Pattern:Â Chromatic CowlÂ
Yarn: Knitcircus Thrilling in the Over the Rainbow gradient, and creamy sheep (I got the kit here!)
Needles: 3.5 mm circulars (US 4)
Notes: I noted in my knit -in-progress post that this is my first time knitting brioche, but it’s easy to get the hang of it, and produces such a great squishy and cuddly fabric, that it’s easy to see how some people get addicted.  It’s especially fun when using a great gradient liek this, because watching the colours unfold is pretty much magic. We took these photos when we were up north in Sudbury visiting my family, and somehow forgot to bring a DSLR camera- but I think these turned out pretty good for a cell phone camera, all things considered.
I previously blogged about the cowl as a knit-in-progress here, when it was getting loved-up by my little cat, Yarn.
My mom was instantly smitten with this cowl when she saw it, and I’m not surprised- it’s simple but really eye-catching, and pairing bright colours with a clean white and wooly yarn feels very modern.
I’m particularly glad that I tried out brioche stitch for the first time using a kit- I’ve heard that brioche stitch basically eats yarn, due to all the yarn overs that help create the wonderfully striking fabric, but it’s so much easier to not have to worry about yardage when using a kit and someone else has done the work for you! Having said that, this kit used up every last bit of yarn- there’s nothing left of either skein, which always makes me happy.
Now that I’ve tried my first brioche project, do you have any other brioche stitch pattern recommendations? Anyone else tried knitting brioche before?
I’ve never knitted brioche before, it’s the first time I’ve heard of it actually, thanks for sharing! The cowl is gorgeous! Such bright colors and the drape is beautiful! Uhm I can’t even believe those are cell phone photo’s! Very good!
Gorgeous FO and I’m totally impressed by the cell phone shots! Don’t think that I would have ever suspected that had you not mentioned it. I knit Oshima by Jared Flood as my first foray into brioche and it’s still one of my favourite FO’s. Highly recommend!
I have been eyeing Oshima for a while now, so I’m glad to see that you highly recommend it! I just might have to pull the trigger on this project now…
Beautiful!!!
I consider myself a very experienced knitter, yet I’ve never tried brioche! I think I just need to find a project that grabs my attention enough to learn it (your cowl is pretty inspiring!)
Purl Bee website has some nice free brioche patterns. Brioche was on my learn-to-do this winter list. It didn’t happen. Reminded now, it will go on the Spring/summer list. Where there is life there is hope…Thanks.
It’s beautiful! I’m a total sucker for bright gradients. I’ve never knit brioche before, but I’ve been eyeing a few projects that use the technique. It’s something I want to try out soon, so it’s glad to hear you had a good experience with it.
This is -so- cool! 🙂 Beautifully summery. I’ve always wanted to try the brioche stitch but haven’t gotten around to it. Maybe I’ll try it soon this summer… 🙂
The result is fantastic, and looks so warm and comfy. No wonder your mum liked it. I have only tried brioche once, using the Brioche Infinity Scarf free pattern, in blocks of three colors. I would love to try brioche again with two colours intertwined. This is a great kit, and I love it too when you use up all the yarn for a project.
Damask Cowl by Nancy Marchant – absolutely stunning and not a hard or long knit. I love mine!
I love this! Those colors are so rich, and the cowl looks super squishy and cozy 🙂 I’ve done a couple of brioche swatches, but I haven’t done a full project yet. I absolutely love Bristol Ivy’s Hey, Little Songbird stole-I might just have to jump back into brioche soon!
That is a beautiful piece. I love the colours! It looks great on you.
I’ve never tried, since I run hot and one layer of fabric usually does it for me. But maybe my ever freezing MIL would like one…
Just curious–does the brioche stitch cause the bias twisting in the cowl, or is that just positioning in the photo?
Hi Katie,
I had to go and look at several photos of other brioche cowls, but they are all perfectly straight…. so I suspect that I was probably messing something up slightly, as this was my first brioche project. I do find when I knit in the round my knitting tends to bias in any stitch other than stockinette, so it might also have something to do with me- maybe I need to block it again, and straighten out the stripes!
Further update- I have just learned something totally new! I looked up knitting bias, and after several articles of people trying to do it on purpose, found a great one at TECHknitting about how it happens accidentally: Totally worth reading!
http://techknitting.blogspot.ca/2011/01/avoiding-yarn-twist-why-does-it-matter.html
I’m going to be a lot more careful about knitting with center pull yarn from now on…..
Julie,
You can also end up with a knitted bias if you are using handspun yarns that are overspun. Just a tip in case you ever venture into handspun yarns 🙂
Ahh Brioche knitting almost ALWAYS draws my attention, but alas I’ve never tried it! Your cowl is beautiful!
Beautiful cowl, shots, and model! Brioche is a bit like Intarsia to me… I know I should just go ahead and practice but always end up sticking with familiar stitches rather than trying new techniques. I love squishy woolly textures so I should really get on with it and just try it already! I also love seeing impressive photo collections shot entirely on iPhones, which really goes to show that great light and composition (and a little post prod) can often trump expensive equipment (not that iPhones are cheap, but still).
I just took a Brioche class at Knitter’s Frolic with Kate Atherley, and am also hooked! I think a kit is a great idea, as yardage is probably hard to estimate. I absolutely love the gradient effect on this one!
So beautiful and now Brioche is a technique I must add to my “Learn” list!
This turned out just lovely!!!! The only brioche I’ve done was a hat from Weekend Knitting. And then, I only did it because someone came in my shop struggling with the pattern! It’s something I need to revisit….and most likely relearn. I loved the hat! Don’t remember loving the pattern, but that was probably because I didn’t give it a good chance. 🙂
That’s so awesome – love the bright colours 🙂
I’ve never tried brioche stitch before, but seeing it a lot around the internet is making me want to try!
What a wonderful cowl! I’ve never tried brioche but I’ll keep in mind that a gradient yarn is a good idea (and that it needs so much yarn, I had no idea!).