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.

 

Luna Triangle Cowl

I really like pullover triangle cowls. They look amazing, they are so easy to wear, and they keep your neck, shoulders, and chest nice and cozy. So when I saw the super cute Luna Triangle Cowl paid pattern by Deni Sharpe, I knew I wanted to make one for myself.

I deviated from the pattern in a few ways. First, the pattern is written for bulky (size 5) yarn using an 8mm hook, but I made mine in aran weight (since that's what I had in my stash) with a 6.5mm hook. I also opted to hand knit the ribbed top of the cowl instead of working it in crochet.

The knitted part I did in a lofty and reversible fisherman's rib worked in the round over 80 stitches. I followed the tutorial for this technique at this link. Then I picked up the stitches for the first row of crochet to begin the triangle portion of the cowl. Since I was starting with a different number of stitches for the bottom part of the cowl than was listed in the pattern, I had to adjust the stitch counts for the triangle part of the work.