I attended Stitches West this past weekend, I am fortunate that it is held just about 1.5 miles from our house, score! I did not really have a huge list of any yarn I needed in particular this time, seeing as I have so many baby related projects I am already working on or already have ready to go. So my shopping purchases were limited, but I did come across this beautiful tweed-esque style merino/silk yarn by Mountain Colors called Twizzle in Wild Horse. (Ravelry Yarn Link).
I was in the market for some dark colored yarn to may myself a cowl since I have not made anything for myself lately. I wanted something that would go well with black, navy blue, gray, etc, and good all around multicolor darks. This yarn jumped out at me right away so I had to get it!
I wanted a simple pattern, something that would work up quickly but not be too stiff once I was done, I wanted it to drape a bit. So I opted to use the Spring Petals pattern that I’ve used previously but turn it into a cowl. I used a 5.5 hook and started with a chain 50. The pattern uses a repeat of 5 so it is easy to adapt to any width desired.
I got to work, and after I was almost out of yarn, I quickly realized it was a bit too short, or skinny if I stitched the ends together where I was, I did not want it to be that tight around my neck. I probably should have only chained 40 to start, doh! Seeing as I did not want to frog it all the way back to the very beginning, I began to figure out how I could still make this work.
Since I knew I only needed about 2 more inches to make it the length I wanted, and being too adamant about not undoing the entire thing, I chose to improvise with 3 rows of hdc on both ends using just a plain black yarn I had. I then slip stitched those ends together and voila, my cowl was done! I ended up having about 5 inches of this yarn left, so I barely made it!
I put the black band at the back of my neck when I wear it so it does not bother me one bit. I love the colors, they are exactly what I was looking for too. A great little weekend project, now its back to working on my Chevron Blanket….which I am thinking is around halfway done-ish :) Still so much to do!
Thanks for stopping by!
Thanks Ionyka for explaining the process. You write like I do, telling the whole story –the background, inspiration, problem, thought process, and in your case a lovely solution. I am typing this as I wedge a skein of Mountain Color Twizzle, “Harmony Dusk” between my keyboard and forearms! I like the drape of this pattern.