Ashford Cowl by Nicola Faull
This silky cowl will add warmth and a little drama to any walk in the park. Make it silky as shown or try it in a wooly yarn for winter warmth.
Skill Level
Intermediate knitter or intrepid beginner with some basic lace experience. Skills required: Knit, purl, yarn over, s1, ssk, k2tog, short row shaping, cast on, cast off.
Finished Size
Approx. $20"$ circumference at bottom edge, 17" circumference at top edge, $8"$ high, blocked. Gauge Not critical for this project. $18.0=4$ inches on 5.5 mm/Us 10 needle, unblocked. Every knitter's gauge is unique. This cowl is designed to be close fitting without gaps at the neck, but not tight. If you would like a looser cowl just go up a needle size or two.
Needles 'n Notions
US 9 / 5 mm -16" circular needle US 10 / 5.5 mm -16" circular needle 4 stitch markers (1 different so you can identify the start of a new round.) Tapestry needle
Abbreviations:
K2tog - knit 2 stitches together P2tog - purl 2 stitches together S1 - slip next stitch knitwise Ssk - slip the next 2 stitches as if to knit, return them to the left needle and knit them together yo - wrap yarnover needle before next stitch W&T - wrap and turn for short row shaping
Gallery (as shown from left to right):
Classic Elite Yarns Waterlily: - approx 136 yards (124.4m) - approx 1.5 skeins - 4.0mm/US 6 - 4.5mm/US 7 Lang Silkdream: Red - 130 yards (120.0m) - approx 1.25 skeins $50\%$ Merino / 50% Silk - 5.0mm/US 9 - 5.5mm/US 10 Debbie Bliss Rialto Aran: Purple (col 15) - Merino, machine washable - 115 yds $(105~\mathsf{m})$ - 5.0mm/US 9 - 5.5mm/US 10 - omit row 11 of chart to make it from a single skein
Notes The stitch pattern is a multiple of 23 stitches, with 4 repeats.
Knitted in the round, shaping is achieved by a change down in needle size half way. The scallops at the cast off edge are created with short row shaping and with left and right slanting decreases. These final 2 rows are in reverse stocking stitch (stockinette) to echo the purl row at the cast on edge. This pattern does not set out to teach the short row shaping method, although instructions are given. Please check out printed and online resources for an explanation of this method. Since the first wrap' occurs on a purl row and you are 'turning' to a knit row, you simply wrap the yarn around the front of the stitch to be wrapped, turn your work, wrap the yarn fully around the wrapped stitch to the back of your work and knit into the following stitch. Alternativel:If you wishtoomit the short row shaping,the cowmaybefinished without scallp shaping by ending with 2 purl rows and a cast off row in knit. This is a perfectly lovely alternative. Pattern both charted and written directions are included.
Setup row
Withsize $5.5\;\mathsf{m m}\;16^{\prime\prime}$ circular needles, cast on 92 stitches (i.e. 4 repeats of the pattern). Place a stitch marker every 23 stitches. Join in the round, being careful not to twist. Knit 1 row. Purl 1 row.
Start pattern
Knit 2 repeats of stitch pattern instructions or chart pattern, (24 rows in total, including edging rows).
Tip: Keeping it straight
The stitch pattern has a vertical line of purl rows in the centre. To keep these aligned correctly, check on the wrong side (the inside of the cowl) that you have a vertical line of knit stitches in the centre of the motif. The inside knit stitches are easier to keep track of than the purl rows on the right side of the work Chart: As the pattern is knit inthe round all chart rows are read from right to left
Legend
k \~knit p\~ purl yo \~ yarnover ssk \~ slip, slip knit k2tog $\sim$ knit two together
Tip: Yarnovers between knit-and-purl and purl-and-knit stitches
In Row 2, the $1^{s\dagger}$ yarnover (Yo) occurs between a knit and a purl stitch and the $2^{n d}$ yo occursbetween this purl stitch and the following knit stitch. Wrap the yarn completely around the needle between these stitches. On the next round, be sure to knit these yarnovers snugly.
Stitch pattern:
Row 1 - \*K8, k2tog, yo, k1, p1, k1, yo, ssk, k8; rep from \* to end Row 2 -\*K7, k2tog,k2,yo,p1,yo, k2,ssk, k7; rep from\*toend Row 3 - \*K6, k2tog, k, yo, k2,pi, k2,yo, k, ssk, k6; rep from \* to end Row 4 -\*K5, k2tog, k3, yo, ki,p1,k1, yo, k3, ssk, k5: rep from \* to end Row 5 - \*K4, k2tog, k2,yo,k3, p1,k3, yo, k2, ssk, k4; rep from \* to end Row 6 -\*K3, k2tog, k4, yo, k2,p1,k2, yo, k4, ssk, k3; rep from \* to end Row7 -\*K2, k2tog, k3,yo, k4,p1,k4, yo, k3, ssk, k2; rep from \* to end Row 8 - \*K1, k2tog, k5, yo, k3,p1, k3,yo, k5, ssk, k1; rep from \* to end Row 9 - \*k2tog, k4, yo,k5, p1,k5, yo, k4, ssk, rep from \* to end Row 10 & 11 - \*K11, p1, k11; rep from \* to end
Tip: Lengthen or shorten:
Here's where you can lengthen the cowl by including extra repeats of these 11 rows. The cowl may also be lengthened or shortened slightly by adding or subtracting rows between the pattern repeats,i.e. repeating or removing rows 10 & 11. To knit the cowl from a single skein of Debbie Bliss Rialto Aran, omit row 11. Switch to size 5 mm needles and repeat rows 1-11, 2 more times. There are now 4 horizontal repeat sections of the stitch pattern
Tip: Looser scallop edge/cast off
For a looser top edge of the cowl, switch back to the larger needle for the scallop edging and cast off.
Scallop edging:
Scallop edge 1
Row 1- P2tog, P20, there is now 1 stitch before the stitch marker. W&T (slip this stitch onto the right needle. Pass the working yarn around this stitch from front to back, turn your work and slip this stitch onto the right needle. Wrap the working yarn around this stitch to the back of the work. Continue to row 2). Row 2 - K19, k2tog, turn Row 3 - Ssk so as to cast off 1 stitch. Cast off 18 more stitches until there is 1 stitch remaining on the left needle before the next stitch marker. Slip this stitch to the right hand needle, remove the stitch marker and return this stitch to the left hand Ashford Cowl Copyright 2009 $\circledcirc$ Nicola Faull, for personal use only needle. P2tog. Cast off the final stitch of the $1^{s\dagger}$ scallop over this new stitch. You are now 1 stitch into the next scallop. Scallop edge 2 P2tog, P19, W&T as before K19, k2tog Ssk so as to cast off 1 stitch. Cast off until there is 1 stitch on the left needle before the next stitch marker. Slip this stitch to the right hand needle, remove the stitch marker and return this stitch to the left hand needle. P2tog. Cast off the final stitch of the $2^{n d}$ scallop over this new stitch. You are now 1 stitch into the next scallop. Scallop edge 3 Repeat as for Scallop edge 2 Scallop edge 4 (final) P2tog, P19, W&T as before K18, k2tog Ssk so as to cast off 1stitch. Cast off until there is 1stitch remaining on the right needle. With the tip of the left needle pick up a loop from the edge of the $1^{s\dagger}$ scallop. The aim is to close the gap between the first and last scallop, so the loop you pick up needs to be reasonably taut. Pass the stitch from the right needle to the left and knit these 2 loops together. If the fabric between the scallops seems loose or gappy, repeat this step by picking up another loop from the cast off edge and knitting it together with the last stitch. Pullstitches firmly. Break off yarn and thread through the last stitch. Alternative edging To finish cowl without short rows, replace the scallop edge with 2 purl rows and cast off the final row in knit. Finishing Weave in ends. Block to desired size. Last Orders Get out there and have fun with your Ashford Cowl.
I'm a slightly obsessed knitter and advocate of all things yarnie. I live, knit and hang out with my Yarnie People in beautiful Co. Wicklow, Ireland. Please do not hesitate to contact me for any help with this pattern. http://nicknits.blogspot.com nicknits@gmail.com or via The Yarn Room, Ashford, Co Wicklow, Ireland. www.theyarnroom.com.
