Summer Breeze Cowl

This colorful cowl is a light and airy accessory –  suitable for summer or early autumn. It looks especially good when knitted with variegated yarn because it shows off the short row construction.

This cowl knitted flat and all in garter stitch. It starts with a provisional cast-on, is knitted on a bias and with many short rows, and ends with grafting. Because of this construction the circumference is easily adaptable. 

It is a very repetitive pattern and only needs one 100 gram skein of lace weight yarn, so therefore it is a very portable project. However, you should be comfortable with short rows, binding off and casting on within a row, so it is not a beginner pattern.

The knitting pattern is available via

• Ravelry 
• Payhip
• Loveknitting 

The pattern PDF is 10 pages long and contains:

• written row-by-row instructions for knitting this piece – including 9 photos
• a schematic of the construction, i.e. how the diamonds stack up to create the whole piece
• charts of one diamond (in two variations)
• short photo tutorials for the following techniques
• provisional CO with a crochet hook and undoing it
• grafting in garter stitch
• short rows with wrap and turn and picking up the wraps 
• crochet CO (at the edge of a knitted piece)
• backwards loop CO

To knit this cowl you need the following materials:

• about 500 metres of Lace weight yarn – I used less than 100 grams of Wollmeise Lace (colorway Allegria)
• 3 mm knitting needles (straight or circulars)
• a crochet hook of a similar size (I used a 3 mm hook)  
• scrap yarn
• a tapestry needle – for grafting and to weave in ends

Knitted in Lace weight yarn the finished and blocked piece measures 24 cm in width and 125 cm in circumference (unblocked it was 19 cm in width and 118 cm in circumference). About 24 stiches measured 10 cm in width and 24 garter stitch ridges (i.e. 48 rows) measured 10 cm in height (blocked).

Harlequin Cowl

I like a cowl to sit as snugly as possible around my neck, but I also like it to warm my shoulders. That's why I designed this one, that starts wide (around the shoulder), but gets narrower at the top (around the neck). It is knitted in two-colour brioche in the round and bottom (shoulder) up.

This knitting pattern is available via

• Ravelry 
• Payhip
• Loveknitting 

The PDF for this knitting pattern is 12 pages long and contains:

• row-by-row pattern instructions
• photo tutorials for the brioche increases and decreases you need to knit this piece:
• brk2inc
• brkLdec
• brkRdec
• brk4inc
• brk4dec 
• a chart of the main pattern repeat

In order to knit this pattern you should know how to knit two-colour brioche.

Inside View

To knit this cowl you need the following materials:

• a total of about 500 metres of light fingering weight yarn in two contrasting colors
• 3.5mm knitting needle (I used a 60 cm one in the beginning and a 40 cm one in the end – however, you can use longer ones using the Magic Loop technique)
• a cable needle (alternatively, a removable stitch marker) for the brk4dec stitch
• 16 stitch markers – one of them (the end of round-marker) different from the others

The finished (and blocked) piece measures 44 cm in height. It's circumference is 95 cm on the bottom and 52 cm on the top (unstretched; stretched, i.e. for putting it on, you can get it as wide as 62 cm).

I had the following gauge: 21 stitches gave 10 cm in width and 24 rows gave 10 cm in height.

Gateways Cowl

When it's not really cold, but still a bit chilly, a thick scarf may be a bit too much. So a lightweight cowl that fits around the neck is the perfect accessoire. 

This cowl is knitted in the round in two-colour brioche. Two-colour brioche is a marvellous technique. With two contrasting colours you can create gorgeous effects and pattern. I especially love it, when brk-stitches cross and a lattice effect is created. The stitch used to do this can be combined in many ways. With this cowl it is combined with plain two-colour brioche to knit a diamond pattern at and offset.  

The finished cowl measures 61 cm in circumference and 29 cm in height. Using Lace weight wool and wool/silk blend, the finished piece weighs less than 50 grams.

The pattern PDF is available via

• Ravelry 
• Lovecrafts 
• Payhip

The pattern PDF is 8 pages long and contains:

• row-by-row pattern instructions
• a chart of a pattern repeat
• photo tutorial for brioche stitch that creates the lattice effect

To knit this cowl you should have a basic knowledge of knitting two-colour brioche.

Dark side (inside) of this cowl

To knit this cowl you will need the following materials

• about 400 metres (in total) of Lace weight yarn – in two colours. I used: 
• as LY: Lana Grossa Fine (color 19) - link to the yarn's Ravelry page
• as DY: West Yorkshire Spinners Exquisite Lace (color 741, Mayfair) - link to the yarn's Ravelry page
• 3 mm circular knitting needles (40 cm length)
• 2 stitch markers
• a tapestry needle for weaving in ends
  

WiFi Signal Cowl

The WiFi Signal cowl is knitted in the round in two-colour brioche. The stitch pattern was first inspired by traditional japanese Seigaiha pattern (青海波), but when I looked at the finished piece it really reminded me of the symbol for a WiFi Signal.

The cowl is long enough to fit twice around your neck. Because it's two colour brioche it has a lovely squishy texture. 

The knitting pattern is available as a PDF via

• Ravelry 
• Loveknitting 
• Payhip

The pattern PDF is 9 pages long and contains:

• row-by-row pattern instructions 
• charts of a pattern repeat
• photo tutorials for the following brioche stitches
• brk2inc
• brk2Rdec

So to knit this cowl you should have a basic knowledge of knitting two-colour brioche.

The finished piece measures about 20 cm in height and 125 cm in circumference (blocked) – so that it fits twice around my neck. 

To knit this the following materials are needed:

• a total of 125 grams of fingering weight yarn – about equal amounts of each colour, I used
• as DY (dark turquois to black): Schoppel Zauberball 2038 Cafe Flair
• as LY (light beige): Vendita Sock yarn 
• 3.5 mm circular knitting needles 
• 6 stitch markers
• a tapestry needle for weaving in ends
  

Crossbeams Cowl

 Two-colour brioche is a marvellous technique. It creates a lovely, squishy texture that is really comforable to wear. Plus, it can be used to create quite intricate geometric patterns. 

For this cowl a criss-cross pattern is used, a stitch that combines an increase and a decrease.  Since it is brioche, both sides will look nice.  

The whole piece is knitted flat and the end product will look seamless. This means that it starts with a provisional cast-on and is finished by grafting in two-colour brioche. 

The pattern PDF is available via

• Ravelry
• Lovecrafts 
• Payhip

This pattern PDF is  pages long and contains

• row-by-row pattern instructions
• a chart of a pattern repeat
• photo tutorials for the techniques you need for this piece:
• brk4dec4inc
• provisional cast on (with crochet hook and scrap yarn)
• grafting in two-colour brioche

To knit this cowl (in double length, i.e. to fit twice around your neck) you will need the following materials

• a total of 180 grams  (about 730 metres) of fingering weight yarn – in two colours, i.e. 90 grams of each color; I used Malabrigo sock yarn (merino) 
• 3.5 mm knitting needles – circulars or other needles with two points
• a cable needle
• crochet hook and scrap yarn
• a tapestry needle for grafting and weaving in ends

Zaunkönig

I love brioche knitting because it creates a wonderfully fluffy fabric. In two colors it can  also get gorgeous geometric patterns. I especially love the stitch used here because it creates a gorgeous lattice or fence effect. And that effect is where the name comes from – Zaunkönig (the German name of the eurasian wren) literally means king of the fence. Here, it has been used to create a mixture of a cowl and a poncho.

The color combination is far out of my comfort zone - and was coincidental. I had ordered a lovely royal blue lace weight yarn from Wollmeise and needed something as a contrast color. Because of Covid, I only went once into one local yarn store (and that was in high summer when incidents were low and everybody worked with open doors and windows) and had to decide there and then with "only" the yarn that was there to choose from. I guess without that "pressure" I wouldn't have bought the Wasabi green. Now - that I've knitted this piece (and started another project with the same yarns - see Ravelry project page here) - I absolutely love the color combination and I am quite happy that I was "forced" (by myself if at all) to buy this yarn. 

The pattern PDF is available on

• Ravelry
• Loveknitting 
• Payhip

It is 8 pages long and contains:

• row-by-row knitting instructions for this piece in one size (height 43 cm, circumference top 58 cm, circumference bottom edge 116 cm, you can change the circumference by chanigng the number of stitches to cast on, but if you follow the pattern the piece will we twice as wide at the bottom than at the top)
• charts
• photo tutorials of the brioche stitches that you need to knit this cowl
• brkX - the brioche stitch that gives the lattice effect
• brk2inc - a brioche increase by 2 stitches (in a brk-row)
• brp2inc - a brioche increase by 2 stitches (in a brp-row)

To knit this, you need the following materials

• a total of about 800 metres of Lace weight yarn in two colours
  I used two solid colors 
• the dark blue is Wollmeise Lace (colourway "Kornblume")
• the bright green is Holst Garn Titicaca (colourway "Wasabi")
• 3mm circular knitting needles

Diamond Lattice Cowl

Two-colour brioche is a marvellous technique. It creates a lovely, squishy texture that is comforable to wear and it can be used to create quite intricate geometric patterns.

This cowl is knitted in the round with diamond shapes in a lattice pattern. 

 

The pattern is available via

• Ravelry 
• Loveknitting 
• Payhip

The pattern PDF is 9 pages long and contains

• row-by-row instructions
• a chart of one pattern repeat
• photo tutorials of the brioche increases and decreases that you need for this cowl
• brk2Ldec (left-leaning brioche decrease)
• brk2Rdec (right-leaning brioche decrease)
• brk2inc (brioche increase)
• brkX (brioche stitch that creates the lattice effect) 

If you want to knit this pattern, you should already know how to knit two-colour brioche in the round.

You need the following materials to knit this cowl:

• about 260 to 300 grams of DK weight yarn (in total) – in two colours: I used two (semi-)solid yarns: Supertwist by Nurturing Fibres (link to the yarn's Ravelry page):
• as LY I used light grey (colorway “Driftwood”) 
• as DY I used pink (colorway “Ouma's Quilt”) 
• 4.5 mm circular knitting needles
• 22 stitch markers – one of them different
• a tapestry needle for weaving in ends

Autumn is Coming Bandana Cowl

Even though summer stayed for quite a long time here, it is getting colder. That's why I like to wear something "woolly" around my neck - but rather than a heavy bulky scarf, something smaller and lighter. A bandana cowl fits this brief beautifully - since it basically covers your neck and (my preferred) V-neckline :)
I used a light yarn and an easy lace pattern
This cowl is adaptable to your size of neck and to other yarn weights as well - since it's starting small and growing. So by the time you actually would need a swatch, you already have a small knitted piece :)

This work by Knitting and so on is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.






Materials

• a little more than 50 grams of DK weight yarn (I used Rico Design Essentials Merino DK - here's a link to the yarn's Ravelry page)
• 4 mm knitting needles (circulars)
• a stitch marker
• a tapestry needle to weave in ends

Techniques and Abbreviations

• Knitted Cast-On: See this Youtube-video by Very Pink Knits.
• kfb - knit into front and back of one stitch (increase)
• k2tog - knit 2 stitches together (right leaning decrease)
• ssk - slip slip knit (left leaning decrease)
• yo - yarn over

Gauge and Measurements
The cowl that I knitted measures 50 cm in circumference, 31 cm in height at its highest point (front) and 14 cm at its lowest point (back).
Knitted in pattern and (gently) blocked, 32 rows neasure 10 cm in height and 20 sts measure 10 cm in width.

Construction

The bandana cowl is started at the tip of the triangle - knitted flat - grows with increases. Once you've reached a certain width, you use a knitted CO and join in round.

Instructions

Part 1 (knitted flat)

CO4

Row 1 (WS) and all uneven rows in part 1: kfb, p to last st, kfb

Row 2 (RS, start with 6 sts): k all

Row 4 (RS, 8 sts): k1, k2tog, yo, k2 yo, ssk, k1 

Row 6 (RS, 10 sts): k2, yo, ssk, k2, k2tog, yo, k2 

Row 8 (RS, 12 sts): k3, k2tog, yo, k2, yo, ssk, k3 

Row 10 (RS, 14 sts): k4, yo, ssk, k2, k2tog, yo, k4
Row 12 (RS, 16 sts): k1, yo ssk, k2, k2tog, yo, k2, yo, ssk, k2, k2tog, yo, k1
Row 14 (RS, 18 sts): k2, * k2tog, yo, k2, yo, ssk k2 repeat from * to end
Row 16 (RS, 20 sts): k1, * k2, yo, ssk, k2, k2tog yo repeat from * until there are 3 sts left, k3
Row 18 (RS, 22 sts): k2, * k2, k2tog, yo k2, yo, ssk repeat from * until there are 4 sts left, k4

The chart below shows the first 26 rows and also (in red) one repeat of the stitch pattern that is used throughout.

Row 20 (RS): k1, * k2tog, yo, k2, yo, ssk, k2 repeat from * until there are 7 sts left, k2tog, yo, k2, yo, ssk, k1
Row 22 (RS): k2, * yo, ssk, k2, k2tog, yo k2 repeat from * to end
Row 24 (RS): k1, * k2, k2tog, yo, k2, yo, ssk repeat from * until there are 3 sts left, k3
Row 26 (RS): k2, * k2, yo, ssk, k2, k2tog, yo repeat from * until there are 4 sts left, k4

Repeat rows 12 to 27 once more. Then knit rows 12 to 19 once more.
Now you should have 56 sts on your needles.

If you use yarn of a different weight or want other measurements, now is the moment to use the triangle you have just knitted as a swatch:

• to make sure that the triangle covers a bit more than front part of your neck - if it doesn't you can adjust the number of repeats of rows 20 to 27 accordingly, and
• to calculate the number of stitches that you have to cast on now. Please make sure to cast on a number of stitches that is divisible by 8.

Knit row 20 once more and after finishing knit do a knitted CO of 40 sts (or the number of stitches that you calculated) and join in round. Place a marker to mark the beginning of the round.

Part 2 (knitted in the round)

Round 1: k all
Round 2: * k1, yo, ssk, k2, k2tog, yo, k1 repeat from * to end
Round 3: k all
Round 4: * k1, k2tog, yo, k2, yo, ssk, k1 repeat from * to end
Knit rounds 1 to 4 a total of 10 times - or until you're about 2.5cm short of the desired height.

Then knit the follwing sequence once
Round 1: * p1, k2, p1 repeat from * to end
Round 2: * k1, yo, ssk, k2, k2tog, yo, k1 repeat from * to end
Round 3: * p1, k2, p1 repeat from * to end
Round 4: * k1, k2tog, yo, k2, yo, ssk, k1 repeat from * to end
Bind off in ribbing (p1k2p1)-pattern

Weave in ends and block gently.

Biased Brioche Cowl

I like to experiment with my knitting and to combine techniques. This time, I wanted to try out short rows in combination with two color brioche. The result is a comfortable piece with a squishy texture that is perfect for autumn and winter.
This cowl starts with a provisional cast on, is knitted flat and finished with grafting in garter stitch.

The pattern is available for purchase on Ravelry here.
Get a 40% discount on my latest cowl pattern. Discount ends Oct 14, 2018.






Materials

• about 130 grams of fingering weight yarn in main color (MC) – I used Wollmeise Pure – colorway “Ballerina”
• about 60 grams of fingering weight yarn in contrast color (CC) – I used a speckled yarn by Lanartus
• scrap yarn and a crochet hook for provisional CO
• 3.5 mm knitting needles - I used circulars, but straight needles will do as well
• a tapestry needle to weave in ends

Gauge and Size
In garter stitch 10 ridges (i.e. 20 rows) gave 5 cm in height, 11 stitches gave 5 cm in width. This was measured on a blocked piece.
The finished cowl measures about 27 cm wide, and measures about 130 cm in circumference.


Skills
To finish this cowl, you need the following skills

• Provisional Cast-On
• Short Rows with Wrap and Turn
• Two Color Brioche
• Grafting in Garter Stitch

Wriggly Cowl

In my stash there are a lot of leftovers of my former knitting projects - and many of them in fingering weight. So I am always searching for new ideas to use these leftovers in an interesting manner.
So for #scraptember I decided to use up my purple, lilac and similarly colored leftovers to knit this new cowl. It is knitted flat, starting with a provisional CO and finished by grafting.

This work by Knitting and so on is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.






Materials

• about 200 grams of fingering weight yarn - of course you can use other yarn weights as well, I used yarns of similar colors, but it might be interesting to use mixed colors as well
• 3.5 mm knitting needles
• 5 stitch markers
• a removable stitch marker to mark the RS of your piece
• more scrap yarn for provisional CO
• a tapestry needle for grafting and for weaving it the many, many ends

Techniques and Abbreviations

• Provisional CO: My favorite method for a provision CO is the crochet provisional CO - it is shown in this Youtube video by New Stitch a Day.
• Grafting in Garter Stitch: A technique to get an invisible (knitted) seam - this technique is shown in this YouTube Video by knittinghelp.com.
• Carrying yarn up:  When you're knitting the short row sections at the edges you have to carry up your yarn. This can be done by twisting the unused yarn with the current yarn at the first stitch of the current row - this technique is shown in this YouTube video by Knit Purl Hunter.

Since this cowl is made from leftovers, there is a high potential for many ends to weave in. Here are two techniques that may be helpful to avoid this:

• Weave in ends as you go as shown in this YouTube video by So, I make stuff.  
• Frankfurt knot: a way to connect yarn with a strong knot - as shown in this YouTube video by nadelspiel.

Using Your Leftovers
Choose some leftover yarn from your stash - of the same weight (or nearly the same weight) - I used fingering weight yarn of the same part of the color spectrum (violet-ish) plus white for contrast. You always work with 3 skeins at a time, the one row is knitted with the skein 1, the next with skein 2, the next with skein 3, and then you start again with skein 1. Once one strand runs out of yarn, just connect the next one to it.
As with my Skein Hash Cowl, I wanted to be rather consistent color distribution (or as consistent as possible). That's why I seperated some of the leftover skeins into two and used them at different times. This will even increase the numbers of ends to weave in, but I prefered this over a color change that seemed to abrupt.

Pattern "Construction"
It is based on a basic wave or chevron pattern - one row with alternating increases and decreases and the next row k all. To make it a bit more interesting, there are short row sequences over one and a half "chevron repeats". There are markers to indicate the end of one chevron repeat.
There are four place to start the short row sequences: 1) at the beginning of the row (called short row section 1), 2) in the middle between M1 and M2 (called short row section 2), 3) at M3 (called short row section 3) and 4) in the middle between M4 and M5 (called short row section 4). This is shown in the schematic below.

Instructions

With scrap yarn, do a provisional CO of 96 stitches

From now on you will always work with three colors which are used alternatingly. After each row, change to the next color. If you run out of one yarn, just attach another one.
After knitting a few rows, mark RS with a removable stitch marker.

Setup row (WS): k 16, place marker (M5), k16, place marker (M4), k16, place marker (M3), k16 place marker (M2), k16, place marker (M1), k16
The markers indicate the end of one chevron repeat, the short row sections are over one and a half chevron repeats.

Basic Knitting Sequence
Knit a neutral ridge (see "Component Parts" below).
Knit a short row section 2.
Knit a neutral ridge.
Knit a short row section 4.
Knit a neutral ridge.
Knit a short row section 1.
Knit a neutral ridge.
Knit a short row section 3.

Repeat until the cowl measures the desired length.  Cut yarn but leave a tail long enough for grafting. Put the stitches of the provisional CO on the second needle. Graft in garter stitch.
Weave in (many) ends.

Mixing It Up
I had not only solid yarn, but variegated yarn as well - and when knitting a short row section it looked better (i.e. stood out better) with a solid color. That's why I occasionally included another neutral ridge to avoid knitting a short row sequence knitted with a variegated yarn.

I also like a kind of random effect in my patterns. That's why I didn't cling to the basic sequence but mixed it up. Here you need to make sure, that you knit all of the 4 short row sections before you start knitting the next sequence. (If you knitted e.g. short row sections 4 three times in a row, the cowl would be askew.)

Component Parts

Neutral Ridge

Row 1 (RS): *ssk, ssk, k2, kfb, kfb, kfb, kfb, k2, ssk, ssk (now you're at the next marker) repeat from * to end
Row 2 (WS): k all

Short Row Section 1
Row 1 (RS): ssk, ssk, k2, kfb, kfb, kfb, kfb, k2, ssk, ssk, ssk, ssk, k2, kfb, kfb, (you're in the middle between M1 and M2), w+t,
   (WS) k to end
   (RS) ssk, ssk, k2, kfb, kfb, kfb, kfb, k2, ssk, ssk, ssk, ssk, k2, kfb, kfb, w+t,
   (WS) k to end
   (RS) *ssk, ssk, k2, kfb, kfb, kfb, kfb, k2, ssk, ssk  repeat from * to end
Row 2 (WS): k all

Short Row Section 2
Row 1 (RS): *ssk, ssk, k2, kfb, kfb, kfb, kfb, k2, ssk, ssk repeat from * twice more (i.e. you're at M3 now), w+t,
   (WS) k24, w+t
   (RS) kfb, kfb, k2, ssk, ssk, ssk, ssk, k2, kfb, kfb, kfb, kfb, k2, ssk, ssk (you're back at M3), w+t,
   (WS) k24, w+t
   (RS) kfb, kfb, k2, ssk, ssk, *ssk, ssk, k2, kfb, kfb, kfb, kfb, k2, ssk, ssk repeat from * to end
Row 2 (WS): k all

Short Row Section 3
Row 1 (RS): *ssk, ssk, k2, kfb, kfb, kfb, kfb, k2, ssk, ssk repeat from * three times more (you're at M4),  ssk, ssk, k2, kfb, kfb, w+t,
   (WS) k24, w+t
   (RS) ssk, ssk, k2, kfb, kfb, kfb, kfb, k2, ssk, ssk, ssk, ssk, k2, kfb, kfb, w+t,
   (WS) k24, w+t
   (RS): *ssk, ssk, k2, kfb, kfb, kfb, kfb, k2, ssk, ssk repeat from * to end
Row 2 (WS): k all

Short Row Section 4
Row 1 (RS): *ssk, ssk, k2, kfb, kfb, kfb, kfb, k2, ssk, ssk (now you're at the next marker) repeat from * to end, turn (stranding up the next yarn)
   (WS) k24, w+t,
   (RS) kfb, kfb, k2, ssk, ssk, ssk, ssk, k2, kfb, kfb, kfb, kfb, k2, ssk, ssk , turn (stranding up the next yarn)
   (WS) k24, w+t,
Row 2 (WS): k all

Three New Cowls ... or Current WIPs and Future Patterns

Somehow, I have quite a few unfinished projects or half-finished patterns lying around - they are in various stages of completion. Three of them are for cowls ...

From top to bottom, they are:

• The cowl on the top was an idea to combine short rows and two color brioche, I finished knitting last year, but somehow I didn't write up the pattern. But I do love the cowl, it's soft and squishy since both textures (brioche and garter stitch) are rather thick. Plus I used very soft yarn (dark purple Wollmeise Merino and speckled white Lanartus Superwash). I've nearly finished writing the pattern, so it will be published soon.
• The middle one is a scrap yarn project - like the Skein Hash Cowl there are always three strands of yarn, that are knitted alternatingly. When you run out of one yarn, just attach your next piece of leftovers. It's a basic chevron pattern, but with some short rows thrown in to make it a bit more interesting. As most of my cowls it is knitted flat - started with a provisional CO and finished by grafting. I used leftovers of different shades of purple, violet and lilac plus white for this one.
• The last one (bottom of the picture) is an attempt to do an intarsia pattern with only one strand of the MC yarn - light blue alpaca in this case. It's combined with squares of Lang Sansibar which makes it look like actual tiles. Unfortunately, I ran out of the light blue yarn (I had 1 and a half skeins left over from another project) and I'm currently debating with myself how to finish it. I could a) keep it really short, b) finish it with the same yarn type (alpaca), but in a different color, c) use another light blue yarn, i.e. a really old leftover that is quite similar in color and weight. Trying to buy a new skein is not an option because the yarn is discontinued. 

Since I'm currently on holiday, there is a real chance that I finish
a) the cowls and
b) writing up the patterns

And if anybody has any naming suggestions for the last two, I'd be glad to hear them.

Skein Hash Cowl

If you're anything like me, you will have lots of yarn leftovers in your stash - not enough of one type of yarn to make something new, but also too much (and too good) to throw it away. I had long thought about a way to mix up leftovers to make them into something whole, but it took me a while to design a nice little pattern for it.

So, here's an interesting way of stashbusting and using up some beautiful yarn leftovers. It's a cowl that is knitted flat - started with a provisional CO and joined in the round by grafting. It's knitted all in garter stitch - i.e. you do not have to purl. Basically, it's a chevron pattern on a bias.

The pattern is written for fingering weight yarn, but I have included a way to calculate the number of stitches for other yarn weights and as well.

As to the name: Actually Skein Hash is a cryptographic hash function. These functions are used to calculate digital signatures and have many other applications in information security. When I saw the name I thought that this was too good to be missed as the name for knitting pattern - it was actually one of the rare cases where I had a name before I had a pattern to suit it :)
And since hash means (according to Webster's Dictionary) "confuse, muddle" it fits perfectly, since this is exactly what this pattern does with the yarn from your leftover skeins.


This work by Knitting and so on is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.






Materials

• about 130 to 180 grams of yarn of the same weight (I used fingering weight yarn)
• knitting needles (straight or circular) that fits your yarn weight (I used 3.25 mm needles)
• a removable stitch marker to mark the right side of the piece
• scrap yarn and a crochet hook for the provisional CO
• a tapestry needle for grafting and to weave in ends

Techniques and Abbreviations

• Provisional CO: My favorite method for a provision CO is the crochet provisional CO - it is shown in this Youtube video by New Stitch a Day.
• Grafting in Garter Stitch: A technique to get an invisible (knitted) seam - this technique is shown in this YouTube Video by knittinghelp.com.
• Carrying yarn up:  When you're knitting chevrons on a bias you have to BO or CO at the beginning or end of a row. And since you're using three strands of yarn, you need to bring the yarn that you're not using (for the current row) with you. This can be done by twisting the unused yarn with the current yarn after every BO or CO stitch - similar to the technique of carrying yarn up on the side of your work - this technique is shown in this YouTube video by Knit Purl Hunter.
• kyok: centered double increase: knit, yarn over, knit into one stitch (as shown in this YouTube video by So, I make stuff)
• sl1 k2tog psso: slip one stitch, knit the next two stitches together and pass the slipped stitch over (as shown in this YouTube video by Knit Purl Hunter)

Since this cowl is made from leftovers, there is a high potential for many ends to weave in. Here are two techniques that may be helpful to avoid this:

• Weave in ends as you go as shown in this YouTube video by So, I make stuff.  
• Frankfurt knot: a way to connect yarn with a strong knot - as shown in this YouTube video by nadelspiel.

Gauge and Size
In garter stitch 5 stitches gave 2 cm in width and 8 rows (4 ridges) gave 2 cm in height.
The cowl that I knitted measures about 24 cm in width and 124 cm in circumference.

The lenght is adjusted easily, by knitting more or fewer rows.
If you want to change the width, knit a swatch in garter, calculate the number of stitches you'd need to cast on for the desired width, multiply this number by 2 (because of the chevron on a bias pattern) and then cast the number of stitches nearest to that that is a multiple of 10.

• Example Calculation 1: If your swatch 9 stitches give 5 cm in width - and you want your finished piece to measure 25 cm in width. 45 stitches would normally give 25 cm. Multiplied by 2 this gives 90 stitches to cast on with that yarn - and since 90 is divisible by 10 you don't need to add or subtract from that number.
• Example Calculation 2 (with a bigger yarn): Your swatch shows that 3 stitches give 2 cm in with - and you want a 22 cm wide cowl: 33 stitches would have to be cast on for a cowl in plain garter stitch (without the chevron pattern). Multiplied by 2 it'd give 66 stitches - the nearest multiple of 10 is 70, so you have to cast on 70 sts.

Using Your Leftovers
Go stash diving and find about 200 grams of yarn of the same weight - I used fingering weight yarn of the same part of the color spectrum (blue-ish), but I think color combinations would work as well. You always work with 3 skeins at a time, the one row is knitted with the skein 1, the next with skein 2, the next with skein 3, and then you start again with skein 1. Once one strand runs out of yarn, just connect the next one to it.
I wanted to rather consistent color distribution (or as consistent as possible). That's why I seperated some of the leftover skeins into two skeins and used them at different times. This will even increase the numbers of ends to weave in, but I prefered this over a color change that seemed to abrupt.


Instructions
You will always work with three colors. After each row, you change to the next color.

Provisionally CO 120 sts
Row 0 (C1, WS): k all
Row 1 (C2, RS): k2, *kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso k3 repeat from * until there are only 8 sts left, kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso, k1
Row 2 (C3, WS): k all
Row 3 (C1, RS): k3, *kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso k3 repeat from * until there are only7 sts left, kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso
Row 4 (C2, WS): BO5 (while weaving in C1), k to end
Row 5 (C3, RS): k4, *kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso k3 repeat from * until there is only one sts left, k1
Row 6 (C1, WS): k all, CO5 while weaving in C2
Row 7 (C2, RS): *kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso k3 repeat from * to end
Row 8 (C3. WS): k all
Row 9 (C1, RS): k1, *kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso k3 repeat from * until there are only 9 sts left, kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso, k2
Row 10 (C2, WS): k all
Row 11 (C3, RS): k2, *kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso k3 repeat from * until there are only 8 sts left, kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso, k1
Row 12 (C1, WS): k all
Row 13 (C2, RS): k3, *kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso k3 repeat from * until there are only7 sts left, kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso
Row 14 (C3, WS): BO5 (while weaving in C1), k to end

Row 15 (C1, RS): k4, *kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso k3 repeat from * until there is only one sts left, k1
Row 16 (C2, WS): k all, CO5 while weaving in C2
Row 17 (C3, RS): *kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso k3 repeat from * to end
Row 18 (C1. WS): k all
Row 19 (C2, RS): k1, *kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso k3 repeat from * until there are only 9 sts left, kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso, k2
Row 20 (C3, WS): k all
Row 21 (C1, RS): k2, *kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso k3 repeat from * until there are only 8 sts left, kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso, k1
Row 22 (C2, WS): k all
Row 23 (C3, RS): k3, *kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso k3 repeat from * until there are only7 sts left, kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso
Row 24 (C1, WS): BO5 (while weaving in C1), k to end
Row 25 (C2, RS): k4, *kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso k3 repeat from * until there is only one sts left, k1
Row 26 (C3, WS): k all, CO5 while weaving in C2
Row 27 (C1, RS): *kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso k3 repeat from * to end
Row 28 (C2. WS): k all
Row 29 (C3, RS): k1, *kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso k3 repeat from * until there are only 9 sts left, kyok, k3, sl1 k2tog psso, k2
Row 30 (C1, WS): k all

Repeat until your cowl has reached the desired lenght - make sure to end with a row 8, 18 or 28. Leave a tail for grafting. Place the stitches from the provisional CO on the second needle, hold the ends together (RS out) as shown in the picture and graft in garter stitch ... or if you want to be very precise about things follow the instructions below ...

Actually, the row you're grafting is an RS row (a row 9, 19 or 29 to be precise) which means that there should be increases and decreases in order to keep the chevron pattern ... I solved this by sometimes treating 3 stitches as 1 stitch. To be more precise, everytime, that there'd be a scheduled double decrease in row 9 (or 19 or 29), I inserted the needle not into one stitch but into three at a time on the front needle. and every time that there'd be a scheduled double increase in row 9 (meaning a double decrease on the corresponding provisional CO row), I inserted the needle into three stitches at a time on the back needle.

Even though, I think I didn't count correctly a few times, the finished grafting row looks OK.

Weave in all the ends if necessary and block.