Yoonsi Cowl

Many years ago I saw a picture of one of my favorite actors on a casual dress red carpet. I liked the color combo he was wearing and the pattern on his shirt. They were not my usual style which inspired me to try and branch out a bit and try something new. The first incarnation of this pattern was an infinity cowl that did not work in the slightest. I started a cowl version at the same time but it found it's way to the bottom of my WIP bins and stayed there for a while. This year, in an attempt to slim down the WIP's bins (and piles and bags and boxes) I pulled the cowl back out and gave it another go. What was supposed to be a casual mindless project turned into 4 cowls; I enjoyed the process and like the end product so much I made 4 of them. So I am very happy to share my latest cowl pattern with you now.

The Yoonsi pattern is a funnel shaped cowl, knit in the round, with alternating bands of garter stitch and simple colorwork. It is a fast and easy pattern and because it gets smaller as you go, it feels like it flies off the needles.

Yoonsi is made using either fingering or sport weight yarns on a 24" US Size 4/3.5mm circular needle. The pattern includes 3 different motif patterns and the yardage varies slightly between them. See the Ravelry listing for more info.

Chart A

Chart B

Chart C

*I've worn this one a lot before photographing and you can tell. I couldn't help myself and threw it on the second it was done and wore it for a month straight. It needs to be reblocked. 

Chart C was inspired by a Chinese web drama I was watching called Go Princess Go. the colors were just so stinking pretty I had to make something in that vein. This one is my favorite to wear. I really like to be seen from space when I get dressed.

Finally since Chart C's cowl was so very, very bright I thought I would try something a little more subtle. Light blue and brown are one of my favorite combos and I had both a beautiful cone of tan alpaca my dad brought me from Chile, and several skeins of light blue lace weight alpaca, so I made a fourth cowl. I used the Chilean alpaca for both the motif color and garter bands.

As a little bonus, for no other reason than I wanted to give it a try, I made a coordinating coloring page!

Temporary Coloring Page Link

I will leave it up here free for the first week and after that it will be available with the pattern. I've decided to leave it up for everyone. Please do not upload this coloring page to another website. 

If you make a Yoonsi cowl or just have fun with the coloring page and want to share with me, please tag me on Instagram, username: Wonderfallz

Ningyo

My affection for mermaids and need to depict them in knit form has continued in my latest cowl pattern, Ningyo!

Ningyo's motif can be transformed to look like any number of scaled creatures depending on the color choice. This pattern is excellent for troublesome multi-colored yarns as scales tend to have an iridescent quality to them.

From mermaids

(Socks That Rock Mediumweight - in an unnamed purple from Rhinebeck, Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Sport - Wonderland Heather, Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Sport - Mink Heather)

to goldfish

(Touch of Twist Peruvian Alpaca - green, Brooks Farm Tenino DK - coral, LB Collection Baby Alpaca - tan)

 even dragons

(Brooks Farm Yarns Mas Acero - purple/brown/grey, Ella Rae Classic Solids - gray)

Ningyo is another funnel shaped cowl.  If you are slender like my model, it will cover your shoulders, or if you are like me it will fan out around your collar.

The pattern is written for sport weight yarn but includes instructions for customization. The dragon example was made using these tips for a worsted weight yarn. A lovely test knitter used the instructions to make a fingering weight version.

For more information see the pattern page on Ravelry.

Here is a bonus ridiculous pic. I blame the City Bakery hot chocolate.

Hatdings!

I have a new hat pattern to share today!

Hatdings is super quick, snug fitting beanie that comes with 22 different motif charts. It can be knit in a day or weekend by an experienced knitter, or a week for an inexperienced one.  

Little mirrors added to the sequin chart pattern.

It's perfect for this time of year when the weather starts to get cold and you want a quick hat or if you realize your holiday gift list is longer than you thought and you really should have started knitting in the middle of summer to have everything ready in time, but you didn't and now you are starting to panic.

In these colors I thought it looked like a crown.

The Hatdings Beanie is knit with 2 colors of worsted weight yarn on US Size 6/4mm circular needle. It comes in 2 sizes. The small size is good for people who can wear most commercially sold hats. The large size is good for people who try on hats, only to have them perch on top. I have stopped bothering to try on hats at craft fairs; they never pull down around my giant noggin (24").

It's like an urban tree farm.

The charts range from taller, lacy motifs, to short scallops, to fall acorns, and winter trees.  Depending on the motif and colors used, the hat can be customized to suit just about anyone.

More details can be found on the Ravelry pattern page.

Happy Fall Everyone!

Screaming Floral: A Hat Pattern

Would you look at those angry little flowers?!  

I love them.  

The Screaming Floral Hat pattern is a quick and easy, worsted weight, beanie/toque.  The floral pattern makes if fun to knit in the summer so you can get a head start on your fall accessories or gifts.

 

If you are thinking the style of the Screaming Floral Hat is similar in style to the Pop Blossoms pattern, you would be correct.  I worked up the charts at the same time, but when I knit the Screaming Floral Hat the first time around, I make the mistake of (not once, but twice!) using yarn that was far too close in hue and value to photograph well.  

See what I mean?  And that is with the exposure boosted.  Luckily the purple is ridiculously pretty in real life.

In an effort to complete patterns in process, I revisited the charts and whipped up some much higher contrast hats.  If knit in similar yarns, the Screaming Floral hat would be an excellent companion accessory to the Pop Blossom cowl or mittens.  Different pattern, same world.

Coming Off the Back Burner

Remember the Baktiari hat?

I started a Baktiari cowl too, but at about the halfway point it got back-burnered.  You know how it is when you have to do some yardage math and purchase more yarn (the black Cascade 220), the momentum slows and other projects are picked up.  After unearthing it from the WIP bin last week, I have decided to use the longer summer days to finish it.  The colors of that Sanguine Gryphon silk Codex* yarn are just too pretty to sit unknit in a ziplock bag.  They are Rhinebeck purchases and deserve better. 

I took it to see Blockbusters at the Bryant Park Summer Film Festival.  Three hours claiming a decent spot before the movie meant ample time to make significant progress.  You can tell how pumped people were to watch that movie next to the NY Public Library, where the opening scenes were filmed, by how far back and to the side my decent seat was.

See Bill Murray on the screen?

I am hoping to have a Baktiari cowl pattern out by the end of the summer.  In the meantime, here is a sneak peak at what's coming next.

*Sanguine Gryphon is no longer, but one of the spin off(?) companies, Verdant Gryphon, still carries it.  Such pretty stuff and lovely to knit with.

Bloomst

There is something about a brutally cold winter that makes a person want to knit flowers in bright colors.  With that in mind I would like to share my latest cowl pattern, Bloomst!

The cowl formula is my favorite to wear.  It flairs at the bottom and covers my collar, protecting even the nape of my neck from the chilly winds blowing across my elevated train stop and folds down around the neck nicely.  It is a looser fitting cowl and does not fit closely around the face but if that is the desired fit, there are tips for customizing in the pattern.

Technical details about size, yarn, and needles can be found on the Ravelry pattern listing.

Ribbon Candy Cowl

When I set out designing this pattern it looked quite a bit more Christmas-ey in my head than in execution.  Luckily the end result is a much more universal pattern that can be worn any time of year.

$3.00

The Ribbon Candy Cowl is made using 3 yarns.  Two colors are used for the colorwork body of the cowl and the third is used to make the bands.  The example I show here used 2 balls, one red and one white of a 420 yard sock yarn, for the colorwork body of the cowl and an undyed sock yarn for the bands.  The colorwork portion of the pattern uses equal parts of each color and is meant to be repeated until the yarn runs out.  If you have 2 balls of yarn that are roughly 200yds/180m each, the cowl will be roughly 11"/28cm in height.  If you have 2 balls of yarn that are roughly 400yds/360m each, the cowl will be roughly 20"/51cm in height.  The ribbed bands require 150yds/137m of yarn.

My favorite thing about this pattern is that the jog between rows is completely hidden in the spiral.  There is no way of seeing where one row ends and another begins.  

\/\/ Wribbons /\/\

I have published a new cowl pattern today.

\/\/ Wribbons /\/\ 

This cowl is one of my favorites to wear.  It flares at the bottom to protect the neck and collar from chilly air.  The pattern includes yardage and instructions for a sport weight cowl as well as the formula for the pattern so it can be customized for any yarn and any size.

Here's the Ravelry link:

I made the first version of this cowl over a year ago and it was far and away my favorite cowl to wear.  Unfortunately I failed to write down any of the yardage so the pattern hung out in limbo until I knit a second sample.  The edging on the first version is different from the final version because even though visually I loved the way it looked, it rolled in on itself too easily so it got replaced with ribbing which managed to make it even cozier.  The yarn on this first version was such a surprise.  They were two random cheap merinos from Ebay and Smileys Yarn Sale that were utilitarian yarns in my stash.  Together they are luminous.  The first version also had one additional round of chartwork.

Scary Easy Hocus Pocus Tote

Fall is finally upon us.  All the drinks and food at Starbucks and Whole Foods are pumpkin flavored and the Halloween section of the craft store is jam packed with glitter fall flowers, skeletons, black cats and pumpkins.  With a month and a half till Halloween I thought I would add a little addition to the Hocus Pocus Trick or Treat Bag Pattern.  Here is the Scary Easy Hocus Pocus Tote. 

 This tote is a much easier, finish in a weekend, version of the original bag.  It does not require any lining or felting and it a much more appropriate size for trick or treating.  

If you have already purchased the Hocus Pocus Cowl and Trick or Treat Bag ebook then you should see this new tote pattern added to the download options, you do not have to purchase anything new.  If have not purchased the pattern but are interested in making your own, follow the button below for more details.

Color Inspiration: Crop Circles at the Community Garden

My mom captured this amazing picture last night at her community garden.

It had me tearing through my yarn stash to find matches.

 Left:

Madelinetosh Tosh Light in Lettuce Leaf 

Fiber Optic Yarns Foot Notes in Highland Bluberry

Center:

Madelinetosh Tosh Light in Curiosity

Madelinetosh Tosh Light in Maple Leaf (best colorway ever)

Right:

Icelandic wool purchased at Rhinebeck

Now I want to knit this hat again. Crop Circles at the Community Garden.