Thursday, January 19, 2012

Quick Knitting Project for Nasty Weather

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Mmmmkay, so I'm about to get real with you and say...
This is NOT a fashion blog.
In fact, if I'm to be perfect honest with you all,
my idea of a fashion victory is when I "accidentally on purpose" match my tank top to my yoga pants... no really.
Having said this, however,
this is my take on one of my favorite accessories of the season:







To say that I'm liking the eternity scarf/cowl/snood trend
might be an understatement.
I love it.









You've seen them all over Pinterest right now.
I'm particularly enjoying the selection of cowls with cables and buttons.
I LOVE buttons.

http://www.etsy.com/shop/KittyDune?ref=seller_info
via Pinterest










Anywho, my beautiful sister-in-law and I were looking at a few for inspiration before Christmas.
She wanted to maybe make one for a friend as a gift, and I offered to "guide" her in the process.
So we hopped in the car and went down to Joann for some yarn.









We found this beauty...

So it was decided.
She already knew how to knit, I reminded how to purl, and we ended up with a really quick and SIMPLE cowl.
I actually loved it so much that I made a two button version for my own friend, and even had enough yarn left to make another, slightly larger one for myself.
So I thought I would share
mostly because I've been prodded by a few of you to post some more beginner-friendly projects.
Trust me, this is definitely beginner-friendly.
If you're not sure how to knit or purl and would still like to give this a whirl (that rhymes!),
there are some fairly good you tube videos out there. I found these:

I'm fairly certain that I would love anything with this yarn,
and the great news about this project is:
it's really quick.
you can do it if you know how to make a knit stitch and purl stitch (no increasing/decreasing/cabling/etc)
it uses less than one skein of yarn
the yarn is so chunky that it hides mistakes REALLY well!





What you'll need:
one skein of chunky yarn (I used Lion Brand Wool-Ease "Thick and Quick" in Grey Marble)
size 13 knitting needles (or size to obtain tension- just look on the label)
a big ole button- the bigger the better in my opinion

*Note: You may need a little more than one skein to make your scarf long enough to wrap around your neck comfortably, mostly depending on how tightly you hold/knit your yarn.






Step One:
Cast on 35 stitches.








Step Two:
Purl 1 stitch in every stitch on this row and every alternate row.
Knit 1 stitch in every stitch on the odd rows.
This is called a stocking stitch.

*The "right" side of a piece using a stocking stitch looks like this------->









Step Three:
Put in a good movie (or two) and keep chugging along.
Continue in this manner until the cowl measures about 30 inches.
You may want to make yours longer if you want it to be looser around your neck.
End on a purl row.









Step Four:
Cast off knitwise.






Step Five.
Arrange your cowl and attach a button where you want it.
You can place it wherever you would like, obviously, but I put mine toward the top (see picture below).





Please note that I just tied the button on; it's not a "functioning" button.
I did this because
a) It's a lot quicker/easier
b) If you don't like where the button is placed or how the cowl falls, you can easily cut it off and relocate it.
c) Since it's "fixed", you don't have to arrange it each time you put it on. It just slides right over your head.







Taa Dah!












Nothing ground-breaking, I know,
but a great reward for little effort.
That's a win in my book!


Enjoy!
The Southern Institute

14 comments:

  1. CUTE!!!! Not fashion blog. pssshh. You coulda fooled me with this post. :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Im petrified of needles of the knitting variety BUT
    I love the look of a cowl (snood? whats the diff??) and I might have to lock my piglets in the basement and attempt!

    thanks!

    jealous of your talent and creativity.

    *this comment took 9 minutes to type one handed. talentless.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Found you thru Grace's blog! Can I just say how envious I am of your knitting skills? I am left-handed and have yet to find ANYONE who can teach me. This is gorgeous!

    P.S. I'm your newest follower! :)

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  4. thanks, Ashley! I wish we lived close and I could help you! I've broken my right arm approximately 17 million times, so I'm pretty good with my left... :)

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  5. Um, SO CUTE! I have been wanting to make a cowl forever and have been totally intimidated, but this I can do, and I have been wanting to do just what you did. Just a length of scarf with a faux button. Thank you for doing it and linking it up at Creative Me. Now I know how cute it will be!

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  6. Hi, new noter. Found you on Pinterest.
    Do you sew the ends of the cowl together?
    Do you fold it over and then sew the button through all layers? This looks like something I could knit but I am unsure of how it goes from flat to a rounded cowl shape. Thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Where did you find the huge buttons? I've looked on line but couldn't find the big bold ones. Thanks

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I found cool big buttons at Joann Fabrics.

      Delete
  8. Did you sew the cowl together all the way down or is it connected just with the button?

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  9. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  10. It appears that this is not seamed. What looks like a seam is the stockinette "roll." The button is fixed in position, no buttonhole, as in the image of the cowl by Kitty Dune (above). Very nice!

    ReplyDelete

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