Freija cowl

I love the look of this pullover bandanna cowl and just had to make one. It's the Freja halsedisse by Hygge strikke, a paid pattern. It is knitted top-down, starting with the turtleneck. The lovely look of the front/back panels is achieved using a clever combination of increases and bind-offs, which gives the hem almost a lettuce edge.

I wanted my front panel to be longer, so I deviated from the pattern by making fewer bind-offs in the third section to allow for more rows of length. I also wanted to lengthen the back panel to help keep chilly drafts off my back, so instead of binding those stitches off as directed in the pattern, I put the stitches on hold while finishing the front panel, and then reattached the yarn to the back stitches and knitted a smaller version of the front panel in the back.

Top view

 

Side view

This cowl is one of three coordinating pieces that I made by cannibalizing this unfinished poncho project. The other two pieces are a Sno Cap Hood scarf and a messy-bun hat based on the Endless Texture Brim Hat design.

 

Sno Cap Hood scarf

Brioche knits are drop-dead gorgeous. But even though I'm a fairly skilled knitter, I just have never really been able to wrap my head around the technique.

Sometimes it is possible to substitute the fisherman's rib stitch in place of brioche rib. This lovely hooded scarf, by little quail handcraft, designed in a simple brioche rib, seems to be a suitable candidate for that substitution, so I'm going to give it a try that way. 😊 Using the fisherman's rib stitch makes this pattern accessible for me. If you are able to knit in brioche, go for it! 

It has been a few years since the last time I worked in fisherman's rib, so I used the video and blog tutorials by Davina Choy of Sheep & Stitch to refresh my memory for how to work this easy, squishy stitch.

For the yarn, I am cannibalizing this poncho project that I crocheted in 2022. It weighs about 512 grams, which, by weight, works out to approximately the equivalent of 4 skeins of this yarn. Those 4 skeins weren't quite enough to finish the poncho to my satisfaction, even though I really liked the way the project was coming along (and I believe the Eggplant/Taupe colorway had already been discontinued, and I didn't feel like searching around online to try to buy more), so my poncho sat in purgatory for about four years while I figured out what else I wanted to make with this fiber.

From poncho to Sno Cap Hood

Fair warning: There is enough of a wool halo in this yarn to frequently make it difficult to rip back. Also, there is a lot of variability in the thickness of this yarn from the way it's spun, which almost gives it a homespun character. 

Variable thickness in the fiber

I don't have the labels anymore, but from what I can see online, each of these skeins is supposed to be about 312 yards, so I should have more than enough on hand to knit a Sno Cap Hood, even with my mods to increase the size.

I deviated from the pattern by starting off with a scarf width of 25 stitches, because I prefer my scarves to be on the wider side. At this gauge, that is giving me a scarf that's about 6 inches wide, which is a fairly standard scarf width.

After knitting a couple of inches, I realized that I was not happy with the way the selvedge stitches were sitting, so I ripped back to the beginning and switched from working the slipped-stitch selvedges (as per the pattern) to working them in garter stitch. At least for the fiber that I'm working with here, having garter stitch selvedges looks better, so I'm glad I noticed early on how I felt about the edges and was able to make the change before I got so far along that ripping back would have been more painful. Sometimes you just have to go with what the personality of your fiber is saying. 😂

Before starting the hood increases, I knitted the length of the first scarf tail to about 36 inches, which was about 162 rows at the gauge I'm working with this fiber. 

To work the fisherman's rib double increases/decreases for the hood portion, this video tutorial by Carolina of So Wooly is the perfect guide for executing that technique. She also provides a written tutorial of the technique on her blog.

At first the hood increases seem counterintuitive because they alternate between being worked on the right side and the wrong side (and the center stitch "moves" each time, but I really can't explain it; you just have to do it and trust the pattern), but if you follow the pattern as written (because it's correct, of course!) and also "read" your knitting as you go, you'll soon be able to tell the rows where you need to increase. Once you start knitting the increases section, and you're able to see how it comes together, you will see how the instructions make sense and keep you making the increases on the knit side of the center stitch. 

Increases

I did make some mistakes as I was working the increase section. If you look closely at my photo of the increases, you can see where I increased on the wrong stitch a few times. But since I was able to stay in the ribbing pattern, those mistakes are not super obvious, thank goodness. Whew! 😅 The ribbing is somewhat forgiving of a few small mistakes. Using a couple of removable markers to mark the center section (and moving them after each increase/decrease) can help a lot. 

Love the phasing of the colors

I increased to a total of 57 stitches for the hood (or 11 increases). Not only do I prefer my scarves to be on the wider and longer side, but I also prefer my hoods to be amply sized to fit over my hair, which I usually wear up in a messy bun style. Plus, the extra depth will keep the back of my neck extra cozy when the hood is down, so win-win!

Another foot to go

As a natural English-style knitter, I am always Majestically Awkward 🦩 while knitting in any type of rib stitch, so I won't often take on an entire project in rib stitch, but this hooded scarf is definitely worth it. 💜 I love to watch videos of continental-style knitters working; it's hypnotically beautiful to me. And I have tried multiple times to retrain my hands to knit continental style (I comprehend how they're doing it), but my hands just simply refuse to cooperate because they know that they can already knit just fine in English style, thank you very much. 🤦 Oh well, I'll probably keep trying from time to time to learn continental style, and maybe someday it will stick for me. 😂 

In addition to this Sno Cap Hood, I was able to knit two other coordinating projects using the yarn from the poncho project: a Freja cowl and a messy-bun hat based on the Endless Texture Brim Hat design.

Matching accessories

 

Princess Rosalee's baby dress 'Raspberry'

This is a dress with a ruffle yarn skirt made for Princess Rosalee, who is currently 2 months old. I don't know exactly what size dress this pattern made, but I think she might need to grow some more before she will be big enough to wear this. And that's OK!

Front of dress

I had a large ball of pink yarn (no label, of course) that was included in a bag of yarn that was given to me some years ago. The ball was large enough that I thought it might have enough yardage to crochet this baby dress. But unfortunately, I discovered when I was on about row 10 of the skirt that the pink yarn had actually been knotted to and wound around a decent amount of another color of peachy-pinkish yarn at the center of the ball. (Ugh.) I have no idea why anyone would tie a different color of yarn on to continue winding a ball like that, but alas. That's just how it was done.

First attempt

So that left me with Rosalee's dress about 3/4 completed and needing to try to figure out the brand and colorway of the pink yarn I had started with, or at least to find something close enough to be able to finish the project without it looking awful.

Starting second attempt

 

Coboo label

I thought perhaps the mystery pink yarn was one made by Red Heart, but after lots of looking around both online and IRL, I wasn't able to find another pink yarn that matched this (of course not!! 🤦) which left me with the choice of continuing to work in another yarn color that didn't match, or else to start over with another yarn. I opted to start over using Lion Brand Coboo in the Pale Pink colorway.

 

Comparing size

Coboo has a lovely feel and drape, but it is a struggle to crochet with it because the ultra-fine plies are very loosely spun, and so it often wants to split, which means you have to be VERY careful to hold the plies together as you work. I have used Coboo before on my circular knitting machine, and it worked easily there. But using it to crochet is a different story. However, it was the color and type of fiber content that I wanted to use for the base of this dress, so I persevered. 😂

Dress inside out

 

Underside of skirt

Another difference is that the Coboo yarn is rated a 3/DK weight, whereas the other yarn I had started with felt more like a 4/worsted weight (and the dress pattern calls for a 4 weight yarn), so I also had to use a smaller hook size than what the pattern recommended. 

Back of dress

Attempting to make a pattern in a different gauge than what the designer used is another layer of challenge, but at least I had the other version of the dress that I started with to give me something to compare size as I began making the dress with the Coboo yarn, and I ended up being able to come fairly close to the original by adding just a few extra stitches/rows.

Dress with cardigan

Frisian Knitting Tutorials has a video on YouTube that shows how to crochet the dress and also a paid pattern available on Ravelry, but you can make the dress by following the video. I followed the video for my project, except I added Rozetti ruffle yarn to each DC stitch in every-other row of the skirt starting in the increase row after creating the arm holes in the bodice. (The ruffle yarn doesn't intrude onto the inside of the dress, so it won't irritate Rosalee's skin.) I also added a row of shells for a finishing trim around the hemline, which you can see on the "dress inside out" photo.

Dress with cardigan and bonnet

The ruffle yarn actually came from a pre-knitted ruffle scarf (meaning it was a display sample piece that I purchased already made, and thus I never had the label from the skein) that I purchased at a little yarn shop in Lake Havasu, Arizona, way back in the early 2010s. But I did still have another skein of the same brand in another colorway with its label intact in my stash, which I bought at the same shop, which made it possible to locate the name of the colorway of the one I used for this project by searching around online. To make the ruffles, I simply undid the knot at one end and unraveled the scarf to work the ruffle yarn loops held with the Coboo yarn, resulting in this ruffle-y sweet baby dress that's fit for a little princess to wear.

Aren't these sunglasses simply adorable?!?

And if the ruffles eventually get tattered from being worn/laundered, it will be easy to snip the loops to remove the ruffle yarn while leaving the underlying pink dress intact and still perfectly wearable on its own.

As you can see in the photos, I also crocheted a cardigan and bonnet to go with the dress. Here's a link to my post about that project. 

Dress, cardigan, bonnet, sunglasses, and headband!

My gift parcel to Princess Rosalee includes a set of mesh bags that can be used to protect delicate items like her dress while they're being laundered. I'm also tucking in a set of sleeveless onesies, in case Mommy prefers Rosalee to have a lightweight layer between her skin and the dress, and a pair of white leggings, in case it's a cold day, to keep Rosalee's legs warm under the skirt. I'm also including a set of ruffle diaper cover shorts (one white, one pink) for Rosalee to wear under the skirt on warm days. There is also a set of colorful, stretchy headbands, which I bought just to be able to add a little "flower" (made from the last few inches of leftover Rozetti lace yarn) to the pink one. My husband also found an adorable set of pink baby sunglasses, so of course we had to grab those, too! All in all, I think Baby and Mommy will be thrilled. 💜

Headband with "flower"

Extra goodies!

 

Sweet Sweater and Bonnet for Princess Rosalee

To go with the ruffle dress for Princess Rosalee, I wanted to include a sweet little cardigan and bonnet, which both utilize the same V-stitch of the Baby Dress Raspberry pattern.

This is the thinnest yarn I have ever worked with, but it is not thread; it's a very thin but soft 3-ply spun yarn. The labelless skein was in a bag of yarn that was gifted to me years ago, so I don't know what brand it is or any other information about it, but it makes 20 wpi. After making both the cardigan and bonnet, I had just a small amount of the yarn left over.

The cardigan is finished with 6 white buttons (3/8-inch diameter), which I found on Amazon. The bonnet is trimmed with white grosgrain ribbon (3/8-inch wide), which I also found on Amazon, plus another one of the buttons applied decoratively on each side to cover and also reinforce the stitching that attaches the ribbon to the bonnet.

 

Red Hat

I had a random 123g ball of red, apparently acrylic light-worsted weight yarn in my stash, part of some gifted yarn from my daughter's friend Allie. 

Amid the wave of red nisse resistance hats, voici ma version. Mine is crocheted from the bottom up, starting with a slip-stitch ribbing worked flat (sideways) and then seaming the ends together and continuing to work the crown of the hat from the bottom up. Ordinarily, the crown would be worked in the round, but since I usually wear my hair in a messy-bun style, I'm leaving the back of my hat open with flaps on either side, and I'm working the crown in rows. 

The ribbing has 67 ribs, a number that is meaningful to me. The crown has 68 stitches plus 6 stitches on each end for the overlapping flaps, for a total of 80 stitches. 

The ribbing is crocheted with a 5mm hook, and I switched to a 5.5mm hook for the crown, which I worked using the lemon peel stitch. The braided tassel is detachable, so the hat can be worn with or without the tassel. 

The hat used about 100g of the 123g ball.