I knit cowls for both girls this Christmas.
Leah’s is knit from the pattern Cabernet Infinity Scarf by Monika Sirna, in the DK weight cowl version. I had a skein of the gorgeous Madelinetosh Tosh Merino DK in Candlewick left over from Leah’s Peloponnese sweater. I ordered an extra two skeins to make this cowl, as per the yardage instructions, but only used two skeins in all (thus leaving me with one skein for…moi!).
I knit this with a US size 5, which gave it a pretty tight knit. I imagine that most people would knit it to a bigger gauge, but I liked this look better. I then blocked it heavily. It was 7″x36″ pre-block, and I blocked it out to 8″x46″. Once blocked, the cowl is light and airy, and very soft. The cables and lace are crisp and clear in this yarn.
I have wanted to make this cowl for a long time. It is really a striking pattern, particularly in this rich golden hue. It is a bit of a fiddly knit, but is worth the extra effort. It was clearly a big hit with Leah. It goes beautifully with her Peloponnese sweater, but also looks good with many other colours. Leah wears a lot of reds, burgundys, and purples and the gold really shines.
Emma’s cowl uses the Lowbrow Cowl pattern by Thao Nguyen. I had two skeins of the lovely Madelinetosh Tosh Merino DK in Venetian left over from Emma’s gorgeous sweater, Venetian Audrey. I knit this one with a US size 6 needle, and also knit an extra pattern repeat to give the cowl more width; blocked, it measures 8.5″x48″. I had almost half a skein left over.
Unfortunately, Emma’s Audrey is across the ocean and couldn’t get in on this photo shoot, but I think they will work well together. On my Ravelry page, I have named these two the Golden Cowl and the Ruby Cowl, because of the beautiful jewel tones.
The weather here has been lovely this Christmas; cold but very sunny. We have gone for many long walks through the countryside. The winter sun gives beautiful light. This, of course, gives many opportunities for photo shoots.
My family are surprisingly good at indulging me and this blog. Yesterday, Doug and the girls went into London for the day. They dutifully took many cowl photos in the British Museum. Here they are standing in front of the Bronze Gates of Balawat (fragments and replicas of the huge bronze gates of Shalmaneser III (858-824 BC) from Balawat).
Incidentally, Doug was also wearing a hand-knit cowl. I knit this one a few years ago for myself but it looks better on Doug so its his now. (Its just Malabrigo Worsted held double knit in seed stitch).
Happy New Year to all of you from all of us. I am heading off now to drink home-made eggnog and watch Dinner for One (if you don’t know, ask a German!).
Edited to correct yarn used for Lowbrow cowl.
Could you confirm whether the Cabernet Cowl was Tosh DK or Tosh Merino DK? Thanks. I love the pattern and think it was a great choice to decrease the needle size to make the pattern crisper.
Hi Elisabeth. I have tracked down the ball bands; for both cowls the yarn used was Tosh Merino DK. I will go through the blog posts and Ravelry posts and make sure that the correct yarn is specified.
Thanks so much for your quick reply. I love your blog and have been following you ever since I went looking for a particular sweater and you came up in the search.
Happy New Year to you Kelly, and the entire family! Your cowls are beautiful, and the girls are positively radiant. Nicely done! I particularly love the stitch-work on Leah’s Cabernet.
I called my mother last night and asked her about Dinner for One. She was clueless. My parents immigrated to Canada in 1961, which might account for the gap in knowledge. Thanks for enlightening me!
Again, much health and happiness in 2015. All the best!
HI Ann. I realy enjoyed knitting these cowls; lots of bang for the buck! Thanks for the nice comments.
I am so delighted that an American living in the UK knows about Dinner for One! For years now it has been a “must” to watch it on New Year’s Eve in Germany and I think nearly all German TV stations show it early on New Year’s Eve.
Love your cowls, especially Leah’s. Love your blog of course, which I have been watching for years now.
Happy New Year, Heidi
Hi Heidi, we lived in Potsdam for ten years, so my girls grew up there. They think that Dinner for One is a requirement for New Year’s Eve. I’m glad that you enjoy the blog. Thanks for commenting. Best wishes for the New Year.