I designed this cowl in memory of my mum, Norma. The stranded design is based on the game of ‘dandelion clocks’ that me and my brother used to play with her when we were children. My mum was a ballet dancer and when I think of the seeds of the dandelion clocks dancing in the breeze, I think of her dancing and laughing. As we move through our lives we all leave traces. These traces continue to resonate after we have gone. I have therefore incorporated a twist into the design of the cowl to symbolise how we can experience time in a non-linear way.

Norma’s Cowl is knitted in the round on 3.25mm double pointed needles to form a tube. The ends of the tube are then grafted together (incorporating a twist if you would like) to complete the finished garment.

The length of Norma’s Cowl can be shortened or lengthened as desired.

The stranded design is knitted according to your preferred colour combination. You will need a main colour (MC) and a contrasting colour (CC) palette. Because of the colourful design it is an ideal stash buster!

I used 4-ply sock yarn that I had hand dyed as the addition of a little nylon helps to give a lovely drape to the finished garment. You could also use regular 4-ply yarn or sock yarn – or a heavier weight yarn on larger needles to give a wider tube circumference.

The stranded design is perfect for using 4-ply mini skeins for the contrasting colours as each pattern repeat uses approximately 5g of 4-ply yarn.

Have fun with your colours and enjoy the dancing of the dandelion clocks!

There is no charge for this knitting pattern. If you enjoyed knitting Norma’s Cowl please consider making a donation of the price of a knitting pattern to a cancer charity of your choice.