12.10. Got the intended count of 132 with second CO (seriously, why am I allowed to count? I checked 3 times and still ended up with 130). The 6mm needles are making the fabric a little denser than perhaps desireable, but I haven’t got any circulars between 6mm and 10mm. Will have to buy some.

13.10. I pulled the needle out and measured the cowl, finding it, I think, too short to loop twice comfortably but too long for only once. It probably COULD be looped twice, though it’s hard to tell when I’ve only knitted 8 rows, but I think I’m going to start over casting on 96 like the State Street Cowl calls for. Starting over again.

This wool is not plied, which means it does splinter a bit, but ooh, it’s so fun to work with, soft and squishy and I really enjoy the variable width, which isn’t TOO great. Thinking of making a modified Aidez out of it later.

14.10 I decided I wanted the shape of the State St cowl (which was the one I had originally intended to make from this yarn), ie a kind of capelet that goes down to around the elbows. It didn’t seem possible to get that sort of gradual inc/dec using the textures of Zig Zag by Isabell Kraemer, which is what I had started with. So I cast on again - 84 stitches (+inc 1 st after ribbing) on 6mm needles and made two graduated rounds of travelling cables, then switched to 7mm. However, the top was too small this way - it would go over my head, but the fabric was too dense and it didn’t increase enough to go over my shoulders at the bottom. That’s why I switched to 8mm needles for the CO (still 84 st), made a bit of 1x1 rib and then started the pattern over using increases and decreases instead of cables.

The result is quite nice this way for wearing as a cape, but the top round is a little too big to draw up over my chin and mouth when it’s being worn as a scarf. It can loop twice around my neck in fact, but then it’s really tight. If I make this again (which is quite plausible because I’m really enjoying the cape aspect!) I will use a smaller CO or 6mm like the second-to-last attempt for the top repeat, and then increase to 8mm on the second repeat, then 9mm on the bottom two.

I almost ran out of yarn, thanks to my initial plan of making each pattern repeat 1 round longer; I abandoned this for the last repeat. In fact, I had to frog the last three rows, leaving out the single round of plain stockinette between the pattern and the ribbing and then work only 3 rows of 1x1 rib at the bottom before binding off in stockinette. This left me with a few little scraps of yarn, all in all not even enough to tie up a ponytail with.

Anyway, although this does not fit the way I wanted and can’t be worn as cowl with my winter coat the way I’d planned, I have to give it a :D instead of a :) simply because I haven’t wanted to take it off since I finished it.