Spincycle’s luscious novelty yarn was my inspiration for Purlieu (pronounced “purly-ewe” or “purl-yuh” if you want to be accurate about it). The Yarn Wranglers (knit nite buddies) kept petting my swatches and putting them up to their cheeks. The hurdle was the fluffy sections. To concentrate them into the pretty puffs I desired, I used a two-stitch short row section in garter until the fluffy section was past.

Purlieu has the benefits of a cowl because there are no loose ends dipping into the soup, getting caught in the bike spokes, or constricting like a boa. Folks sure love their cowls, but every time I put one over my head, it messes up my frizz-prone hair, smears my lipstick and grabs at my earrings on its way to my neck. The ones with buttons require two hands to put on or take off, which I always end up needing to do while juggling a purse and morning coffee. Purlieu has a wide fan on one end that tucks into the loop on the other end; after a couple tries, you’ll be able to do it one-handed!

The pattern yarn is available here: http://spincycleyarns.com/