On My Knitting Needles: The Merino and Cashmere Cowl

Cowl’s are the new "it" garment. I saw an article in the New York Times last winter that got me interested in them. The title was something like can the cowl save Christmas. I made one for myself last year and I wore it all winter long.

Clothing sales were kind of dismal in winter 2010, according to the story, clothing designers were trying to make cowls happen because it was an article of clothing that most people didn’t already have in their closets. The designer cowls the Times featured were really hot, but the prices were well past the limits of my budget.

I thought about it, and finally said to myself, "hey that’s a tube, I can knit a tube," and my first cowl was born. Of course, being me, I couldn’t just knit a tube. That cowl turned into an exploration of using the golden ratio as a design tool. 

I considered trying to knit it as a moebius, but my skills weren’t up to the task. Check out the moebius cast on method below. Cat Bordhi, knit wear designer and knitting Goddess, gives a great lesson in casting on a true moebius.

 
  Eventually, I just knit it back and forth like a scarf then grafted the two ends together after giving them a twist.

The project on my needles now is another cowl inspired by the first one. My aunt saw me wearing mine and asked if I could make one for her too. It’s on a much smaller scale because my Aunt Veronica is a much smaller person than I am. 

I spent a few weeks swatching and hating my swatches when I found this neat pattern called Aqua Ripples in Simply Knitting magazine, Issue 81, June 2011, page 67. 

I loved how fast the cowl grew in the bulky yarn. The pattern looks a lot more complicated than it is, every other row you just go back to the basic three by one rib, very relaxing TV knitting.

And no, I couldn’t just follow the pattern and make the shallow, but very nice cowl pictured. I’ve modified the pattern so that the cowl would be longer and wider than the original design. Cowls feel more luxurious to me when you can twist them once or twice around your neck, or pull them up to form a hood.

The yarn was a Michael’s find: Lion Brand Super Wash Merino, a blend of 70% merino wool, 20% cashmere with a dab of nylon in Slate (color # 150), an elegant shade of gray. You get the warmth of wool and the softness of cashmere. I thought it was a steal at $7.99 a ball. 


I'm planning a visit with her over Labor Day weekend. I should have her cowl completely finished by then.

If I have enough yarn left, she might even get a pair of fingerless mitts because I really like knitting this pattern.

Some Summer Reading

I’ve accepted that I’m what Barbara Sher refers to as a scanner. I have a zillion interests that I pursue with varying degrees of passion for however long the fire lasts. I say this to prepare you for my summer reading list.It seems a little, how do I put it politely—eclectic?

The Post American World

Fareed Zacharia says, "This is not a book about the decline of America, but rather about the rise of everyone else." I’m nearly done with this refreshing look at the past and future of American hegemony. 

Knitting the Old Way, by Priscilla Gibson-Roberts and Deborah Robson

I’ve been a knitter for about three years now and I’m just becoming adventurous enough to try to stop being a slave to patterns. Ms. Roberts breaks down the construction methods for traditional garments so that line by line instructions aren’t necessary. I made a shawl using basic “how to make a triangle,” instructions and embellished it with stitch patterns of my own choosing. I frogged that thing more times than I care to count, but in the end I love wearing it and I have an understanding of how to make a triangular shawl with or without a pattern.

UnHoly Angels, by Karen Fenech

I added this to my reading list because when I got to the end of the sample I downloaded I wanted more immediately. What can I say about a thriller that has murder, suicide, grave robbing, child abuse and political corruption in the first four chapters—buckle up it’s going to be a bumpy ride.

Hard Day’s Knight(Black Knight Chronicles), by John G. Hartness

How can you not laugh at a story about an overweight, vampire who tries to solve mysteries wearing a spandex body stocking, a cape, and a utility belt? The sample chapters had me laughing out loud.

On China, by Henry Kissinger

I see On China as a companion to the Post American World. I’ll be taking a look at the modern relationship between China and the United States through the eyes of the man who designed the American side of the exchange.

That’s the lineup so far. I’ll post another one of these updates in August