Hooded Cowl knitting Pattern 

This hooded cowl pattern was so fun and easy to make. It was knit in the round and somehow it just felt easier to make in some ways.

The fun and easy part of knitting in the round is that  there are no seams to seam up and that is a bonus.

Plus this was simple knitting around and around, no stitch pattern just plain knitting.

And that's what makes this knit cowl scarf a nice and easy knitting project.

If you are new to circular knitting this scarf is great for you to start with. In fact it doesn't get any easier than this. 

And the nice thing about this cowl knitting pattern is that you can use any kind of yarn to make it. I'll show you how.

How To Knit A Hooded Cowl Scarf With Any Yarn

This is just an example. The pattern for my hooded cowl is below.

It's very simple. First you need to know how many stitches per inch you have so you need to knit a gauge swatch.

Let's say your swatch reads 4.5 stitches per inch.  

Measure your head or the head of the person you're making the hooded cowl for and let's say your head measures 21 inches.

Are you wondering how to measure your head properly ? I've made a page all about it for my hat knitting tips so here you go.

That page will show you how to measure your head circumference and also how to measure your head for length as well which could be helpful.

So let's continue on here...you're head measurement was 20 inches.

Multiply the head measurement by the stitches per inch:

20 inches X 4.5 sts per inch = 90 stitches

Now that will work however you might want to consider 'ease'.  

What does ease mean in knitting? 

To keep it simple, it basically means adding or taking away stitches to make a knitted garment fit the way you want it to fit.

Say you want a super comfy sweater that's loose fitting. Well you'll take your measurements for the size sweater you want first.

Then you may want to add in extra stitches for ease to make it looser. So say your sweater size is 40 and you want it much, much looser. 

So you decide to add in an extra 4 inches of stitches to make it looser.  That is what 'ease' is. 

On the other hand you could also want to do the reverse with a sweater. Maybe you want a super form fitting sweater.

In that case you may want to take an inch or two off your desired size. That would be called negative ease.

Ease with your hooded cowl is the same idea

Maybe you want a super loose fitting hooded scarf that just covers your head so you'll add extra stitches or...

You may want a hooded cowl that's snug fitting to keep the wind out and the warmth in. It just depends on what you like.

And this is where knitting gauge becomes really important so you know for sure how much ease you want. 

So here's how to calculate for your hood: 

These are the numbers once again from above:

20 inches (head size)  X 4.5 sts per inch = 90 stitches

I always like to add in at least an inch of ease for hats and hooded cowls and it always works well.

So you'll add in 1 inch of ease so here's the calculation:

20 inches (head measurement) + 1 inch of ease = 21 inches X 4.5 sts per inch = 94.5 sts to cast on. 

Okay drop the .5 and go up or down a stitch. Say 94 sts to cast on.

That's all there is to it.  Pretty simple right?  Now you're ready to go.

Now keep in mind that you may like your hooded cowl to be more snug or even much, much wider. 

As long as you have the basic numbers from your gauge, adding stitches up or down is totally fine. 

How long does it have to be to make a hood?

Keep in mind that in order to make a cowl into a hooded one you'll need to make the length at least 20- 22 inches long.

That way it'll cover your head nicely and comfortably cover your neck as well.

Alrighty then ready for the pattern?  Let's keep going...

Hooded Cowl Pattern Details

Knitting Skills:  Be able to knit in the round, knit, purl, cast on, bind off

Materials:  1 skein worsted weight (medium) yarn, approximately 100 grams

Circular needles:  16 inch length circulars, size US 8 (5.00mm)

Gauge:  4.5 sts and 6 row = 1 inch

Note:  If you'd like to see how to cast on for knitting in the round please click on the link and I'll show you how.  

To download this knitting pattern please click here

Hooded Cowl knitting pattern

Cast on 92 stitches and join in the round making sure your stitches aren't twisted and place marker indicating the beginning of the round.

Row 1:  Knit

Row 2:  Purl

Row 3:  Knit

Row 4:  Purl

Now simply knit around and around for at least 20 inches or desired length

End by repeating 4 rows as above (it's Garter stitch knit in the round)

Finish:  Bind off very loosely. 

Happy Knitting!