what creates the reversible double-knit structure.
• Cast on (CO): A specific cast-on method appropriate for double-knitting is used to begin the project, setting up both layers from the very first row.
• Place marker (pm): Stitch markers are used to delineate pattern repeats and help knitters track their position within the motif, which is especially important in double-knitting where stitch counts are doubled.

Skill Level

This pattern is rated Intermediate. While the leaf motif itself is described as simple, double-knitting as a technique requires a solid understanding of basic knitting mechanics — specifically the management of two working yarns and the discipline of alternating stitches between layers. Newcomers to double-knitting are explicitly welcomed by the designer, suggesting the pattern provides enough guidance for knitters who are new to this specific technique but already comfortable with knit and purl stitches and working in the round.

Materials – Yarn

The pattern calls for SweetGeorgia Yarns CashLuxe Fine, a luxurious lace-weight yarn. The colorway specified for Color A is Riptide. Each skein contains 400 yards / 365