Get Double the Warmth with This Cowl Knitting Pattern

One of the potential problems with colorwork knitting, at least when it comes to stranded or Fair Isle styles of knitting, is that you don’t always want to have the back of the work on display. Other knitters will appreciate the beauty of perfectly aligned floats (and I actually once had a storebought sweater that included floats as a design element) but most people won’t, and they also have the potential to snag on things, say, if you’ve knit a stranded scarf with the back side exposed.

The Kenora Cowl pattern from Laura Chau eliminates that problem by having you knit a lining in a contrasting color that covers up your floats.

In all you need three colors of yarn for this project — two for the front side colorwork and one for the inside lining. The inside can be worked with a thinner yarn, and I love the idea of throwing in a mohair or cashmere yarn on the inside for extra warm fuzzies.

The pattern can be worked in either fingering or worsted weight yarn, and it begins with a provisional cast on to work the geometric checkerboard pattern on the outside of the cowl, then you release those stitches to work the lining. The pieces are joined with a modified three-needle bind off, so there’s no seaming involved.

The colorwork portion is only charted, but it’s very repetitive and easy to follow, so even if this is your first time reading a chart (or your first time doing stranded colorwork) this is a great project to try.

You can get a copy of the pattern on Ravelry.

Looking for more fun colorwork cowls? I recently shared the Hawi Honey Cowl, which is another great one for learning colorwork knitting. Or use up all the random bits leftover from other projects on the Ellensburg Cowl.

[Photo: Laura Chau]

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Some knitters have trouble coming up with projects they can both knit and wear when it’s warm outside. Especially if you’re not ready for garments (thought tank tops and summer tops are great first garment projects!) it might seem like there’s nothing to do when it’s hot outside.

One way to remedy this situation is by knitting headbands. Headbands are great any time of year to keep hair out of your face and make you look a little more pulled together without any effort. Wider headbands double as ear warmers when it gets colder, but skinnier ones are great throughout the year.

A couple of great examples are from designer Elly Donner, who has a set of headband knitting patterns on Ravelry you can buy individually or as an ebook. Homebody, shown here, is worked in garter stitch (the ties are crocheted but you could also use I-cord), while Slipstream uses slipped stitches and garter ridges, and Sounds of Spring has little cables. The patterns use DK weight yarn and are a great way to use a little leftover yarn from another project.

I also recently came across the lovely Plush Braided Headband by Yevgeniya Li. A free pattern on Ravelry, this wider design is covered in lush cables for a sleek and fancy look. It uses worsted weight yarn and you can customize the length for a perfect fit.

Celeste Knitwear’s Spikelet is a simple twisted headband with columns of eyelet lace to keep it from being too heavy. It’s worked flat and sewn together to make the twist, and uses DK weight yarn. It has three sizes available.

This skinny lace headband from Lusi Knits is another cute choice. It calls for fine weight cotton yarn, but you could use heavier yarn if you have it on hand to make a wider headband (or use any fine yarn you have available). It uses ties to customize the fit.

And if you want to go super basic but still really cute, try the easy ring headband from Lulu Pattern. The sample is knit pretty wide, but you could make a narrower version if you want, and the little ring turns it from a plain loop into a bow with very little extra work. It calls for worsted weight yarn but you could also use whatever weight you like for this one to change up the look and size.

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