Cowichan Sweater Design Contest at No Man Walks Alone

Here's something a little different: The guys over at No Man Walks Alone have announced a contest on their Styleforum affiliate page to design a Cowichan style sweater made in collaboration with Kanata Hand Knits, a Canadian company that has been producing hand-knit Cowichan style sweaters in heavy gauge wools since 1979. I, myself, own a traditional design vintage Cowichan (of unknown Canadian origin) I bought from my friend David Lochner over at Briar Vintage in Philly last fall.

The contest runs through Feb 1st, and the winner gets their design made for sale, a free sweater, and their name printed on the tag. There are no stated restrictions on the type of design aside from yarn color, though I would operate under the assumption that standard copyright rules apply.

Details can be found here on their original post, but it basically boils down to:

• Download the pattern in Excel format from the original post, and fill in squares with the design in color (a depiction of the possible yarn colors is included, though the limit is three colors per sweater)
• Alternatively, you can print it out and draw the design, though you will need to do so in a way that the colors are differentiated (for example, X or O's with a legend)
• Submit your design to customer@nomanwalksalone.com
 

If you are looking for some inspiration, simply image searching "vintage Cowichan" offers up a ton of examples as a jumping off point. For something more modern, my favorites come from the Vancouver-based company Granted, who made the sweater depicted below.

Granted x Bodega 2013

**Update 1/31/17** - Looks like they extended the deadline to Feb 6th, as posted on their website (easier to navigate than SF)