Welcome to the Catvent Cowl!

This catty cowl was designed with yarn advent calendars in mind,
but it’s also perfect for using up your scrap pile.

It’s a varied knit: lots of snippets of catty colourwork as well as

some cat-inspired texture, and pretty lateral braids.

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Yarn
24 x 40m/ 10g mini-skeins in a 4-ply weight.
The cowl pictured here used mini-skeins from
Folkestone Harbour Yarn, Riverknits and The
Wool Barn.
If you prefer, you can work this cowl in a
heavier-weight yarn. You’ll get a larger cowl,
and you’ll also need more yarn (at least 80m of
DK weight in each shade).
If you’re using up scraps or stashed mini-
skeins and don’t quite have 24 shades one
100g/400m skein of 4ply yarn will complete all
of the Braid sections.
Colour choices
Some of the transitions - the colours used for
the cats - will work best if there’s a little bit of
contrast between the two shades. You may
want to have a mini-skein or two in reserve if
you’re knitting from an advent calendar, or to
rearrange the colours you’re knitting with.
Gauge
28sts/ 36 rows to 10cm/4”, on a washed,
blocked swatch.
Gauge isn’t essential for this project, although a
looser gauge will use a little more yarn - and of
course the size of the completed cowl will vary.
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Needles & notions
• 40cm circular needles in 3mm, or size
needed to obtain gauge.
• Stitchmarker
• Tapestry needle
T echniques
Braid
(aka a Vikkel Braid, Estonian Braid
or Lateral Braid)
Knit into the back of the second stitch on the
left-hand needle. Don’t drop the stitch.
Knit into the front of the first stitch on the left-
hand needle.
Drop both of the stitches off the left needle
together.
Slip the last stitch you’ve worked back to the
left-hand needle.
Repeat steps one to four until the end of the
round
For a neater transition at the end of the round,
don’t slip the last stitch onto the left-hand
needle. Instead, take a crochet hook, push
through the first braided stitch of the round,
from back to front, pull that last stitch through
the braided stitch and place it back on the
right-hand needle.
Abbreviations
k2tog : Knit 2 stitches together as one.

k : Knit.

sl : Slip stitch purlwise with yarn at back.

p : Purl.

cdd : Centered double decrease : Slip 2

stitches together, k1, then pass slipped stitches
over.

ssk : Slip, slip, knit : Slip 2 sts to right hand

needle as if to knit (one at a time), slip hem
back to left needle and knit them together
through the back loops.

yo : Yarn over.

1/1 RC : Slip next stitch to cable needle and

place at back of work, k1, then k1 from cable
needle.

1/2 LC : Slip next stitch to cable needle and

place at front of work, k2, then k1 from cable
needle.

1/2 RC : Slip next 2 stitches to cable needle

and place at back of work, k1, then k2 from
cable needle.

C1 - C24 : Yarn colour 1 to 24.

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Instructions
Rounds 2 - 3: (K3, sl1, k4, sl1, k3) to end.
Round 4: (K3, 1/2 LC, 1/2 RC, k3) to end.
Round 5: (K5, 1/1 RC, k5) to end.
Rounds 6 - 7: (K5, sl2, k5) to end.
Round 8: (K3, 1/2 RC, 1/2 LC, k3) to end.
Round 9: Knit.
____________________________

Using scrap yarn and a provisional cast on

method, cast on 192 sts and join for working in
the round, taking care to not twist.
____________________________
Braid
Switch to C2, knit one round, and work one
round of braid.
____________________________

Twitching Whiskers
Start knitting with C1. You can knit either from
the chart or the written instructions.
Catcicles (I)
Continuing with C2, and bringing in C3 as
indicated, work the catcicles 1 chart. Begin
the chart at the bottom right-hand corner, and
repeat twenty four times across the round.

Chart: Twitching Whiskers

Begin the chart at the bottom right-hand

corner, and repeat sixteen times across the
round.

Written instructions:
____________________________
Round 1: Knit.

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Cats are here! (I)
Continuing with C3, and bringing in C4 as
indicated, work the cats chart. Begin the chart
at the bottom right-hand corner, and repeat
twenty four times across the round.
____________________________
Day 5: Braid
Switch to C5, knit one round, and work one
round of braid.
____________________________
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Tabby stripes, part one
Continuing with C5, and bringing in C6 as
indicated, work the Tabby Stripes 1 chart.
Begin the chart at the bottom right-hand
corner, and repeat twenty four times across the
round.
____________________________
Tabby stripes, part two
Continuing with C6, and bringing in C7 as
indicated, work the Tabby Stripes 2 chart.
Begin the chart at the bottom right-hand
corner, and repeat twenty four times across the
round.

____________________________
Tabby stripes, part
three, and braid
Continuing with C7 and bringing in C8 as
indicated, work the Tabby Stripes 3 chart.
Begin the chart at the bottom right-hand
corner, and repeat twenty four times across the
round.
With C8, knit one round, and work one round of
braid.
____________________________
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Little boopable
catnoses
Switch to C9.
Knit three rounds.
Bobbles: (K3, turn work, p3, turn work, k3, turn
work, p3, turn work, k8) to end of round.
Knit two rounds.
____________________________
Braid
Switch to C10, knit one round, and work one
round of braid.
____________________________
Catcicles (II)
Continuing with C10, and bringing in C11 as
indicated, work the Catcicles 2 chart. Begin
the chart at the bottom right-hand corner, and
repeat twenty four times across the round.

____________________________
Cats are here! (II)
Continuing with C11, and bringing in C12 as
indicated, work the Cats chart. Begin the chart
at the bottom right-hand corner, and repeat
twenty four times across the round.
____________________________
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Day 13: Braid
Switch to C13, knit one round, and work one
round of braid.
____________________________
Day 14: Little raspy
tongues, part one
Continuing with C13, and bringing in C14 as
indicated, work the Little Raspy Tongues 1
chart. Begin the chart at the bottom right-hand
corner, and repeat twenty four times across the
round.
____________________________
Little Raspy Tongues,
part two
Continuing with C14, and bringing in C15 as
indicated, work the Little Raspy Tongues 2
chart. Begin the chart at the bottom right-hand
corner, and repeat twenty four times across the
round.

With C16, knit one round, and work one round

of braid.
____________________________

____________________________

Silky Pointy Ears

Switch to C17. You can knit either from the
chart or the written instructions.

Chart

Little Raspy Tongues, Begin the chart at the bottom right-hand

part three, and braid corner, and repeat twenty four times across the
round.

Continuing with C15 and bringing in C16 as

indicated, work the Little Raspy Tongues 3
chart. Begin the chart at the bottom right-hand
corner, and repeat twenty four times across the
round.

Written Instructions
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Round 1: Knit.
Round 2: (Yo, ssk, k3, k2tog, yo, p1) to end.
Round 3: (P1, k5, p2) to end.
Round 4: (P1, yo, ssk, k1, k2tog, yo, p2) to end.
Round 5: (P2, k3, p3) to end.
Round 6: (P2, yo, cdd, yo, p3) to end.
Round 7: (P3, k1, p4) to end.
____________________________

____________________________

Braid
Switch to C18, knit one round, and work one
round of braid.
____________________________ Cats are here! (III)
Continuing with C19, and bringing in C20 as
indicated, work the Cats chart. Begin the chart
at the bottom right-hand corner, and repeat
twenty four times across the round.

Catcicles (III)
Continuing with C18, and bringing in C19 as
indicated, work the Catcicles 3 chart. Begin
the chart at the bottom right-hand corner, and
repeat twenty four times across the round.

____________________________

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Day 21: Braid
Switch to C21, knit one round, and work one
round of braid.
____________________________
Sharp teeth and claws,
part one
Continuing with C21, and bringing in C22 as
indicated, work the Sharp Teeth and Claws 1
chart. Begin the chart at the bottom right-hand
corner, and repeat twenty four times across the
round.
____________________________
Sharp teeth and claws,
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part two
Continuing with C22, and bringing in C23 as
indicated, work the Sharp Teeth and Claws 2
chart. Begin the chart at the bottom right-hand
corner, and repeat twenty four times across the
round.
____________________________
____________________________
Sharp teeth and claws,
part three, and braid
Continuing with C23 and bringing in C24 as
indicated, work the Sharp Teeth and Claws 3
chart. Begin the chart at the bottom right-hand
corner, and repeat twenty four times across the
round.
 Optional: Twist in the tail
Slip 48 sts purlwise from the left to the right
needle

Weave in all the ends, except for C24. Leave a

long tail (approx 2.5m) of C24.

Move the provisionally-cast-on stitches to a

second circular needle.

Graft the two ends together, with the right side

With C24, knit one round, and work one round on the outside.
of braid.

Do not cut C24. Blocking

____________________________
Soak your cowl in warm water for twenty
minutes, before pressing out excess water. If
you’re opted for the non-twisty tail, block flat.
If you have a twist in the tail, arrange your cowl
so that one side is flat, and the twisted area
pulls together in the centre. Pin flat with the
twist on top.

Finishing

© 2019 Marna Gilligan/ An Caitín Beag

Technical editing by Charlotte Monckton
Catspiraton (and yarn-savaging) by
Roswell T Catte and Atari Teenage Kitten
Pattern support via Ravelry:
ravelry.com/groups/an-caitin-beag/

Show off your cats!

I’d love to see what you make! Post your
progress shots and finished cats on
Instagram tagged with #catventcowl

Contact
email: hello@caitinbeag.com
website: https://caitinbeag.com
instagram: @ancaitinbeag
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