Wednesday 14 October 2015

The Big Blue Cowl

It wasn't always a cowl. But in the end it became the biggest, squishiest, and I am predicting, the warmest cowl ever. And I love it.
Back in August, I went on a spontaneous trip to a local yarn sale with my friend Jill where I bought a bag of beautiful pale teal yarn. (I recently read about the term "stash enhancement" as a way to describe the purchase of new yarn; a perfect term if there ever was one, and one that I must certainly adopt.)
I needed a project to work on while we were on our holiday, something easy to pick up and put down, so I settled on this shawl pattern using my new yarn. As our minivan rumbled along the highway, I got to work on my shawl; a row or two followed by a long gaze out the window at the passing scenery, it was the perfect way to spend the hours on the road.
I also spent one glorious morning sitting on the patio of our cottage in Prince Edward Island, a cup of tea perched on the railing and my crochet in my lap. I will always remember this time when I wear my cowl.

As for how this went from being a shawl to being a cowl: as I neared the end, I began to wonder about the practicality of a shawl, about how much I would actually wear it. I thought that perhaps a cowl would be more useful -  after all I live in Canada, a place visited by the Polar Vortex - so I seamed the ends together and my big blue cowl was born.
It is a perfect length - two wraps around my neck and it is full and cozy without any gaping holes for the wind to get through. And while it has not been cold enough yet to warrant wearing my cowl, the cold is coming....and I am ready.

Goodness, it feels great to have finished one of the many projects I have on-the-go. And motivating as well; as soon as I had darned in the last end on my cowl, I was back to vigorously working on my Cozy Stripe Blanket.

Have you finished any projects lately? Have you ever started making one thing and then turned it into something else at the end? 

(P.S. I just checked the weather forecast and it may snow on Sunday! Yikes! I finished this project in the nick of time.)

8 comments:

  1. Hello Rachel,
    Wow you made such a pretty cowl and I love the color of that yarn you used. Enjoy wearing your cowl for the winter.
    Julie xo

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    1. Thank you Julie. I figure if it is going to be cold, I might as well have a lovely cowl to keep me warm.

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  2. What a beautiful cowl!! Also, this fellow Canuck really enjoyed the peek of a Timmies travel mug next to your beautiful yarn basket. :-)

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    1. Love that you noticed my Timmies mug....thanks Caroline.

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  3. Beautiful! I love that idea -- "stash enhancement" -- I'll have to pull that one out next time my husband questions my yarn purchases. ;)

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    1. Thank you Laurel. I have used the phrase "stash enhancement" many times since I first heard it....works like a charm.

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  4. Your cowl turned out beautifully, Rachel, and I can imagine you will enjoy wearing it during your cold weather. Last year at about this time I was visiting PEI with my youngest son. I posted about it...I visited Ann of Green Gables park while my son played golf :) We each had a great time! Then we drove to Green Gable Alpaca Farm. When I got back to Oregon, USA, I ordered some alpaca fiber from the farm and knit a scarf for my youngest son for Christmas last year. What fun to know you enjoy PEI as well! xx

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    1. Oh we loved PEI. Loved it so much. We had not even left the island and we were already planning a trip back. I did not even know about the Green Gable Alpaca Farm - someplace to visit on our next trip...thanks for mentioning that.

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