::Knitting:: Isabella Riff Cowl

I've been getting my knit on.
You know, practicing my post-apocalyptic skill

I have a goal to use 10 skeins of yarn this year so I thought I'd just go for it and make a cowl using some yarn in my stash. I knitted a swatch and then went for it.

It's a cowl, I made up the pattern as I knit it, the yarn is Moda Vera Isabella. Bam! Name created.
Here is my Isabella Riff Cowl.

It's mainly knit, purl and a dash of YO's (yarn over) and K2tog's (knit to together)
More details and pattern on Ravelry.
Download the free pattern here - that's right I've got a Ravelry Store. BAM!
ETA 20Jan2014: Isabella Riff Pattern is now also available on Craftsy too!

What post-apocalyptic skills do you have?
Leave a comment below, I'd love to hear from you :)

Until next time,

::Knitting:: Hope Cowl

I made a cowl.
I used up some yarn I'm not particularly fond of.
Silly time to knit as it's in the middle of summer down under.

Too hot in Brisbane for a cowl right now 

Details on Ravelry

Have you made something that would suit a different season to when you finished it? (Did that question even make sense? If it did,)  What was it?

Until next time, hope you are creating sensible things for your climate,
V xo

::Knitting:: Test Run Bandana Cowl

I really liked the Purl Bee Pattern for a Bandana Cowl ever since I first saw it. Which based on the date it was posted on the Purl Bee website was October 2011. It's been sitting in my Ravelry queue ever since. Finally I decided last year in September that I was going to finally start it. I cast on and got to the short row part and just stopped and didn't pick it up again, then frogged it.

Then one day I was on Craftsy and there was a free class on Short Rows with Carol Feller. I took the class and knitted the set-in sleeve in some terrible terrible cheap orange acrylic yarn. That was last year, before the crazy of the festive season began. So this year after I knit the Pink/Grey Purse Stitch Cowl I thought it was about time that I knit the Bandana Cowl.

 

Now at the moment I'm on a mission to use the yarn from my stash. I have a yarn that is recommended to be knit up on 7mm needles. But I wanted to make a test the pattern out first. So I cast on some 8ply yarn on 4mm 80cm circular needles and used the magic loop method.

I was a bit disappointed that the bottom of the front was a but puffy. At the bottom front of the cowl is a section of short rows.

I think the puffing is because I wasn't using the recommended yarn or needle sizes. The puffiness settled down a little bit after blocking (which is why the picture above was taken on my washing machine - I had just blocked the cowl).

So that's my Test Run Bandana cowl. I really enjoyed the experience of  using short rows and I've made something that I can gift mini-humans.

Until next time, are you testing any techniques out?
Vanessa xo

::Knitting:: FO Pink/Grey Purse Stitch Cowl

Crafty Monogamy has paid off. I finished my latest knitting project (mentioned here too) on the weekend. I had some me time last Sunday so I finished it off.  I didn't weave in the ends straight away, but the state of Queensland was having terrible rain storms on the weekend and we lost power on Sunday evening. So to keep myself occupied I wove the ends in by candlelight.

As I mentioned here, I've had this yarn for years and have been meaning to make something for my sister out of it. I was going to make a scarf, but I only had one ball of yarn and it was a little short. I used a three needle bind-off to join the ends. The join isn't as pretty was I would like, but I'm glad it's done. The join can be hidden by wearing at the back or covering it with the overlap if wearing around the neck doubled over.

I really like the pink/grey colour combo. When we bought the wool we didn't see the white as it was tucked inside, but I don't mind it. The purse stitch gives the cowl a lovely stretchy airy quality.

Funnily enough I read this post from Kestrel Finds and Makes the day after I finished my cowl. Yep. I'm pretty proud of my skillz! And I finished this project in under a month!

Ravelled here.

Until next time, I hope you're crossing projects off your to make list,
Vanessa xo