Tag Archives: cowl

Introducing: Peekaboo Cowl

Posted on October 21, 2024 | 2 comments

The Peekaboo Cowl is a 2 color brioche cowl, knit in the round. It features assigned pooling/algorithmic knitting motifs that peek between the brioche ribs. The pattern includes a video tutorial for the Peekaboo motif.

Peekaboo is reversible; the motif looks completely different on the inside. You can wear it with a bit of both sides showing, for maximum fun. I do!

Choose 2 skeins of fingering weight yarn, one of which should be dyed for assigned pooling. You can make the cowl close to the neck, longer for double looping, or anywhere in between. I knit a short cowl because I wanted a quick project!

The Peekaboo Cowl pattern is on sale 15% off through October 29, 2024 with coupon code PEEKING. The pattern is available through Ravelry, link here. This pattern is also available through Payhip, link here. You can use the coupon code on either site.

This pattern has been professionally tech edited. Thanks also to test knitters Ann Berg, Carolyn Crisp, Diane Kay Gelder, Rhea Kohlman, and Diane O’Brien. Thanks to Keith Leonard/Yarn Snob for the beautiful yarn for the design.

I’m working on more brioche plus pooling…can’t stop, won’t stop!

2 Comments

Posted in Knit, pattern design, yarn

Tagged assigned pooling, Brioche knitting, cowl, Knit, knitting, yarn, yarn snob yarns

Qiviut Cowl FO

Posted on December 18, 2023 | 5 comments

Well, I didn’t get my swatching done for the When Harry Met Lucy KAL, but I have a good excuse. I went on vacation and couldn’t fit bulky yarn into my luggage!

Knitting on the go with qiviut and POG mimosa

But one ounce of laceweight qiviut, 200 yards, doesn’t take up much space at all. And yes, that’s a tiny yarn scale because I didn’t want to have a yarn chicken issue when coming to the end. I wanted to use as much of the yarn as possible.

I ended up with just over half a gram left, which was less than one round’s worth of yarn. Perfect.

I gave it a light steam blocking. The top edge doesn’t wave as much as the bottom; that’s the nature of this stitch pattern (Old Shale). It doesn’t matter; the whole thing will collapse around my neck. I began and ended with a garter stitch edge to give it some heft, and to avoid curling.

I’m glad I chose this stitch pattern; it has just enough going on to make it interesting, but I was never fighting with not being able to see the stitches with this dark and fuzzy yarn.

I’m really happy with how this souvenir qiviut cowl turned out. I didn’t have much use for this cowl on vacation in Hawaii, but I put it on right after we landed back in Portland. I was so glad that I had it with me in my carry-on bag! 36 degrees F which was quite a shock to the system. This cowl is so lightweight, soft, and warm. I love it.

Is it worth writing up a pattern, or should it just be one and done? It’s great for any precious souvenir yarn. This particular yarn began in Alaska and ended in Hawaii, the 49th and 50th states. It’s been a good knitting year.

I did bring some fingering weight yarn with me for a design project, too. It didn’t take up too much room!

Knitted Wit Summer Slubbin’ yarn — Knitted Wit Summer Slubbin’

I’ll tell you more about it in a separate post!

5 Comments

Posted in Knit, pattern design, yarn

Tagged cowl, hawaii, Knit, knit design, knitting, kona, qiveut, qiviut, qiviut cowl, yarn

Coming soon: a bit of brioche

Posted on October 24, 2023 | 7 comments

I just finished knitting the second iteration of this piece, a bit smaller than the one shown. It’s a cowl that looks like a triangular shawl. This is one of my favorite shapes, because it’s so easy to wear. No danger of falling off!

Swatching with a Dutch 75 on our Alaska cruise last month

The cowl features syncopated brioche rib, and an aspen leaf motif that climbs along the edge. It takes two skeins of fingering weight yarn in contrasting colors. I knit both sizes with my two skeins of Manos del Uruguay Alegria.

I’m looking for a few brioche-loving test knitters. Is that you? Let me know!

7 Comments

Posted in Knit, pattern design, yarn

Tagged aspen leaf cowl, brioche, cowl, Manos del Uruguay, triangle cowl

Coming soon, Ebb and Flow

Posted on December 28, 2022 | 13 comments

I didn’t frog; I finished!

And I love it with the lighter color on top. I’m so glad I didn’t frog it. Sometimes you have to tell that little voice to just go away. Blocking went fine, whew! But I think it will become less crisp the more I wear it; it’s 50/50 baby yak and silk.

This is the first one I knit while designing. It has a taller neck, and less down in the triangle. I think I like them both! This one is 85/15 superwash wool and nylon. The fabric has more body to it, which I also like.

What I really like is how the math works so elegantly for the increases in the triangle, so that each section is created in exactly the same way. Very satisfying for my inner nerd.

This shape is one of my favorites; it doesn’t fall off when you wear it. Do you have a preference on the neck/triangle options? I like having options! If you have a lot of yardage, you could have both a taller neck and a longer triangle.

On to test knitting and tech editing! This will be out in 2023. I’m looking forward to the new year. I hope you’re having a joyous holiday season!

13 Comments

Posted in Knit, pattern design

Tagged cowl, Ebb and Flow

The Thrill of the Thrum

Posted on November 14, 2011 | 8 comments

Autumn is definitely here, and it’s chilly. I’ve been experimenting with wooly ways to be warmer, and my current infatuation is with thrummed knitting. Here’s its latest incarnation.

Thrumster is either a cowl or an earband, depending on where you like your warmth. Or do both! Me, I don’t like messing up my hair, so I got DH to model the earband. I’m all about the cowl.

Things look pretty straightforward from the outside, but the inside is where the action is. These babies are *warm*, because they have thrums knitted in. So cozy!

What are thrums? They’re bits of fleece that you work into your knitting. Thrummed knitting originated in northeastern Canada, where they know how to deal with cold! I’ve written a pattern for this thrummed earband and cowl set, and it explains all about the art of the thrum. I’m also teaching a class on thrumming at Twisted next month on Tuesday, December 6, from 6 to 8 p.m. Come learn a new technique with me!

Not in PDX? The pattern is for sale through Ravelry. I made a video tutorial, too.

What’s your newest knitting technique? What did you knit with it?

8 Comments

Posted in Knit, pattern design

Tagged cowl, earband, thrummed knitting, thrums, thrumster

Buttermilk Sky, and Pippi, redux

Posted on February 6, 2010 | 16 comments

It feels like I haven’t been knitting much lately. I’ve been impatiently waiting for some yarn I ordered, and kind of at loose ends while waiting. I guess I must have done some knitting, though, because I have two FO’s to show you.

This sweet little cowl is called Buttermilk Sky. It’s a design by Bonnie Sinnott over at Blue Peninsula. I was the lucky winner of her pattern and this sumptuous Blue Sky Alpaca Silk last November.

This was a quick and easy knit, and the yarn was so nice to knit with.

Haven’t you seen clouds like this?

Thank you, Bonnie!

My other FO is a variation on my Pippi hat. I taught a Pippi hat class last month at Twisted, and started a hat as a demonstration model. Since I was nearly done with it by the time classes were over, I went ahead and finished. I love these colors together. One of the colors in the stripe sequence on top isn’t the same as in the previous blue/green/white Pippi, but I was working from stash, so this is what I have. I also got distracted and didn’t follow the chart for the last colorwork pattern; oops. Class was fun; everyone learned to carry two colors in their knitting, and also how to make i-cord and half double crochet. A success!

My special order yarn came in this week. More on that in another post…

Knit on!

16 Comments

Posted in Blogging, Knit

Tagged alpaca silk, buttermilk sky, cowl, earflap hat, Knit, pippi hat

Party on, knitters

Posted on January 10, 2010 | 20 comments

We had our knitting party at Twisted this weekend. The party was a fund-raiser for our local high school. We had 16 participants. Most, but not all, had knit before.

Our projects? The As You Like It cowls. Lantern Moon blondewood needles. Malabrigo Chunky yarn. It’s like knitting with chewy linguine, so luscious.

Oh, and desserts. Lots of desserts. A stellar cheesecake served with chocolate truffle sauce and/or blueberry compote (recipe below), lime bars, fruit, chocolate…

Lots of knitting going on!

That’s Carole in the apron. She’s my party kitchen wench. We do projects together and have a lot of fun. And she makes the world’s best cheesecake. She doesn’t knit, though.

Carole’s DH Scott, the PTA president, knits! I taught him many years ago.

Don’t you love Amy’s shirt?

There was only one knitting faux pas of the evening.

Join, being careful not to twist…oops.

Thanks to Twisted for having this party with us!

I made blueberry compote with berries from last summer’s crop. This one turned out particularly well; it thickened enough by itself that I didn’t have to add any cornstarch.

Blueberry Compote

2.5 cups frozen blueberries, unthawed
1/3 C sugar
1/3 C water
1 T fresh squeezed lemon juice

Combine 1.5 C berries with the sugar and water in a medium saucepan. Simmer over medium heat, stirring often, until berries burst, about 10 minutes. Add remaining berries and lemon juice. Continue stirring; cook until compote thickens, about 8 minutes. Cool, then cover and refrigerate. Serve warm when you’re ready!

How was *your* weekend?

20 Comments

Posted in Knit, recipe

Tagged cowl, Knit, malabrigo, yarn

Happy Christmas eve to you…

Posted on December 24, 2009 | 17 comments

Ready or not, Christmas is coming. I’m as ready as I’m going to get. Tonight is a whirlwind of activity, and then we’ll have a quiet Christmas morning. Bliss.

I’ve knit several gifts this year, although I didn’t set out to do so. Knit just happens! My favorite one is a new design, and I can’t show it until after Christmas. But here’s another version of one of my cowls. This one is knit with Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Chunky, and it’s lusciously soft. A gift for a non-blog reading friend.

The Cashmerino Chunky is a lot lighter than the Malabrigo Chunky, so this was knit on a US 9, as opposed to the 10.5, and on fewer stitches. It took about 1.5 balls of yarn (50 gram balls). I loved knitting with this yarn.

Mookie wishes you a very happy holiday. We’ve celebrated Hanukkah, and are about to celebrate Christmas. Which reminds me, I still have to go get her a new catnip slug to put in her stocking. She loves them.

Almost as much as she loves this Log Cabin blanket that she’s claimed for her very own.

Did you finish all your gift knitting? Is it time to start something for you? I’m still toying with the idea of a Heather Hoodie (ravelry link), but I want it to have sleeves. I have a skein of Brown Sheep Lamb’s Pride Bulky to swatch, and if I still like the idea after swatching, I’ll order a sweater’s worth of it. What do you want to knit next?

Merry Christmas!

17 Comments

Posted in Knit, pattern design

Tagged cowl, Knit

As You Like It, aka Knitter’s Choice

Posted on December 19, 2009 | 14 comments

I’m having a knit party at Twisted next month as a fund-raiser for our high school booster club. I did this last year, too, and wrote the Checkerboard Scarflet pattern for that party. This year’s party will feature a pattern for even quicker neckwear. These cowls are designed to be knit with Malabrigo Chunky. What’s not to like?

The pattern is called “As You Like It.” There are two cowls worn three ways. This one is my favorite. I love the fabric and the texture. Knitting this was heavenly.

Here is the other one/two. Knit it once, you can wear it either way.

They’re fairly simple projects, since the party is for knitters of any skill level. I hope they like them! We’ll also have needles donated by Lantern Moon to work with. Again, what’s not to like? The patterns will be for sale as a set.

And now, back to my Christmas knitting! I need to finish the stealth project, and then write up the pattern. I’m really pleased with it, It’s turning out just the way I wanted…after three tries.

Do you have knitting to finish before Christmas?

14 Comments

Posted in Knit, pattern design, ravelry

Tagged cowl, Knit, malabrigo

Happy Thanksgiving! Happy FO…

Posted on November 26, 2009 | 17 comments

Happy Thanksgiving! We’re at the point in the day when the turkey is roasting (on the grill) and everyone is just hanging out. Must be time to blog…

I’m working on a set of cowls for a pattern for the auction knit party at Twisted. I finished one yesterday, and today was a picture perfect day. Too bad the other cowl isn’t with me; I guess it will have a photo shoot later.

This is knit with Malabrigo Chunky, colorway Noviembre. Pattern coming as part of a set. The yarn is really fun to knit; it’s big and chunky like al dente pasta.