Pattern Love: Six Cowls

The cowl obsession started several years ago for many knitters, but I have to admit it didn't hit me until pretty recently.  They're a nice fast project, the gauge doesn't matter a huge amount, and they can be knit in a variety of different yarns.  Even though it's the middle of summer right now, fall is right around the corner, and cowls are a great way to add a little bit of warmth to an outfit.

These are a few of my favorites from Ravelry!

1.  Old Shale Smoke Ring by Cosette Cornelius-Bates.  Free pattern on Ravelry.
Fingering weight, est. ~200-400 yards, depending on length

This is a very classic look.  I like the way Old Shale/Feather & Fan looks in a softly variegated yarn, and I think a fingering handspun would really shine in this cowl.

2.  Shallows by Bonnie Sennott.  $5 US, available on Ravelry.

Fingering weight, ~350 yards

I am mad, deep love with this cowl.  I would probably leave off the beads, but I love the little strips of lace interspersed with the stockinette - just enough to keep things interesting!  Classy and beautiful.

3.  Wright, by Beth Kling.  $5.50 US, available on Ravelry.

Fingering weight, ~390-400 yards

I love the airy feeling of this cowl.  It has the visual appeal of a full lace shawl to me, but with the compact warmth of a cowl.

4.  Downton Cowl by Shannon Cook.  $4.95 US, available on Ravelry.

DK weight, ~225 yards

This cowl takes just one skein of Tosh DK, so it's a great way to use up a special single skein!  I like the simple lace pattern, and I love the color she used.

5.  Ceramic Flowers, by Mademoiselle C.  $5 US, available on Ravelry.

Worsted weight, est. ~375-450 yards

This cowl - while knit in worsted weight - has a lovely refined quality to it.  It would probably take more than one skein of yarn, but it would be totally worth it.

6.  Horseshoe Fern Neckwarmer, by Sue Grandfield.  Free pattern on Ravelry.

Worsted weight, ~175-200 yards.

Another very simple but effective cowl with a basic stitch pattern.  I think this would be a great way to use up a skein of Malabrigo Worsted, Manos Del Uruguay Wool Clasica or Maxima, or Madelinetosh Tosh Merino.  A single-ply yarn lends a slightly blurry softness to the stitches, perfect for smooshing your face into!

All pattern photos copyright to their designers.

Stash: Nutmeg Prairie

I woke up this morning feeling like I have a small mammal hanging out in my lungs.  And when I finally got up to take some new pictures from a recent stash swap, the back porch was swarmed with obnoxious little bugs all over everything.  I guess today is not my day for productivity!

So instead, here are some pictures of a skein of Madtosh Prairie I bought a few weeks ago in a moment of weakness.  I don't have many yellows in my stash, and I've long admired Tosh's beautifully saturated golden yellows, particularly this one, which is called Nutmeg.  I'll have to find a good shawl to make out of it.

All right... time to try again at productivity - hope everyone has a great day!

WIP: Provence, Part 2

A few weeks ago, I finished knitting the body of my Lace Scarf Cardi and had to stop - some of the photos on Ravelry showed sweaters that were longer in the shoulder/bust area and shorter in the body than I'd like, and I wanted to block the body portion to see how long it would really be.  I hung it up to dry, to see how much the linen in this linen/alpaca blend would stretch upon wearing.  The verdict?  I think it's just about right.

I had a relatively chill weekend for the first time in weeks, so I stayed home with Lumberjack, watched Battlestar Galactica, and worked on the sweater.  It's funny, now I can totally tell what has been blocked and what hasn't been - the lower body is pretty soft and smooth, and has a lovely halo. From the gathers on up, however, the fabric hasn't quite settled into itself.  It's bumpy in the lace and less cohesive as a fabric in the stockinette - you can see a lot more individual stitch definition.

The cast-on of the sweater was just stockinette, so the other day I picked up a grosgrain ribbon in a similar smoky lavender color in hopes that I can tack the ribbon to the lower hem to keep it from rolling.  I had hoped that blocking would flatten the cast-on edge, but it's still curling pretty bad.

Overall, I'm really happy with how it's turning out.  Hopefully it continues in this direction!

WIP: Ice Blossom Crochet Scarf

  

So even though there's been stretches of two or three whole days when I haven't been crocheting or knitting lately, I've still made considerable progress on my crochet scarf.  It's actually my only current work in progress, which makes me think I should probably find something new to cast on soon, since I'm pretty close to finishing this ball of yarn!

I also have to confess: although I love working with this yarn, I fricking hate put-ups of yarn like it.  I spent over a half hour this morning untangling a messy alpaca-silky knot that spontaneously formed when a big chunk of the yarn fell off the ball.  Although balls like this are convenient for casting on new projects since they don't involve winding off a skein, I find that skeins are prettier and yarn cakes are much easier to manage.  And that is totally worth the inconvenience of winding.

Oh well - it's looking very pretty, and I'm finally falling into a rhythm with my crocheting.  I'm excited to see how it blocks out!