Cowls

A Year of Patterns

I’m not one to make New Year’s Resolutions (too much pressure), but I do find myself reflecting on my accomplishments at the end of each year. I posted nine (9!) projects on website and I’d like to celebrate that with you.

From now until midnight Sunday, January 5, you can receive 30% off the Ravelry purchase price of all of my 2019 patterns. Use the code 9in2019 when you check out with any (or all) of the following patterns.

1.Aubrey Cardigan                       2.Beach Cusps Cowl                       3.Dalton Cardigan

 

4.Florentine Filigree Cowl     5.Junior Goat Herder Pullover       6.La Jolla Shores Cowl

 

7.Mont Tremblant Cowl       8.Port Townsend Swing Cardi           9.Walker Baby Blanket

La Jolla Shores Cowl

Designed for my Fall 2019 Knit For Fun Retreat in La Jolla, California, The La Jolla Shores Cowl features yarnover increases and directional decreases in a modified Old Shale pattern. To me, the scalloped pattern represents clusters of flowers, which are all so abundant in Southern California.

The pattern repeats over 17 stitches and 12 rounds and is easy to memorize if markers are placed at the end of every 17-stitch repeat.

The fingering weight yarn is a luxurious blend of merino, cashmere, and nylon in a bright pink colorway specially dyed for the retreat participants by Yarning For You, located in nearby San Marcos, California.

Both charted and written instructions are provided.

Use the code LAJOLLA to receive 20% off the Ravelry purchase price of La Jolla Shores Cowl between now and midnight Mountain Standard Time on Friday, October 18, 2019.

A New Cowl Pattern

Designed for my Fall 2019 Knit For Fun Retreat in Mont Tremblant, Quebec, Canada, The Mont Tremblant Cowl features cables and directional decreases in a diagonal pattern that makes me think of ski and snowboard trails in the snow.

The relatively simple pattern repeats over18 stitches and 6 rounds. The yarn, a delightful DK-weight blend of 90% superwash merino and 10% silk was specially dyed by Canadian dyer Julie Asselin in a colorway inspired by the blue water of Lac Tremblant and named Knit For Fun.

Both charted and written instructions are provided.

Use the code TREMBLANT to receive 20% off the Ravelry purchase price of Mont Tremblant Cowl between now and midnight Mountain Standard Time on Friday, August 30, 2019.

Beach Cusps Cowl

I’ve added a new cowl pattern on Ravelry.

Designed for my Spring 2019 Knit For Fun Retreat in Freeport, Maine, this lacy cowl is named for the cuspate deposits of beach material created by wave action along shorelines. The rolled cast-on and bind-off edges and scallops in the modified Old Shale stitch pattern mimic rippling waves, the eyelets are reminiscent of sea foam, and the garter ridges represent undulating deposits of seaweed, shells, and sea glass.

The yarn is a luxurious blend of merino, cashmere, and nylon in a specially dyed Sea Glass colorway by Maine’s own Seven Sisters Arts.

Worked in the round, the pattern repeats over 18 stitches and 10 rounds.

Use the code BEACH to receive 20% off the purchase price of Beach Cusps Cowl on Ravelry between now and midnight Saturday, June 29.

Knit For Fun, Canada, ReCap

I can’t believe that it’s already been four weeks since my Knit For Fun Retreat in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. My rock star teachers were (left to right) Bristol Ivy, Justyna Lorkowska, and Carson Demers. The outstanding marketplace was hosted by (left to right) sisters Barb Barone and Cynthia Hyslop of River City Yarns in Edmonton.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Eighty-some attendees, ranging in age from their twenties to their eighties and traveling from both the U.S. and Canada, joined us at the very comfortable DoubleTree by Hilton where there was ample space for community knitting and camaraderie.

Included with a lot of other stupendous swag, each attendee received the yarn and pattern to make the Silver Lining cowl (shown at right), which is now available for purchase through Ravelry. The bulky-weight yarn is Merino Slipper by Fleece Artist dyed in the custom Silver Lining colorwary and is only available from River City Yarns. 

We’re shaking things up for our Canadian retreat in 2019. The retreat will take place in Quebec at the four-diamond Fairmont Tremblant hotel in the mountain resort of Mont-Tremblant August 8 – 11. Check out the details on my website. Registration opens December 7 at 10:00 am Mountain Standard Time.

 

 

Silver Linings

In honor of my Fall 2018 Knit For Fun Retreat in Edmonton, Canada, I designed a thick and cushy cowl to protect against frigid temperatures and blustery winds.

The bulky yarn is Merino Slipper, hand dyed by Fleece Artist in a custom colorway that resembles the stark contrast between bare trees and snow-covered fields. Named “Silver Lining,” the colorway is a reminder that there’s beauty in even the harshest of landscapes.

The simple texture pattern repeats over just four stitches and two rounds, and is easily memorized. At a gauge of just 2.75 stitches/inch, it’s possible to complete the cowl in a single evening.

The Silver Lining cowl is now available on Ravelry. Get 20% off the $6 purchase price by using the code SILVER LINING before midnight November 25.

A New Cowl Pattern

For each of my Knit For Fun Retreats I design a cowl and give the pattern along with specially-dyed yarn to each attendee. For my recent retreat in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, I designed Crimson Leaves Cowl, which I’ve now uploaded on Ravelry. 

This lacy cowl pays homage to the stunning autumn colors of turning leaves. The luxurious yarn is MCN Fingering (80% merino, 10% cashmere, 10% nylon) dyed by Wisconsin’s own Sun Valley Fibers.

The simple lace pattern resembles panels of paired leaves. It repeats over 18 stitches and 4 rounds, and it easy to follow once the panels are established. Unlike most lace patterns, this one includes increases and decreases every round–there are no “rest” rounds.

A tidy row of eyelets borders the scalloped cast-on and bind-off edges. I used the Old Norwegian (also called Twisted German) cast-on and the Sewn bind-off for matching top and bottom edges, but you can use the methods of your choice.

Between now and midnight October 26, you can get 20% off the price of this pattern by using the code RED LEAVES when checking out on Ravelry.

 

Savannah Trees Cowl

I’ve put a new pattern up on Ravelry!

Savannah Trees Cowl was designed as a tribute to the historic Savannah location of my Spring 2018 Knit For Fun Retreat. The yarn is Jones Street Sport from Savannah’s own The Copper Corgi Fiber Studio, dyed in a custom Moss and Leaves colorway.  The stitch pattern includes mirrored cables to reflect gnarled tree trunks and dropped stitches to reflect the lacy effect of moss hanging off limbs.

The stitch pattern, which repeats over 25 stitches and 6 rows, is based on a simple k4, p1 rib so, other than the cable-crossing rows, the knitting is quite straightforward. The lacy vertical columns are created on the bind-off row by dropping the purl stitches each side of the center plain knit-4 column. So easy!

Get 20% off the $6.00 price by using the code TREES by midnight Friday, May 18.

Knit happy!

Another Cowl Pattern

I’ve uploaded another new cowl pattern on Ravelry. I’m in the habit of designing a special cowl for each of my Knit For Fun Retreats, and sourcing a special yarn colorway to go with it. Ice Ripples Cowl was designed as the free pattern for my Knit For Fun Retreat in Edmonton, Alberta (November, 2017). There are two versions–one short and one long–of this cozy cowl to protect against the long, dark frozen days of Northern winters.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The long version is suitable for double wrapping; the other version is short and wide. Both options use a lofty tuck stitch pattern that reminds me of ice ripples, hence the name.

The tucks are formed by working the purl bump fine rounds below together with the stitch on the needle. Each tuck is made up of 6 stitches; the placement of the tucks shifts brick fashion. The cast-on and bind-off edges are hemmed to echo the tucks throughout the cowl.

This easily memorized pattern makes a great showcase for River City Yarns Eden (81% merino, 10% polyamide, 9% cashmere) in a semi-solid icy colorway, called Snowdrift, that was dyed specifically for the retreat.

Use the code IceRipples20% to get 20% off the $6.00 purchase price until midnight Friday, November 24.