I knit her a Burberry Inspired Cowl (free pattern on ravelry). It was such an easy and fun knit that I decided I wanted to make one for myself. I went to three different yarn shops looking for the yarn called for in the pattern - Cascade Venezia, which is a bulky merino/silk blend. I used Cascade 220 Superwash for Lindsay's, since it's easy to care for, but I wanted to use the Venezia for mine. I couldn't find the Venezia in any of the shops I visited, and two of the shops had no idea what yarn I was even talking about.
I got creative by our third stop and decided it really was more about the blend and color than the weight of the yarn anyway. I finally found Sublime Yarns Baby Cashmere Merino Silk DK. Which, as the name suggests is a DK weight yarn, not bulky. I picked this beautiful greige color - the perfect gray-beige (color 0006 for those playing along at home). It definitely photographs more tan than anything, but it's a really subdued gray/taupe/beige. Big puffy heart love.
I knew that since it was DK and not bulky, I'd have to get a little creative with the pattern to make the size turn out right. Here are my modifications:
Note: I'm just listing my modifications. Please support the designer and get the full pattern from her.
Using a size 6 needle, provisional cast on 94 stitches
Row 11: slip first stitch, k 2, slip 8 onto cable needle (hold to front), k 8, k cable needle, k 20, slip 8 onto cable needle (hold to front), k 8, k cable needle, k 20, slip 8 onto cable needle (hold to front), k 8, k cable needle, k 3
Row 25: slip first stitch, k 20, slip 8 onto cable needle (hold to back), k 8, k cable needle, k 20, slip 8 onto cable needle (hold to back), k 8, k cable needle, k 21
Essentially doing 3 of the first cable repeat (row 11) and 2 of the second (row 25).
I did 5 pattern repeats of the 30 rows and blocked aggressively to get the right size.
Lessons learned here - don't be afraid to substitute yarns.
Bonus questions: Are you working on a cowl? What's your favorite cold-weather accessory?
