20 Knit Shrug Patterns for All Occasions
Find the perfect pattern for your taste and skill level below!
Shrugs are a wonderful garment for the fall, though you can wear one in almost any season. Throwing on a knitted shrug over your outfit is a wonderful way to accent your look, especially if your shrug is a bold color. Who doesn’t love an easy way to accessorize? The shrug is also a great way to stay warm during autumn, or if you’re trapped in a rather cold office building.
A naturally elegant garment, you can wear a shrug in any setting. The right shrug can be worn to a fancy dinner in lieu of a shawl, and can certainly be worn in an office. Even when relaxing at home, the shrug can offer just the right amount of protection to a chilly knitter. These knit shrug patterns celebrate the often underestimated shrug.
Though shrugs are often overlooked in the knitting world in favor of their flashier cousins, shawls and sweaters, shrugs have a strong fan base. There are lots of good reasons to love shrugs, too. Since they cover only the shoulders and upper arms, there’s less to knit. Knitted shrug patterns are much quicker projects than sweater knitting patterns, and are only slightly more complicated than shawls. Most knit shrug patterns are knitted in one piece, so you can skip sewing on sleeves. There’s lots of room for both lace and color lovers in the world of the shrug, too.
Simple lace patterns often adorn shrugs, making them is a perfect way to work on your lace skills. These wonderful knit shrug patterns are sure to become a favorite project. This list of 13+ Knit Shrug Patterns for All Occasions has a knitted shrug for every setting, from cozy snuggles on the couch to an elegant evening out. All you have to do is chose your favorite one (or two, or three) and cast on.
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Table of Contents
Classic Knit Shrugs
These knit shrug patterns are the ones you're looking for if you're a classic girl. There's a reason that shrugs like these have stood the test of time, and that's because they're flattering on everyone, and they go well with just about anything!
The simplest knitting patterns are often the most versatile. This shrug will be just as at-home at a wedding as it is a day out in the town.
The shaping of this shrug is fitted, and the borders clean and minimal, meaning this tasteful piece won't be too loud or get in the way of the rest of your outfit.
A great way to keep a pattern feminine and delicate without taking away its versatility is to add some lace. The longer cuffs of this lacy shrug will help keep you snug, though, so there's no need to worry about it being too lightweight.
If you're a lady who prefers a little more thickness and weight to her shrugs, or you're looking for a sturdier layering piece for the colder months, this is the shrug you're looking for.
Though a shrug in name, this piece is nearly a cardigan in design; this is great for women who want the warming layering capabilities of a cardigan, but prefer their layers to pull back and open up more for a better view of the full outfit.
This piece is great for those who want their shrug to be the center of attention. The intricate lace design, the contrasting border, and the sparkly yarn all direct the eyes to the shrug, making it perfect for pairing with a simpler outfit.
The perpetually cold will appreciate the rare shrug with longer sleeves, and this shrug is no exception. It's especially useful for dancers during practice, who may wear more revealing outfits and need a little bit of extra warmth.
Another long-sleeved option is the Sea-Green Simple Shrug, but the more relaxed fit of this design gives it a very girl-next-door feel, making it perfect for office life or taking your dog out for a walk.
While the design of the Silver Moon Shrug is simple, we can't help but to be enamored by the gradient of the yarn. This shrug pattern is great for those skeins of yarn you have sitting around that are begging to be shown off.
For extra coverage on the arms, this shrug will do the trick, but there's more to it than meets the eye: a close look will reveal pretty cables running up the arms, making it perfect for a more formal occasion, like a dance or a wedding.
Looking for more lovely layers? Check out these27 Best Knit Poncho Patterns
Unique Knit Shrugs
These shrug patterns have been chosen for this category based on their choice of colors, design, or otherwise unconventional look. If you're not the kind of girl who settles for ordinary, you're going to want to check these out.
Though knit in a singular color with a tasteful cable design, this shrug stands out with the cute tying mechanism in the front, which will help keep your front warmer and your shrug from slipping.
We've never seen a shrug like this before! This shrug twists in the front in a unique fashion that is sure to be the highlight of any outfit you pair it with.
Ribbing and lace is a surprisingly elegant combination that is pulled off very tastefully in this shrug. From afar, it's a simple layering piece, but up-close, the sleeves are extraordinary-looking.
This shrug is for the gals who are quirky and don't care who knows! Everything, from the fuzzy body of this shrug to the big ol' pom-pom clasp in the front, screams "this is me whether you like it or not!"
The chunky cables that wrap around the entirety of this shrugmake it perfect for winter, and the bulky yarn it uses is sure to keep you warm in a snowstorm.
At first glance, this could be any old shrug, but upon further inspection, the hem of the shrug is made with Red Heart Boutique Sashay yarn, or that ruffly yarn that you often see in scarves. We think it looks daring, yet feminine, as an accent in this piece.
If you're one of those people who love cables but can never settle on the design you want to use, you're going to love this shrug. With multiple types of cables running across the entire piece, this shrug is a cable lover's dream.
Some variegated yarns are just begging to be made into a specific pattern. That much is true with the yarn used in the PRetty in Misti Shrug, which just wouldn't look the same if used with any other stitch design on any other piece.
Is it a shrug, or a shawl? The Qiviut Shrug is a higher-fashion piece straight out of STITCHES West that helps bring a contemporary look to an otherwise classic piece.
The flouncy design, delicate lacing, and complementary colors of the yarn all lend themselves to a bolero that is equal parts feminine and daring in this Ocean Sunset Lace Bolero.
Up Next:
Knitting Patterns for Variegated Yarn
What's your favorite shrug occasion?