Gift knitting is stressful, ain’t it? The good news is, everyone loves a cowl. (Girls, anyway.) So just like with last year’s holiday hat knitting cheat sheet, I’ve put together a little gift guide for you: fabulous patterns, and the ladies who’ll love them:
1. the academic: Inkling by Dianna Walla, a stately, timeless and seamless striped tube
2. the victorian lit lover: Imogen Cowl by Carrie Bostick Hoge, exquisite grafted lace
3. the city mouse: Warren Street Cowl by Michele Wang, understated geometric texture (See also: South Paris)
4. the country mouse: Big Herringbone Cowl from the Purl Bee, squishy textural bliss (free pattern)
5. the grande dame: Lowbrow Cowl by Thao Nguyen, a million times more elegant than its name
6. the vintage junkie: Pine Bough Cowl by Dianna Walla, truly amazing colorwork in another seamless tube (free pattern) (See also: Ticking Cowl)
7. the bon vivant: Hamanasu Cowl by Olga Buraya-Kefelian, the master of mind-bending stitchery
8. the globetrotter: Bogolan by Elizabeth Davis, a trio of two-sided, mud-cloth inspired patterns (thanks, Meg)
9. the traditionalist: Chalet Cowl by Yarn Garden, simply beautiful cables (See also: Cabled Cowl — free pattern)
10. the sophisticate: Kennebec by Dawn Catanzaro, beautifully proportioned brioche
Actually, that last one could work for anyone, depending on your yarn and color choice. So that might be the one you make a spare of, just in case.
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