Original Pattern: Pine Bough Cowl
Knitter Extraordinaire: Betsy (Ravelry ID, blog)
Mods: Changed the gauge from worsted to DK, worked the pine bough design on half the cowl, and added stripes and a little forest of trees from this pattern for the other side. Great details on all the modifications can be found on her project page, here.
What Makes This Awesome: There are two major factors that contribute to this cowl’s drop-dead gorgeousness. The first is the colours- Betsy Jo did a fabulous job of pairing a soft gold with the steel grey and blue, they worked together so well. Look at the side with the tree design- the striping is so subtle, it’s like shadows in a night sky. If any of these colours were too bright or higher contrast, the effect would be jarring. The other major factor is the asymmetry- having one design on half and another on the opposite looks so modern and unexpected. When you think of the concept, it doesn’t sound like it’s going to work (“I’m going to knit a cowl with feathered diagonal pattern on one side, and stripes and trees on the other” sounds kind of out there), but then you see this. And this, my friends, is a modification that works perfectly.
