A Katniss Cowl

I don't often find time to blog two days in a row. Sunday night we had ice and then snow on top of ice so I haven't left home since Sunday. The mailman hasn't delivered mail for two days and I couldn't make it to jury duty today. However, I am catching up on UFO's, Ravelry projects, photoshoots, and blogging.

My daughter loves The Hunger Games and really wanted to knit a cowl similar to the one that Katniss Everdeen wore in the movie. We found a pattern on Ravelry and I helped her start it back in January. It was a quick, chunky yarn kind of knit but she would get busy with classes and put it aside for a week or so. Then we would have to reacquaint ourselves with the pattern and knit a few more rows. I helped her refashion the neck section last night to a more wearable version of the Katniss cowl and she was able to quickly finish it up. This post is a little heavy on pictures but it was good to get out of the house so we really enjoyed the photoshoot in the snow covered field, or should I say, District 12!

Ravelry Link

If you would like to knit your own Katniss cowl, check out these links.....

Katharina Schnorr's blog

Pattern Information on Ravelry.com

My Katniss cowl and project notes on Ravelry

I'd love to see pics of your Katniss cowl!

Kwik Sew 3740 (with neckline adjustment)

I decided to make Kwik Sew 3740 again with an adjustment to the neckline. The first time I tried this pattern, I cut the neckline by the pattern and I like that top very much. This time, I wanted somewhat of a loose turtleneck/cowl which is high enough at the neckline to wear with sweater vests, cardigans, etc. and also a little bit warmer now that the temperature is in the 20's and 30's occasionally.

I placed my tracing paper under my original pattern and redrew the neckline. This was somewhat of a guess as to what I thought looked right. After I completed the top, I found a discussion on Patternreview.com about drafting cowls which indicated that if you draw a line straight across the shoulders, you should drop the front neckline about 4 inches. Lucky for me, that is exactly how much I dropped mine!

For the cowl neck, I cut a rectangle about 15 x 24 wide. The circumference of the cowl after seaming should match the distance around the neckline. (Actually, mine was ever so slightly smaller to help hold in the stretchy neckline) My neckline circumference is about 22 1/2. I allowed a little extra for shaping at the back seam. I first stitched a straight seam and tried on the cowl. I decided that it would be a good idea to let out the part which would be the fold on the cowl to make it a little looser and give it a little more fabric to "cowl". I tapered back to the original seamline keeping it at 22 1/2 .

Once I had all the adjustments made, I sewed the top up very quickly with my serger and Janome coverstitch machines. If the lightweight jersey didn't roll, I could have it stitched up in about an hour. Does anyone have any tips for sewing with knits that roll?

 
I plan to make several more of these in other colors. I have always enjoyed sewing with knits but REALLY enjoy it now that I can get professional (and stretchy) hems with the coverstitch!

Silky Scarves

I decided that I need to start accessorizing more so I have been on a scarf kick lately. I bought 2 yards of a couple of silky print fabrics at Hancock Fabrics. Since the fabrics were 60 inches wide, I was able to cut 3 scarves from each, 20 inches wide by 72 inches long. For this scarf, I folded the fabric right sides together lengthwise and serged the long seam. Then I serged the shorter crosswise seam, tucking one side of the scarf inside the other and leaving 2 inches for turning. I pressed the seams lightly so that the scarf still has body and does not look too flattened. There are lots of tutorials for these on the web. Just search eternity scarf or infinity scarf.

 This is the same scarf wrapped one more time around the neck for a shorter version.

This scarf is cut to the same dimensions as the scarf above but is not stitched into a circle. It is just a traditional long scarf. Fold right sides together and stitch across the ends and along the long edge, leaving an opening for turning.

I bought a yard of this pretty 45 inch wide print at WalMart for $3.00 per yard and cut into 2 strips, about 22 x 36 to make 2 scarves with a finished size of about 10 1/2 inches wide and 35 1/5 inches in circumference. Since it is a shorter scarf, I added a mobius twist so that it would drape nicely.

The cost for these scarves ranged from $1.50 to $2.75 each! Quick and easy Christmas gifts for the ladies on my list!

Kwik Sew 3740

I ordered a new wardrobe builder pattern from PatternReview a couple of weeks ago because it had lots of nice reviews. It is listed as one of the top ten patterns for 2010. Kwik Sew 3740 includes a cowl collar long sleeve pullover top and a sleeveless tank top. I had a pretty nice piece of jersey knit fabric in my stash which I actually found at WalMart for 99 cents per yard! I haven't used a Kwik Sew pattern for myself for a few years so it took a few try-ons and adjustments to get the right fit.

I read on PatternReview that sometimes the cowl seam shows in the front. I stitched the seam as instructed the first time around and, sure enough, it did show a bit. Then I made clips in the seam and stitched the front 7 inches of the neckline/cowl seam opposite of the way the pattern instructed. In other words, the front seam allowance is actually on the outside of the pullover between the front and the cowl. The cowl drapes over the exposed seam allowance. The seam never shows when I am wearing the top.

 I always save the little clear elastics that come on ready-to-wear garments to hold them on the hanger in the store. When a neckline or any other area is a little too stretchy, I stitch the elastic to the seam to stabilize it. For this top, I stitched the back neck seam down to the top only in the back from shoulder to shoulder inserting the elastic underneath as I stitched, stretching it slightly. The top feels much better after stabilizing this seam. These clear elastic pieces are also great to stabilize shoulder seams.

I used my favorite double needle hem technique with woolly nylon in the bobbin as described in this post.

What are your favorite patterns and tips for knits? 

Dew Drop Cowl

My daughter was on fall break from college last week and decided that she wanted to knit a cowl. I found this easy pattern on Ravelry and got her going on it. It is worked on 200 stitches so she wanted a pattern without purls. Not that she minds purling, but 200 purls at a time are a lot of purls. She knitted while watching TV. She knitted in the car on the way to a football game. We both knitted a little when we had the time and finished it pretty quickly. We used a self-striping fingering weight sock yarn from Patons.

The cowl is about 52 inches in circumference and can be worn draped around the neck or doubled as shown in this picture. I'm pretty sure I will be borrowing this cowl from my daughter once in a while!

Ravelry link

I'm on the lookout for more quick and easy cowl patterns. What are your favorites?