The Auk Cowl by Vanessa Pellisa

The Auk Cowl

Knitting
February 2022
Worsted (9 wpi) ?
20 stitches and 25 rows = 4 inches
in stockinette stitch
US 8 - 5.0 mm
US 7 - 4.5 mm
284 yards (260 m)
1
English Spanish
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A fun and quick knit to beat the blues. This is an easy-to-wear, easy-to-love cowl knit in Brooklyn Tweed Shelter. Its main features include a lovely lace detail and a folded ribbing band and icord closure for maximum comfort.


The American Ornithological Society has renamed its magazine, published since 1884, Ornithological. They aim, it seems, at better “quotability and assimilation in journalism and scientific research”.

The magazine was formerly named The Auk after the extinct Great Auk bird. The Auk ! What a perfect name! What a joy to read, think of and pronounce! I hope you agree with me that the decision to change such a cool name for a mere descriptor is a missed opportunity to bring a bit more beauty into the world. Too bad!

I’m an aesthete and can go to great lengths because of it. I might spend months looking for the perfect yarn for a project, the one balancing the right look and function. I can spend endless hours contemplating color choices for a new design. I obsess over good food, perfume, and stationery. I rearrange things compulsively. I contemplate refinement in awe.

It is not a superficial motivation that drives this compulsion. All in all, I find a certain consolation in my long-held belief that making things beautiful is a way to honor our time in this world. A small impact perhaps, but IMO a meaningful one.

Alas, I am feeling a bit lonely in my estheticism lately. We live in practical times and details are often overlooked. A bad seam in your skirt goes unnoticed. A poorly-lit street matters to no one. A beautifully named magazine requires a practical name to be taken seriously.

Never mind the noise, though. My fellow makers and I will remain actively involved in our commitment to beauty. By making things with our own hands, we pay attention to detail. We spent time with our objects, reflecting on their function. Understand material and the unexpected results of creativity. The world might shut down beauty from its agenda, but it still remains high on the list of priorities of the making community.

This cowl is, I believe, proof of it. It is not a single bit less practical, wearable and warm, for being pretty. On the contrary, The i-cord string makes it comfortable to wear and super well-fitting. The twisted ribbing detail and the super-easy lace pattern make it lovely to look at (and fun to make!). It manages to walk along the thin line between practicality and beauty.

Finished measurements:
One-color version: 49 cm (19.25”) wide and 29.6 cm
(11.8”) long.

YARN
2 skeins of Brooklyn Tweed Shelter — 100% American Targhee-Columbia Wool (140 yards/128 meters per 50 grams).
Sample is knit using colorway Camper.

NEEDLES
— 4.5 mm circular needle with a cable length of at least 40 cm (32”) for ribbing
— 4.5 mm DPNs for the icord
— 5 mm circular needle with a cable length of at least 40 cm (32”) for the main section

GAUGE
20 sts x 25 rounds = 10 x 10 cm (4 x 4”) in stockinette stitch on gauge-sized needles -5mm-, after blocking.

NOTIONS
Blocking tools, darning needle, stitch markers, and tape measure.


Un tejido divertido y rápido para disfrutar un montón. Este cuelo es tan fácil de llevar como parece y está tejido en un hilo super duradero y lujoso, Shelter de Brooklyn Tweed.

TALLAS
1
Versión de 1 color: 49 cm (19.25”) de ancho y 29.6 cm (11.8”) de largo.
Versión de 2 colores: 49 cm (19.25”) de ancho y 35.5 cm (17.8”) de largo

HILO
2 ovillos de Brooklyn Tweed Shelter — 100% American Targhee-Columbia Wool (140 yds/128 m) 50 gramos/madeja.

La muestra está tejida en el color Camper.

AGUJAS
— Circulares de 4.5 mm con un cable de al menos 40 cm (32”) para los elásticos
— Agujas de doble punta de 4.5 mm para el icord
— Circulares de 5 mm con un cable de al menos 40 cm (32”) para la sección principal

MUESTRA DE TENSIÓN
20 ptos x 25 vuelta = 10 x 10 cm (4 x 4”) a punto jersey en circular con agujas de 5mm después del bloqueo.

ACCESORIOS
Herramientas de bloqueo, aguja lanera para rematar cabos, marcadores de punto y cinta métrica.