Frostflake

Frostflake Cowl by Jordan Prouty

What Is Being Made

Frostflake is a knitted cowl designed by Jordan Prouty, perfect for creating a quick, finished accessory from a single skein of bulky yarn. This cowl measures 20 inches around and 8 inches tall, making it an ideal project for those beautiful, lonely skeins of chunky weight yarn that are waiting for the right pattern.

Craft and Techniques

This is a knitting project classified as intermediate difficulty, making it accessible to knitters with some experience but not overly complex. The cowl features simple lace that is described as pretty but easy to execute, combining decorative elements with straightforward construction. The piece is worked in the round using circular needles, which creates a seamless, tubular garment without the need for seaming.

Stitches and Stitch Techniques Used

The pattern employs several fundamental knitting stitches and techniques:

• Knit stitch (k) — the basic foundation stitch
• Yarnover (yo) — creates the lace openings and decorative eyelets characteristic of the simple lace design
• Knit 2 together through the back loop (k2togtbl) — a left-leaning decrease used to balance the increases from yarnovers
• Vertical double decrease (vdd) — a more complex decrease that removes two stitches while maintaining the pattern's visual flow
• Cast on (CO) — the pattern begins with 66 stitches cast on

The pattern is worked in rounds using a stitch marker to denote the beginning of each round, ensuring consistent pattern repeats as the cowl grows vertically.

Materials and Tools

The pattern is designed for bulky yarn weight, specifically tested with The Plucky Knitter Snug, a premium blend of 70% Merino, 20% Cashmere, and 10% Royal Alpaca. One skein of approximately 110 yards (101 meters) at 115 grams is sufficient to complete the project, though the sample used 98 grams (94 yards).

Required tools include:

• Size 10 (6.0 mm) circular needles — 16 inches in length, or the size required to meet gauge
• Stitch marker — for marking the beginning of rounds
• Tapestry needle — for weaving in yarn ends

Gauge and Finishing

The pattern calls for a gauge of 14 stitches and 20 rows per 4 inches in pattern, measured after blocking. While exact gauge is noted as not crucial, variations will affect both the finished size and yarn usage of the completed cowl. Blocking is recommended to achieve the final measurements and to showcase the lace pattern's full beauty.