This time it's a cowl. It's another gifted project, because as lovely and light as it is, it's still out of alpaca. Meaning it's a liiiiiitttle too warm for TX. Sigh...
So, The Fossil Cowl: (mine is Raveled here)
The yarn was Knit Picks Alpaca Cloud, a lace-weight alpaca blend. I'd picked up this skein from a knitting buddy when she de-stashed prior to a move. She found that she knit more in sock weight than lace weight, so no need to keep the lacy stuff right? Score for me! Made out with some lovely lace weight alpaca :) Thanks again, Sarah!! This particular skein was one that I earmarked for Mom almost immediately - a perfect tweedy chocolate brown, a perfect example of "Mom's Colors." So when this project popped on the Ravelry Pattern Tester board, it was the perfect match! It was a very easy yarn to work with, and Knit Picks is always reliable quality at not-arm-and-a-leg prices. And the final result is very soft and squishy, very nice to have draping around one's neck. Definitely a yarn I'd use again.
The pattern is the Fossil Cowl by Lusianne R., available as a Ravelry download. I really liked it - it is quick and easy, without being boring. No miles of garter or stockinette to give it that lovely squishy texture. I hadn't worked with the ridge stitch before, so that was a nice, new addition to my repertoire, but it wasn't a complicated one to pick up. This would be a great stronger beginner's project - you knit in the round, and there's tons of practice with K2tog and ktfbl (increasing and decreasing skills, always handy). And if you're holding the yarn double, there's practice with knitting with two strands - with the yarn I was using, that was a little challenging, with the fuzzy clinginess of alpaca, and all.
Oh, and as a bonus, it was the first chance I had to use my new blocking wires that I got for Christmas! You can barely see them in the picture below, but they are there! It was very exciting to use them :)
Mods: only one this time (surprising for me, but it was a test knit - I try to actually follow the pattern closely with those). So, the only modification I made was extending the number of repeats. The original pattern calls for 21 repeats before beginning the last repeat/edging. I did 24 instead. It made the cowl a little 'taller,' so that there is almost a complete doubling over as it wraps around the neck.
Overall, would definitely make this again. I think this is a lovely pattern, and would work well in other yarn weights. For example, in a sock yarn, instead of lace weight held doubled, you wouldn't even have to mess with gauge much, if at all. And this is a very easily customizable pattern too - adjust the number of stitches cast on (she offers the pattern in 3 sizes, but you can cast on any number of stitches in-between, according to personal preference); or adjust the number of pattern row repeats, as I did (make the cowl taller or shorter, depending on how much you want draping around your neck). The adjustability means it's a perfect pattern for those skeins of gorgeous painted lace and sock yarns! Just keep knitting until all your yarn is gone, nothing wasted!
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