Should you be looking, a coordinating hat is here.

This striped cowl brings together a few simple structural elements for an eye-catching, modern effect.

Stripes with a Curl is worked from the ribbing up, and the bind off permits the stockinette fabric to curl, encouraging the display of both the inner and outer sides in a cheerful play of color and texture.

The large cowl was originally designed to help use up fabulous (or pesky) single skeins - I used one skein each of Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Worsted in Farwell and Sunshine with not very much left over. If you have rather less yarn available, want to knit the hat as well, or simply like a smaller cowl, a small version has been added with the 2017 update.

It does work better when made with yarns with a loose twist and/or an inclination to relax or bloom, and my examples are knit at a looser gauge than recommended on the yarn label (17 st/4in instead of 18). If you’re using your own pesky single skeins, please keep this in mind, lest your curl get away from you! Or add some ribbing on the other end, as a number of people have done to excellent effect.

ETA May 20, 2016: If you want to work this pattern in more than two colors, you will need to adjust for jogs in your stripes - bethjhall shared a link to Knit Purl Hunter’s youtube tutorial for jogless stripes. The jog isn’t invisible, but it’s pretty subtle. Here you go, and thanks bethjhall for sharing!

The original pattern was published in 2015.