Don’t Leaf Me Behind Pillow: Your Complete Guide to DROPS 183-39
There is something deeply satisfying about a knitting project that looks far more complicated than it actually is. The Don’t Leaf Me Behind Pillow, published as DROPS 183-39 by DROPS Design, is exactly that kind of pattern. With its gorgeous leaf motif worked in textured knit and purl stitches, this free pillow cover pattern manages to feel both modern and timeless at once. Whether you are a seasoned knitter looking for a weekend project or someone who has recently graduated from scarves and wants to try something with a bit more visual interest, this pattern deserves a place at the top of your queue.
In this guide, we are going to walk through everything you need to know about this beloved free pattern — from understanding the construction and materials to tips for getting the best results, ideas for customizing it, and how it fits into the broader world of Scandinavian knitting design. Grab your needles and a cup of something warm, because we have a lot of beautiful ground to cover.
What Is DROPS 183-39?
DROPS 183-39 is the pattern number assigned to the Don’t Leaf Me Behind Pillow within the DROPS Design cataloguing system. DROPS Design, operated by the Norwegian yarn company Garnstudio, has been publishing free knitting and crochet patterns since the 1980s and has grown into one of the most comprehensive free pattern libraries in the world. Their patterns are available in dozens of languages and span everything from delicate lace shawls to chunky sweaters, baby garments, home décor, and accessories.
The 183 in the pattern number refers to the DROPS collection it belongs to, while 39 identifies it as the thirty-ninth design within that collection. DROPS collections are often themed around a season, a mood, or a particular yarn, and collection 183 carries that warm, autumnal, hygge-inspired atmosphere that DROPS does so well.
The Don’t Leaf Me Behind Pillow lives up to its playful name. The design features a repeating leaf pattern created entirely through knit and purl combinations — no cables, no yarn overs, no complicated color work. What you see as a raised, dimensional leaf motif is simply the clever interplay of stockinette against reverse stockinette, a technique that is far more forgiving than it looks and produces truly stunning results.
Materials and Yarn Recommendations
Like all DROPS patterns, 183-39 was designed with a specific DROPS yarn in mind. The recommended yarn for this pattern is DROPS Lima, a popular blend of 65% wool and 35% alpaca. This combination is worth taking seriously, because the fiber content matters enormously for how the stitch pattern reads.
The wool in DROPS Lima provides structure and elasticity, which is exactly what you want when working a textured pattern. Wool fibers have natural memory, meaning your knit and purl stitches will pop and hold their shape over time rather than collapsing into one another. The alpaca content adds a subtle softness and a gentle halo that makes the finished pillow feel luxurious without being itchy or overly rustic.
DROPS Lima comes in a wide range of colors, which opens up a world of creative possibilities for this project. The original sample shown in the DROPS Design catalog uses a warm, earthy tone that suits the autumnal leaf theme perfectly, but the pattern would look equally beautiful in a deep forest green, a dusty sage, a rich burgundy, or even a cool slate blue if you prefer a more contemporary feel.
If you want to substitute a different yarn, look for a worsted or Aran weight yarn with similar fiber content. A wool-alpaca blend will give you the best stitch definition, but a 100% wool yarn in the right weight will also work beautifully. Avoid highly synthetic yarns for this particular pattern, as acrylic and polyester blends tend to flatten textured stitches rather than showcasing them. If you do want to use a plant-based fiber for warmth reasons, a cotton-linen blend can work, but be aware that plant fibers have less elasticity and your stitch definition may be softer.
Needle size for this pattern is typically in the range of 4.5mm to 5mm, though as always, your tension swatch will be your best guide. The pattern calls for a specific gauge, and matching that gauge is particularly important for pillow covers because the finished dimensions need to fit an actual insert.
You will also need a pillow insert to complete the project. The Don’t Leaf Me Behind Pillow is designed to fit a 50x50cm (approximately 20×20 inch) insert, which is a standard size widely available at home goods stores. Having the insert on hand before you cast on is a good idea, since filling the finished cover and watching those leaf motifs bloom out in three dimensions is the most rewarding moment of the entire project.
Understanding the Stitch Pattern
The heart of this design is its leaf motif, and understanding how it works will make your knitting experience much smoother.
Textured knitting patterns like this one rely on the physical difference between a knit stitch and a purl stitch as seen from the right side of the fabric. When you knit a stitch, the smooth V-shape of the stitch faces outward and catches the light. When you purl a stitch, the bump faces outward and recedes slightly. By arranging knit stitches against a background of purls (or vice versa), you create areas of the fabric that appear raised or recessed, producing the illusion of dimension and shape.
In the Don’t Leaf Me Behind Pillow, the leaf shapes are formed by areas of stockinette (knit on the right side, purl on the wrong side) set against a background of reverse stockinette (purl on the right side, knit on the wrong side). The stem of each leaf, the central vein, and the slightly pointed tip are all rendered through careful placement of these two basic stitches in a charted repeat.
For knitters who are comfortable reading charts, the DROPS pattern provides a clear visual representation of the stitch layout. Each square on the chart represents one stitch, and the symbols indicate whether to knit or purl. Once you have worked through the pattern repeat a couple of times, the logic of the leaf shape becomes intuitive and you will find yourself moving through the rows with increasing speed and confidence.
For knitters who prefer written instructions, the DROPS pattern also includes row-by-row written directions, which is one of the things that makes DROPS patterns so accessible. You do not need to be fluent in chart reading to tackle this design, though the chart can be a helpful reference when you want to check your progress.
The pattern repeat is set up so that the leaves flow across the fabric in a regular, predictable arrangement. This regularity is part of what makes the finished pillow so visually satisfying — the eye naturally follows the rhythm of the motif and the whole piece feels balanced and intentional.
Construction: How the Pillow Cover Comes Together
The Don’t Leaf Me Behind Pillow is worked in two separate pieces — a front panel and a back panel — which are then seamed together and stuffed with the insert. This straightforward construction makes it an excellent project for knitters who want to practice seaming, a skill that pays dividends in countless other projects.
The front panel carries the full leaf motif, making it the showpiece of the design. The back panel is typically worked in a simpler stitch, often a basic rib or reverse stockinette, which gives the pillow a neat, professional finish while using the yarn efficiently.
Some knitters choose to work both panels in the leaf pattern for a more uniform look. This is entirely possible and simply requires enough yarn for both sides. If you take this approach, the pillow looks equally beautiful from either side, which is a lovely practical feature for a piece that will be turned and repositioned regularly.
Once both panels are complete, the standard finishing approach is to join three sides with a seam, insert the pillow form, and either seam the fourth side closed or use buttons or a simple overlap closure for easy removal. The overlap method, where the back panel is divided into two sections that overlap at the center, allows you to remove the cover for washing without any buttons or zippers. This is a popular choice for knitters who want their pillow to be as practical as it is pretty.
Tips for Knitting Success
Before you cast on, a few practical tips will help your project go as smoothly as possible.
Swatching is genuinely worth your time here. A 10x10cm swatch worked in the stitch pattern of the front panel will tell you whether your tension matches the pattern gauge. If your swatch comes out too large (meaning your stitches are too loose), try dropping down a needle size. If it comes out too small (stitches too tight), go up a size. The goal is a fabric that is neither stiff and dense nor limp and floppy — you want something with good body that shows off the texture clearly.
Block your swatch before measuring it. Blocking, the process of dampening or steaming the finished fabric and allowing it to dry flat, opens up the stitches and reveals the true gauge of your work. Wool and alpaca blends are wonderfully responsive to blocking and often transform dramatically from their off-needle state.
Keep a consistent tension throughout the project. Textured patterns are particularly unforgiving of tension inconsistencies because any variation in stitch size will show up as unevenness in the raised motifs. If you know you tend to knit more tightly when you are tired or tense (no pun intended), save the fiddly rows for when you are relaxed and focused.
Use stitch markers to divide the pattern repeats. Placing a marker between each repeat of the leaf motif will save you from having to count constantly and will make it much easier to spot errors early. Catching a mistake in the previous row is always easier than tinking back several rows.
Finally, do not skip the finishing. A well-blocked, neatly seamed pillow cover looks significantly more polished than an unblocked one. Taking the extra hour to wet block the finished panels before seaming them together will make the leaf motifs stand out crisply and the whole piece will look as professional as anything you might find in a boutique home store.
Customizing the Design
One of the joys of working from a free pattern like DROPS 183-39 is the freedom to make it your own. There are several ways to customize this pillow without straying too far from the original design.
Color is the most obvious variable. The autumnal, earthy palette of the sample is beautiful, but consider what your living space actually needs. If your sofa is already warm-toned, a cool grey or soft teal version of this pillow could provide exactly the contrast it needs. If you want the pillow to feel seasonal, a deep rust orange or golden yellow will emphasize the leaf theme in a very literal way.
You can also adjust the size. By adding more repeats of the motif, you can scale the pattern up to fit a larger insert, such as a 60x60cm cushion. Reducing the repeats creates a smaller, more decorative pillow. Just make sure you maintain the symmetry of the motif arrangement so the leaves look intentionally placed.
Adding a simple border around the front panel is another easy customization. A few rows of garter stitch or seed stitch around the perimeter of the leaf panel adds a framing element that can make the motif feel even more deliberate and graphic.
For advanced knitters, consider combining the leaf motif with simple cables to create a more complex front panel. The leaf pattern and cable patterns share a similar visual vocabulary — both create raised, dimensional elements against a receding background — so they can coexist beautifully within the same piece.
Fitting This Project Into the World of Scandinavian Knitting
DROPS Design is rooted in a Scandinavian tradition of knitting that values practicality, quality materials, and thoughtful design. The patterns are meant to produce things that are genuinely useful and genuinely beautiful — items that earn a permanent place in your home or wardrobe rather than languishing in a drawer after a brief moment of novelty.
The Don’t Leaf Me Behind Pillow fits neatly into this tradition. It is a home accessory that serves a real decorative purpose, worked in quality natural fibers that will improve with age and washing. The leaf motif connects it to a long history of nature-inspired textile design across Scandinavia and Northern Europe, where the changing seasons have always been a primary source of artistic inspiration.
There is also something philosophically satisfying about a home knitting project. A handmade pillow is not just a cushion — it is a record of your time, your attention, and your skill. Every row of that leaf pattern represents a moment when you chose to make something rather than buy something, and that investment of care is visible in the finished object in a way that no mass-produced item can replicate.
Why Free Patterns Like DROPS 183-39 Matter
The fact that DROPS Design offers this and thousands of other patterns for free is genuinely remarkable and worth acknowledging. The knitting community benefits enormously from the generosity of publishers who make high-quality patterns accessible to everyone, regardless of budget.
If you use and love DROPS patterns, the most meaningful way to support the ecosystem is to purchase DROPS yarn when possible, leave reviews and ratings on the patterns you have made, and share your finished projects with the online knitting community using the appropriate tags. Seeing finished versions of a pattern is enormously helpful to other knitters who are considering it, and it is a form of contribution that costs you nothing but a photograph.
Ravelry, the online knitting and crochet community, is a particularly good place to share your Don’t Leaf Me Behind Pillow once it is finished. Searching for DROPS 183-39 on Ravelry will also show you the project pages of other knitters who have made this pattern, which can be a wonderful source of inspiration for color choices, modifications, and troubleshooting advice.
Getting Started
If you are ready to cast on, your first step is to download the free pattern from the DROPS Design website. You can find it by searching for “DROPS 183-39” or “Don’t Leaf Me Behind Pillow” on the Garnstudio website, where you will find the full pattern with both chart and written instructions, multiple language options, and a materials list that includes direct links to the recommended yarn.
Take your time choosing your yarn color. Hold the skein in natural light, consider how it will look against your furniture and other textiles, and trust your instincts. The pattern is forgiving and versatile, and almost any color you love will work beautifully in it.
Then settle in, cast on, and let the rhythm of those leaf stitches carry you forward. This is exactly the kind of project that makes long evenings feel well spent — meditative, productive, and deeply satisfying in the way that only handmade things can be.
The Don’t Leaf Me Behind Pillow is more than just a cushion cover. It is an invitation to slow down, practice a beautiful skill, and create something that will bring warmth and texture to your home for years to come. And best of all, it will not cost you a single penny to get started.
