At the end of last year I snuck in one more pattern update! With over 100 patterns in my collection that span over the last 12-15 years, I’ve been slowly revisiting many of my old patterns to bring them up to my most up-to-date standards. And that’s just what I did with my latest update, for the Collins Brook Cowl.
The original pattern
Back in 2012 I released this accessory pattern – a worsted-weight cowl (I used Malabrigo Rios) with long and short version instructions, both featuring a zig-zag lace stitch pattern. This zig-zag pattern is also what inspired the name, since the Collins Brook is a brook here in Freeport, Maine that zig-zags across town (including not too far from our property). Here were the original 2012 pictures:
The Updated Version
Updating the Collins Brook Cowl had been on my list for quite a while. Nothing was wrong with the old pattern, but it definitely was in need of a layout update after over a decade (as well as updating a bit of the instructions and tutorials). I also created a new “tips” page for this design (which you can preview here) that provides links to technique tutorials and other helps. And, since I often re-knit the samples anytime I make a pattern update, here are some new photos to share:
The short version of this pattern is a great way to use up leftover stash yarn too! It doesn’t require a full skein of Rios (I only used about 175 yds of the full 210 yds of 1 skein), so if you have some stash yarn leftover (or purchased an extra ‘insurance skein’ for another project and didn’t use it), this can be a great stash-busting project.
Interested in learning more about the Collins Brook Cowl? Click here for the pattern information page!
The story behind the update…
This past November I was at my LYS Mother of Purl, looking for a color of Malabrigo Rios I could use for this cowl update and although I planned to use the same color as my original version (the orangy Sunset color), a different color caught my eye instead. It’s called Aguas and it’s a beautiful shade of teal/blue/green. The reason it immediately caught my eye was because it reminded me of my friend Mare, who had just recently passed away that month. The colorway would have been just what Mare would pick out. We worked together at KnitWit Yarn Shop for many years, as well as often knitted together and shopped for yarn together (including Vogue Knitting Live in NYC years ago), so we both were very much acquainted with each other’s yarn color preferences! She knew I would always pick the mustard/rusty colors and I knew she would always pick those teal/green colors. And so when I saw this color and thought of Mare, I just knew I had to pick it for my updated Collins Brook Cowl.
Mare was such a special person, a talented artist and I was so lucky to consider her a friend. She was always such a big supporter and encourager of my design work, and I will always be so thankful to her for that. So it seemed fitting to be inspired by her when looking for yarn for this project. Do you ever pick certain yarns or colors because they remind you of special people from your life? I think like hearing a song or smelling a scent that reminds you of a person or time in your life, so too can colors. I guess it makes perfect sense, since the colors we gravitate towards become part of us and our aesthetic (whether that translates into our fashion, decor, other crafts, etc). So our favorite colors become a part of us and so serve as reminders of us to our loved ones. Perhaps thinking of colors in this way may help inspire your next yarn color choice! And I think Mare would be happy to know that I picked this particular colorway for this project 🙂