This is a pattern for a beginner knitter, who hates purling. It is an opportunity to learn how to work in the round, knit 2 together, make button holes, make a braid, and make funny fuzzy pompoms.
Size
One size fits all, but it should be very easy to alter both width and length of the cowl simply by casting on more or less stitches, and adding or reducing rounds for different widths. If you are making size adjustment make sure that you add or reduce an even number of holes and that the holes are evenly spread throughout the length, also make sure to keep 2 holes close together for the front of the cowl.
Materials
1 Skein Lion Brand Wool-Ease thick and quick in Charcoal
Smaller amounts of Fisherman and Claret (for the braid and pompoms)
Notions
8mm 24" circular needles
Tapestry needle
Pompom rings or piece of cardboard
small scissors
Gauge
Approximately 10 stitches to 4in/10cm in stocking stitch, knit in the round.
Notes (linked to the amazing knittinghelp.com tutorial videos)
CO - Cast on
BO - Bind off
K2tog - Knit 2 together
YO - Yarn Over. Just pass the yarn over the needle, trust me.
Pattern
CO 67 stitches. Join to work in the round making sure not to twist.
Rnd 1-10: K
Holes rnd: k2tog, yo, k2, [k2tog, yo, k7] 7 times
Rnd 12-21: K
BO knitwise.
Finishing
Darn in ends neatly to finish. No need to press, the cowl will curl, and we want it to! :)
Make a braid from 3 or 6 strands the length that is required to wrap around your neck plus about 1.5 feet for tying.
Make 2 extra large Pompoms (how? use a cardboard or your fingers if you don't have a fancy pompom maker...) making sure not to cut the tying yarn short yet.
Thread the braid through the holes in the cowl, making sure that it pops out of the cowl through the two front holes (the two adjacent ones)
Use the pompoms tying yarn to thread through the ends of the braid and cut them. This way the braids' ends are hidden inside the pompoms. Once you do this, you will have a hard time taking the braid out of the holes! So make sure everything is in place.
