An Elizabethan ruff for April

Back in January I joined the revolution and knitted a Pussy Hat in protest for all the current political madness and intolerance everywhere. As this is a politics free zone (please, we all need a respite from the negativity) we'll say no more but suffice to say the yarn I used, Manos Del Uruguay's Maxima, is gorgeous, comes from a non-profit social organisation helping rural craftswomen in Uruguay and is also Fair Trade. From the wide range of lovely colours I found the perfect acid yellow/green I had been seeking for a while to use on a simple project to knit in front of the fire during the last days of winter. The pattern I chose is the Cosy Cable Cowl from Purl Soho and is available free from their web site. It's nice and simple to relax with after a stressful day at work, with enough interest to keep you awake and is a good size to travel with too.

Using UK 5 circular needles I cast on 228 stitches and knitted 20 rows of k4 p4 rib before the first cable, cabling 8 instead of 4 in the original pattern. From here I knitted 15 rows in the same rib before cabling again, this time reducing the stitches by 1 in alternate purl sections of the rib. Another 15 rows, another cable (not reducing stitches this time) and then a further 20 rows in rib before bind off. As you can see its a lot more Elizabethan ruff than I probably intended but its super soft and very warm, just perfect for the start of summer! Oh well, its always a little chilly on a British coast.