These five knitted shrugs patterns are selected for their simple design and use of different textured stitches.
According to Wikipedia, a shrug is a cropped, cardigan-like garment with short or long sleeves cut in with the body. It is typically knitted for women. It is worn as the outermost layer of an outfit, with a full shirt, tank top, or dress beneath.
I have noticed that they are usually made up of simple rectangles or squares with part of the edges seamed up to make up the opening for the arms.
Since they are rectangles or squares, creativity is focused on the textured stitches chosen and the way they are made up.
Quick Links
1. Rolled Collar Shrug knitting pattern

Designed by Marcia Cleary and appears in Vogue Knitting Spring/Summer 2008.
The Rolled Collar shrug is a fitted shrug that is great for pairing with a smart sleeveless dress. It is knitted as one rectangular piece from sleeve edge to sleeve edge. Marcia uses alternate bands of stockinette and reverses to stockinette to achieve a horizontal ribbed look.
The pattern is available as a pdf delivered via email. Request for it at Vogueknitting.
2. Tanja Steinbach’s Shrug

Designed by Tanja Steinbach, this beautiful shrug is cosy, warm and totally trendy.
Using 5mm needles and a tension gauge of 14 stitches to 26 rows of 10cm, it is certainly a fast project and also suitable for beginners. This shrug is basically a large rectangle. Moss stitch for the body and ribbing for the collar and frontal band.
It is a free downloadable PDF available at Schachenmayr.
3. Verdant

Designed by Gina Bonomo.
Another shrug knitted from cuff to cuff. The texture stitch for the cuff is called Rich man’s garter stitch. I have never heard of this type of garter stitch before and I am quite excited to have found it.
A free downloadable PDF available at Ravelry.
4. Myciena Bolero

The basic shape of the Myciena shrug is squarish rather than rectangular. Knitted from bottom edge to the top edge. The way it is seamed gives the shrug a longer and looser back portion.
A downloadable archived PDF is available at the wayback machine.
5. Cuffed Dolman Shrug knitting pattern

Designed by Lorna Miser.
This shrug is knitted from cuff to cuff. Skills needed include increases and decreases into each stitch, picking up stitches, and knitting in the round using circular needles.
Take the opportunity to learn the elongated garter stitch with this shrug. I think it is pretty straightforward. Knit for 4 rows. For row 5, wrap yarn twice for each stitch knitted. For row 6, knit each stitch and drop the extra wrap. Repeat these 6 rows.
It is definitely more complicated than the Rolled Collar Shrug and Tanja Steinbach cosy shrug.
It is a downloaded PDF available at Yarnspirations.com.
We have come to the end of this post. I hope you found what you are looking for. Let me know, okay?
Happy knitting
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