ready for winter

So in the midst of all the birthday knitting I've been knitting this cowl for me on the side. And I'm really pleased with how it's turned out.

The yarn is from Quince & Co. The colours are great. And now that it's been washed it is so soft. It's this great American wool made in a New England mill and is quite reasonable if you buy it directly from them with the current exchange rate.

Anyway, an american wool with an english pattern, thanks to The Shetland Trader. After loving her 'norie' hat, see here, I thought I'd give her cowl pattern called 'sylkie' a go. I love the looking glass pattern, and it's a fun knit with slipped and crossed stitches to keep things interesting, but it's pretty easy to read your knitting, so you can figure out where you're up to. 

 

I also like that you can either wear it doubled or single for when you walk in to a warm place - you don't have to take it off (and then potentially lose it as I would). The versatility of a scarf but less knitting required and less fiddly to wear. 

The other super clever thing about the pattern is that you knit the i-cord edging as you go. It's such a nice finish but you don't need to fuss with it at the end. Genius.

Now I just have to get my brown coat out of storage :-)