Add a twist to your knitting!

In my last blogpost, I started my new Autumn Accessories series by looking at knitted cowls. These wonderful creations are great for keeping your neck warm at this time of year, since they are quick to make and easy to wear. Also, the smaller cowls only take a few balls of yarn so you may well have enough to start a new cowl right there in your stash basket.

They are perfect for many situations from casual walks by a lake or an evening out. However, there is one situation when there can be a problem with cowls – and that is when you want to wear them under a coat or jacket. Then you might find that they are trying to stick out from your body and refusing to fold neatly at the neckline.
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There is fortunately an easy solution to that, but we need to go into the realms of mathematics to find it!

So think back to when you last wore a standard scarf under an overcoat. Did you cross one end over the other to form a neat 'V' shape? I don't suppose I am alone in doing that. It is just a perfect way to close up the gap at the top of your coat and also adds a double layer of knitted wonderment to keep cold drafts at bay.
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And you can achieve that same neat fold in a looped cowl or scarf by simply adding a half-twist then joining the two ends together! It's such a simple technique but adds so much to the finished result. As you can see in the photos above, this forms a pleasing 'V' shape at the front while still allowing the scarf to curve smoothly around the back of your neck.

As an added bonus, this half-twist does not just make the cowl sit better, it also gives it a very special property – that it now only has one side! I wrote about this in a previous blogpost here, so please have a look at that to read all about the mathematical structure called the Moebius strip!

To add this half-twist to your knitted cowl:

• Firstly, begin your work with a Provisional Cast-On.
• Then knit double the length you want for your cowl.
• Carefully undo the Provisional Cast-On and capture the live stitches onto a needle.
  
• Take one end of the work and give it a half-twist.
• Position the two edges together and preferably graft them together using Kitchener Stitch.
• If you can't face that method, then seam them together using a three-needle bind off. That does leave a visible seam but it is an easy method and can give a good result if the knitted fabric is fairly flat.

And there you have it – a Moebius Cowl!

So far I have spoken about cowls, but the same half-twist can also be applied to longer scarves. We usually refer to these as Infinity Scarves but the names are fairly interchangeable. Like their shorter counterparts, an Infinity Scarf sits beautifully flat with an elegant drape when worn loosely like a long scarf. 

However, they really come into their own when wrapped twice around your neck for extra warmth. The Moebius twist seems to make the fabric fold in a particularly appealing way, giving an intriguing shape and geometry to a simple scarf.

However, there is one other requirement for a Moebius Scarf and that is that you need to use a reversible knitting stitch. This sounds slightly odd for a garment with only one mathematical side! However, by definition both "sides" of the knitting will be on view so you really need to select a reversible stitch for this.

It doesn't matter what the stitch is, so you can have fun delving through collections of knitting stitches such as our Reversible Knitting Stitches book for inspiration. For example, the cowl and scarf I am featuring in this blogpost use Mistake Rib from the book and this gives a beautifully cozy ribbed neckwarmer.

I hope that has given you some inspiration for trying a Moebius Cowl or Infinity Scarf as your next project. If you'd like more information about the Sawston Cowl and Infinity Scarf pattern, then please click here. The pattern includes instructions for both a cowl or a longer Infinity Scarf so you can have fun trying out both lengths to see which you like better.

Next time, I will be back with a look at this year's hot-fashion trend: short scarves and buttoned neck-warmers.

So until then – Happy Knitting!

Moira

Last Blogpost: Time to knit a cowl
​​Autumn Accessories Series #1: Autumn Accessories
Next Up: On trend with short scarves and buttoned neckwarmers

Our book: Reversible Knitting Stitches
My Website: www.wyndlestrawdesigns.com

Keywords: Patterns/Women’s Scarves & Wraps, Patterns/Accessories, Autumn Accessories Series,
#AutumnAccessories, autumn, scarf, scarves, cowl, infinity scarf, Moebius cowl, reversible scarf, reversible cowl, knitted scarf, knitting stitch, reversible stitch, reversible knitting stitch,

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