The Double-up Cowl, arranged so you can see the right side on inside and out.
I had a gorgeous DK-weight advent set from Emma’s Yarn and really wanted to do something cozy and stripey with it! To showcase all of the colors, naturally I used my favorite pairing of provisional cast-on and 3-needle bind-off.
I wanted something extremely quick and satisfying to knit, but thought garter stitch might be a bit TOO boring. With slipped stitches in the mix, it was more engaging to work on. They of course look great on solid color yarns, but I also like seeing how variegated/speckled yarns change when you have these extra-long stitches.
Look how nicely the cowl stays up around my neck! Peak coziness.
Since the end goal was to fold the cowl in half and get a sturdy fabric, I made the fabric biased in the hopes that the shaping would help support the fabric. And it did! The biasing, when folded, creates a triangle which helps to keep the cowl propped up around your neck. My mom said it’s the first time she’s had a scarf or cowl that actually stayed up below her chin, which is what she wants to keep warm. (I’m sure the double-DK-weight didn’t hurt either)
Because I’m lazy and extra, I wanted to add fringe to the cowl but not have to seam it beforehand. Thus, I used the fringe to tack the two pieces of fabric together! Of course, it’s always an option to seam it and forgo fringe entirely or forgo seaming and add fringe! A could of my testers added fringe to one edge but left the other end loose so they can choose to fold or not.
The Double-up Hat (and headband!) on the snow
With the headband and hat, I stuck to garter only. A big part of that is because I needed the extra stretch to accommodate multiple sizes, but also because I wanted to rush through the stripe knitting to get to the crown of the hat! The headband/hat brim is also worked on the bias, though, so I think the pieces maintain continuity. And you should be able to knit both from your 20g advent set - I made a cowl, a hat, a slightly larger headband, and I still have leftovers I think I’ll use for socks!
I admit that my original drive to create the headband was so I’d have something to keep my ears warm when I go to the gym on cold days and have my hair up, but after I made the hat…I fell in love with that version! I do still grab the headband when I’m heading out with my hair up, and it is delicious to not have my ponytail squashed or loosened by a hat.