Morpheus Cowl in Cascade Yarns 220 Superwash Aran - A393 - Downloadable PDF

Morpheus Cowl in Cascade Yarns 220 Superwash Aran – Pattern Summary (A393)

The Morpheus Cowl is a beautifully textured, knitted cowl designed by Shannon Dunbabin and published by Cascade Yarns®. Available as a free downloadable PDF, this intermediate-level knitting pattern produces a finished accessory measuring 22 inches in circumference and 12 inches tall — a generous, one-size-fits-most cowl that sits comfortably around the neck and shoulders. The design is worked entirely in the round, making it an excellent project for knitters who are comfortable with circular needles and are ready to explore more intricate stitch combinations beyond basic stockinette.

What Is Being Made

The finished object is a knitted cowl — a seamless, tube-shaped neck accessory with no beginning or end. Cowls of this style are worn looped around the neck for warmth and style, and the Morpheus Cowl's generous 12-inch height means it can be worn pulled up over the chin or draped loosely around the collar. The design features a striking interplay of lace-like openwork sections and smooth knit and purl ridges, giving the cowl a sophisticated, layered visual texture.

Materials Required

• Yarn: Cascade Yarns® 220 Superwash® Aran — 100% Superwash Merino Wool, sold in 100 g (3.5 oz) skeins with approximately 150 yards (137.5 m) per skein. The pattern calls for 2 skeins in color #1985 (Duck Egg Blue). The Superwash treatment means the finished cowl is machine washable, making it a practical as well as beautiful gift or everyday accessory.
• Needles: US 9 (5.5 mm) circular knitting needles, or the size needed to achieve gauge.
• Notions: A yarn needle for finishing and 1 stitch marker to mark the beginning of the round.

Gauge

The pattern gauge is 18 stitches × 28 rows = 4 inches worked in pattern. Achieving correct gauge is important for this project, as it directly affects the finished circumference and height of the cowl. Knitters who tend to work loosely are advised to either work only 3 repeats of the main pattern section, drop down one needle size, or purchase an additional skein of yarn, as the sample used nearly every yard of the two skeins provided.

Construction and Techniques

The Morpheus Cowl is worked in the round on circular needles, cast on with 96 stitches and joined with a stitch marker. The construction is seamless from cast-on to bind-off, with no seaming required at finishing. The pattern is structured around a 24-round repeat, and the sample shown uses 3.5 repeats of this sequence to achieve the full 12-inch height.

The 24-round repeat is divided into two visually distinct sections that alternate throughout the cowl, creating a rhythmic, layered design:

• Garter ridges: The pattern opens with alternating knit and purl rounds (Rounds 1–4 and Rounds 13–16), which create raised horizontal ridges characteristic of garter stitch texture when worked in the round. These ridges serve as visual dividers between the lace motif sections and add structural definition to the cowl.
• Lace and decrease sections: Rounds 5 through 12 feature a repeating lace motif built from yarn overs (YO) paired with directional decreases. Each repeat of the lace round works a sequence of (K1, YO) four times, K1, SSK, S2KP2, K2tog — creating a fan-like openwork pattern with a central double decrease. The yarn overs add stitches while the SSK, S2KP2, and K2tog remove them, keeping the stitch count constant throughout.
• Second lace motif: Rounds 17 through 24 introduce a second, slightly different lace pattern — K3, YO, K1, YO, K4, S2KP2, K1 — which