Kaleidoscope Cowl
In partnership with the glorious yarn-creators Knit Collage, our new Comet collection is an interplanetary journey through wondrous color, out-of-this-world texture, and cosmic beauty!
An inventive spin of wool, mohair, and Angelina sparkle, Knit Collage creates Comet in India in collaboration with a team of 13 craftswomen who expertly card, spin, and finish each skein.
Our Kaleidoscope Cowl is the perfect show-stopper for this extra-special yarn. Knit in simple seed stitch on US 19 needles, Comet does all the talking!
Choose from five stunning colors (we used Cosmic Rays) and pick up two skeins for your own Kaleidoscope Cowl… A quick knit and a truly stellar gift!
Designed for Purl Soho by Adam Aronowitz.
Share your progress + connect with the community by tagging your pics with #PurlSoho, #PurlSohoBusyHands, #PurlSohoKaleidoscopeCowl, and #PurlSohoComet. We can’t wait to see what you make!
Materials
- 2 skeins of Purl Soho + Knit Collage’s Comet. Each skein is approximately 34 yards/115 grams; approximately 62 yards required. We used the color Cosmic Rays (top), which is 77% wool, 10% mohair, 12% silk, and 1% Angelina sparkle. (Other colors have slightly different fiber combos!)
- US 19 (15/16 mm), 24-inch circular needles
- A jumbo stitch marker
Gauge
4 stitches and 8 rounds = 4 inches in seed stitch
Size
Finished Circumference: 29 inches
Finished Height: 10 inches
Pattern
Cast on 29 stitches.
Place marker for working in the round, being careful not to twist the stitches.
Round 1: K1, *p1, k1, repeat from * to end of round.
Round 2: P1, *k1, p1, repeat from * to end of round.
Repeat Rounds 1 and 2 until piece measures 10 inches from cast-on edge.
Bind off loosely in pattern.
Weave in all ends and lightly spray block, if desired. Do not steam block, as heat will singe the Angelina sparkle fibers.
What a brilliant cowl, simple pattern even for me!
The wool combination is supper.
Will knit it as soon as and thank you for the free pattern.
Love Jean.
I see it is 77% wool. Is it scratchy feeling?
Hello Delia,
Thanks for reaching out! The wool content is merino wool which is a very soft wool.
Happy knitting!
-Marilla
I love this! I will size a scarf for my granddaughter. She loves unicorns (of course), and this looks like it was made out of a unicorn’s mane!
Will you restock the Comet color?
Hi Becky,
Thanks for writing in! We will certainly be getting more Comet in Cosmic Rays back in stock! We do not have a firm ETA, but you can sign up to be notified when we get it back in stock. To do so, go to the product page, select the color that you are interested in and enter your email address. When that color arrives, we will email you right away!
Best,
Julianna
Thinking of making a throw of the comet yarn. I am trying to see more about the colors in deep space and meteor showers. Do you have any other pictures or projects? Do you have any advice about whether this yarn is practical or wise for a throw?
Thanks for any help!
Sue Ellen
Hi Sue Ellen,
Thanks for reaching out! I think a throw out of Comet would be amazing! Because Comet is so new, we don’t have any other projects yet, but I think you could get an idea of how it will turn out from our Pixie Dust Lap Blanket. Pixie Dust is another yarn from Knit Collage that has a similar thick and thin texture with bits of sparkle that knits up to almost the same exact gauge as Comet, so you may even want to just follow that pattern exactly! Your blanket will be a beautiful, cozy statement piece, and we can’t wait to hear how it turns out!
Best,
Julianna
I have the set of Addi-click needles. They only go up to size 15. I’m going to use those, however the stitches will end up tighter. Hoping it’ll be ok.
Thoughts?
Hi Cathy,
Thanks for reaching out! Comet is a very chunky yarn, so we do recommend a US 19 needle – even though it’s only two US sizes difference, a US 15 and a US 19 create very different sized stitches! If, however, you are a very loose knitter and are able to match our gauge of 4 stitches and 8 rounds to 4 inches in seed stitch, then a US 15 will work fine.
Happy knitting!
Julianna
Love this! Any idea if this will be stocked before Christmas?
Hello Chelsea,
Thanks for writing in! We will certainly be getting more Comet back in stock! In fact, our mill is currently making it. While we do not have a firm ETA, we are hoping that it will arrive soon. You can sign up to be notified when we get it back in stock. To do so, go to the product page, select the color that you are interested in and enter your email address. When that yarn and color arrives, we will email you right away!
Happy knitting!
-Marilla
Beautiful, beautiful yarn!! A stunning Christmas gift, for sure! Both yarns are used at the same time, right?
Hi Dominique,
Thank you so much for the kind words! This cowl is knit with a single strand of our new Comet yarn – all of the lovely accent colors and sparkle are part of this gorgeous art yarn!
Best,
Julianna
Best cast on method??
Hi Dominique,
We used a long tail cast on for this cowl!
Best,
Julianna
Awesome yarn…just starting making this for my daughter for Christmas….geez circumference is not 29 inches….cast on 29 stitches on 19 needles …not sure what is wrong…looks super small…please advise…sure it would be impossible to try to undo this yarn…thanks for any comments
The best
Hello Mary,
Thank you for reaching out! It sounds like your gauge might be off, are you getting 1 stitch per inch? What is the circumference of your cowl?
I hope I can help and happy knitting!
-Marilla
Thanks for your response…it’s 24 but if I stretch it?…perhaps when it is finished…off the knitting needle it will be larger? Just want it to be perrrrfect for my daughter.
Thanks
Hi Mary,
Thanks for writing in! It’s hard to say, because it’s very difficult to get an accurate measurement of a project while it is on the needles. I would recommend counting how many stitches are in a 4 inch section of the cowl, laid as flat as you can make it, to see if you are matching our gauge of 4 stitches and 8 rounds to 4 inches in seed stitch. If your gauge matches, the cowl should be the right size once you cast off and get it off of the needles. If your gauge is too tight, since the next size up of needles is a US 35 which is significantly bigger than a US 19, I would recommend just knitting as loosely as you possibly can to get to the correct gauge.
Best,
Julianna
Thank you for your advise….gauge is correct so I am confident that once off the needle it will measure correctly. Appreciate your expertise!
Happy Holidays
Mary
I am a novice knitter, however, I followed instructions using Comet yarn, #19 needles and ended up w a tube that is 14″ long, 31″ round at bottom (beginning) and 25″ at top (ending). Assuming I have the stamina to start again, what would you recommend?
Hi Sheila,
Thanks for reaching out! Since your bottom circumference turned out fairly close to ours, I suspect you may have simply bound off too tightly! Before starting over entirely, I would recommend taking out just the cast off row, and perhaps a few extra rows if you didn’t have any leftover yarn after casting off the first time or if you would like the cowl to be shorter, and then casting off as loosely as you can. Ordinarily I would suggest casting off with a larger needle size, but the next size up from a US 19 is a huge jump, so I think you will just have to stay as relaxed as possible while casting off!
I hope that helps!
Julianna
Thanks. What does my additional length tell you about my stitches?
I am planning to start over with a gauge, so I’d appreciate any advice about making one with this particular yarn. Thanks.
Hi Sheila,
It’s hard to say without seeing your swatch, so I would recommend counting your rows over four inches to see if it matches our gauge measurement of 8 rounds to four inches. Because this yarn is very thick and thin a little bit of variation is normal, but also keep in mind that we didn’t quite use the full two skeins for our cowl. The stitches per inch are more important than the rounds per inch, so if your stitch gauge is correct, I would recommend knitting the cowl as written and casting off whenever your cowl measures ten inches!
Best,
Julianna
I’m in love with this. It seems like comet is a popular color. Will you be getting a late summer or fall shipment? I’m just hoping it’s not a limited edition yarn.
Hi Jessica,
Thanks for writing in! We will definitely be restocking all colors of Comet, although we don’t have a firm ETA and many of our mills and shippers are experiencing delays right now. However, if you enter your email address on the product page, we will let you know as soon as it is available!
Best,
Julianna
I’m a beginner knitter but would love to make a scarf out of this yarn. Any suggestions on how many skeins I need to get to make a good-sized scarf? Also, should I just cast on the same number of stitches and then just keep knitting until I get a scarf done?
Thank you!
Hi Shella,
Thanks for reaching out! I would recommend casting on 10 or 12 stitches and then working till you get to about 70″. I would also recommend buying 7 skeins, that should be enough to knit this in a scarf form!
I hope this helps, happy knitting!
Gianna
I LOVE the look of this but I don’t do any animal fibers. Any suggestions on a remotely similar yarn I can use? Thank you!
Hi Noelle,
Thanks for reaching out! Unfortunately, we don’t have anything remotely similar to this yarn that isn’t an animal fiber. Thank you for expressing your interest though, I will be sure to pass this along to the rest of the team!
All the best,
Gianna
I am a beginner! I would love to make this Cowl with out using circular needles. How would l do that? Thank you.
Hi Susan,
Thanks for reaching out! You can easily knit this cowl flat on straight needles with the seed stitch and then seam it up after!
Happy knitting!
Gianna
Thank you!!!
I just ordered two skeins of yarn to knit the kaleidoscope cowl and I am in love with everything about the yarn – the colors, textures, and drape of the cowl. I can’t wait to begin!
I just ordered two skeins of Comet yarn to knit the Kaleidoscope cowl and I am in love with the vibrant and interesting play of colors and textures in this yarn as well as the drape of the cowl. I can’t wait to begin!
Can this cowl be pulled up for a hood?
Hi Lois,
Thanks for reaching out! I think you could certainly use this cowl as a hood! In that case I would recommend increasing the circumference a bit to insure it isn’t too tight, keep in mind that the pattern works over an odd number of stitches!
All the best,
Gianna
I just ordered this yarn to make this project for my 9 year old granddaughter. Is 29″ circumference too big for her? I’m thinking of reducing it to 25″ or 27″. Her head measures 21″ but her shoulder width is 12″. Can you suggest how I can alter the pattern for her size? Thank you.
Hi Alexandra,
Thanks for reaching out! The cowl may be a bit big on her so I think reducing it a bit would be a good idea! You can easily adjust the just by changing the cast on, the pattern works over a multiple of odd stitches!
All the best,
Gianna
Same with wanting to on make one for my daughter…she’s 8 and 21” head. What size did you wind up doing?
This is one of those patterns and yarns where when you see it for the first time, you think “I have to make this!” I’m casting on now
Do you have a recommendation re what kind of bind off to use?
Hi Judith,
Thanks for writing in! For this pattern we recommend Basic Bind Off in the stitch pattern!
Happy knitting!
Gianna
Hi! This would be my first project ever, so I want to be sure Iget everything right! My questions are:
1. Can the circular length on needles be longer than 24″ without effecting the project? (For example 29″
2. How many stitch markers would you need for a project like this?
Excuse my newbie-ness!
Hi Sanina,
Thanks for reaching out! No worries, I am happy to help! I would recommend sticking to the 24″ circular needles, if you go up in size the cord of the needle may be too long that the stitches will not fit comfortably on the needles and become overstretched. As for stitch markers, you will just need a single Jumbo stitch marker for this project, you will use it to mark the beginning/end of the row since this project is worked in the round!
I hope this helps and please let me know if you have any more questions!
Gianna