Issue 218 – Kumara Bifurcate Cowl

This two color cowl is a show-stopper, and its construction is incredibly clever. How’s this for a brain-teaser...the entire cowl is knit back and forth, NOT in the round. Curious? This ingenious design comes from Rachel Henry, the designer who brought us one of our most popular Web-Letters to date, the Cotton Bam Boo Kudzu Shawlette.

There is no cozier yarn than Kumara, with its soft, lofty blend of extrafine Merino and baby camel hair. The camel hair is undyed, resulting in a muted effect that performs in perfect harmony with the sophisticated palette of 23 colors. Baby camel, a fiber with a softness rivaling cashmere, is expensive on its own, but you'll find it in this decadent blend at an affordable price. This yarn is pure luxury!

Visit Rachel’s website • View Rachel’s designs on Ravelry

(file size: 1.7 MB; published November 22, 2011)

If you have difficulty with the PDF, try these: page 1 – page 2 – page 3

The Yarn:

Kumara
85% extrafine Merino • 15% baby camel

Kumara is a blend of extrafine merino and baby camel hair. Merino is a warm and buoyant fiber that takes dyes beautifully; Camel is a super soft fiber that, because of its short staple length, adds a lovely halo.

The Merino component is dyed before it is spun with the undyed camel hair. The blend of dyed and undyed fibers makes soft, muted colors. Kumara's six twisted plies yield great stitch definition.

This might help...

This pattern references a cast-on called the Old Norwegian Cast-On. As any experienced knitter will tell you, there are countless ways to get your yarn on that needle. How's a girl to remember which is which? Don't worry, you don't have to. Head over to Rachel's blog for a quick tutorial and a video from the designer about the Old Norwegian Cast On.

Another handy skill when working this cowl is cabling without a cable needle. It will change your life! I learned from the ever-helpful Grumperina, using the tutorial on her fabulous blog.

Also from Classic Elite Yarns

With the photography in Studio, we took advantage of the fabulous eye candy in the studio of artist Debra Bretton Robinson right on Western Ave. in Lowell. Eye-popping colors, one-of-a-kind original artwork, and paint-splattered easels form the backdrop for this collection of five pieces in Kumara, our luxurious extrafine Merino and baby camel blend.

From the left, Artiste, a cozy scarf with alternating panels of rib and Bramble stitch, Gracious, a lace stitch cardigan with a deep ribbed collar, Afternoon Light and Landscape, a hat and off-the-shoulder top with a delicate scalloped pattern, and Splendor, a fun cabled scarf and fingerless mitt set with a contrasting cable.