Around the Block


I don't suppose it's often that knitting a cowl makes you re-think your life but that's what this cowl has done for me.  

Ok, that might be a slight overstatement but I've been thinking a lot lately about why I always feel so rushed and under pressure lately.  Why it is that I never seem to find a moment to write up my patterns, to work through my inbox, or take pictures of projects?  I'm always rushing from one thing to the next, always behind, always playing catch up.  

This big heap of knitting has been little a pool of calm in amongst the madness though.  It's been a slow and calm project.  A few rows here, a few rows there.  Left for a few days and then picked up when the mood struck.  I haven't rushed to the end, frantically knitting as soon as the end was in sight.  In fact, I positively savoured the end, eking it out and trying to make it last.  The way you do with a great book that you've loved reading.

Maybe it's because it's such a simple knit.  The most basic of patterns, no increasing, decreasing, counting or thinking required.  Just row after row of moss stitch creating joyful fluffy bumps.  Super thick yarn giving satisfactory inches of progress for small amounts of work done.

That's why I went for blocks of colour too.  Colour blocks are kind of 'in' aren't they?  I keep seeing them everywhere anyway.  That's great but it also means no stripes to keep track of, no changing colours, just knit till the yarn runs out, join a new ball and knit some more.  Perfect.




I was so swept up in the simplicity and ease of the project that I couldn't even be bothered to think up some fancy pants way of joining the two ends of the scarf together.  I just used whip stitch in the end.  Super simple, super easy.

It doesn't look exactly the same as the other seams, but who cares?  It's going to be wrapped up around me and no-one will see.  It doesn't matter even if they do.  It's an easy going cowl and I feel very easy going about it.  Heck, I'm surprised I even bothered to seam the ends together.  I could have just left it as a plain and simple scarf and I think it still would have looked great.







So, if this project can be a leisurely and unhurried joy, then what is going on the rest of the time? Something is going wrong, I've lost balance and I need to find a new way.

I think I need to slow down, take a little more pleasure in the process again and not leap from one idea to the next like a woman possessed.  I'm going to have to spend some time thinking about the way I'm approaching things.... just as soon as I'm not so busy.



In the meantime, do you fancy making a lovely, cuddly cowl for yourself and having a go at a super simple relaxing project?*

If you do, I've made up this little easy peasy set of instructions for you to follow:


* Not all lives will be re-thought as a result of knitting this cowl.


COLOUR INFO: - 
(Thought you might want to know)

0100 - Off white 3145 - Powder pink 
4300 - Old Pink (Looks mauve to me) 
5610 - Brown (purplish dark grey) 
7120 - Light Grey Green (Duck egg blue)

The names of these colours seem a bit off to me, 
so the brackets are what I would say the colours really look like 


S x



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Comments

  1. Well done! It looks so cosy and the colours are beautifully autumnal. Things do get on top of us but it's amazing what a few rows of knitting or crochet can do. Have a wonderful, peaceful weekend. xx

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  2. What a snug looking cowl in pretty moss stitch. I love the pink and the soft plum together with a bit of cream to make it fresh looking. Such a lovely simple pattern too!

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  3. Oh thats what it was meant to be. I lile I like. You clever lady. Wish you a lovely weekend.
    Hugs

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  4. It's so gorgeous the colour are so great, it good that the simplicity of Moss stitch gave you time to reflect on life

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  5. Blimey Sandra, you struck a chord with this post....I, too, have been feeling the days slipping away with so much to do and the only person piling on the pressure is myself...
    I love the colours of your cowl, so soft and beautiful. I've always loved the look of moss stitch but hated doing it, but you have made me reassess the positive, methodical aspect. Zen and the Art of MossStitch. ;-)
    LLJ xx

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  6. Love this cozy infinity, Sandra. I will have to make one some day... Thanks for the how-to. The colors are so lovely :-)

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  7. love this, i might have to do some knitting. can it really be so easy?! it's a lovely effect, nice choice of colours too. Just find your own point of balance and go from there. No one else is cracking the whip behind you ( I hope!) we're happy to hear you at a nice calm pace too! thanks for the pattern, Heather x

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  8. Sometimes we crave the simple things in life, a leisurely pace and time to step back and and savour the moment. We all get so busy with everything ... I like your lesson learnt and I love the simplicity of your cowl x

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  9. You're funny! love the cowl and the fact it made you re-think your life. We all need to slow down and smell the roses, but life gets in the way!!
    xoRobin

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  10. I love this post and I love your super sweet cowl Sandra, thank you. I hope you can continue to take life 'one step at a time' and enjoy the process rather than rushing through. I need to do likewise!!! Joy x

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  11. That is really pretty, Sandra. I love the heathery, soft colors. Hey, don't worry about the chaos in your life. You have been giving it thought, and so, you will make a change for the better. Nice that you had that project to go to amidst all this busyness! xxoo JO

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  12. Hi Sandra love your blog,always look forward to see what you are working on.Take care and know we are thinking of you.Sandy xx

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  13. Hi Sandra, what a gorgeous combination of colors and the simplicity of it makes it even more elegant and charming. As always your taste is impeccable and I'm so glad that the creative process brought you peacefulness. Have a wonderful weekend :)

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  14. Beautiful cowl. One way of slowing down and relaxing is reading you blog.. Thanks! All days seem hectic these days and filled with too much "to do's". Especially last Thursday. When I eventually sat down and my local crochet and knit group at 7 pm (and I almost didn't go) I felt the "rushedness" flow out of me. I just sat listened, laughed, drank coffee and enjoyed the 90 minutes. It was heaven. I even finished a little border for a washcloth. Sandra, I'm flying to South Africa next Thursday, with a baby blanket for a boy, inspired by your sampler blanket and lacy join..... This blanket will live in Cape Town, one of the most beautiful cities in the world. I can't wait for the mum to be to see the blanket and enjoy it every day, God willing.

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  15. Gorgeous Gorgeous Gorgeous.... love the colours ... love the sense of relaxation that the scarf gives, and loved your post. I can totally relate , and I think I will start one of these lovely projects very soon. Well done.

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  16. It's a gorgeous cowl ♥ My favourite kind of knitting when I feel the need to slow down is the one that's created on big fat 10mm needles :-) I'm having a bit of the same uneasy feeling lately when I realise just a bit too often I'm not actually fully enjoying the thing I'm doing because of that nagging, rushed feeling that seems to be lingering. Maybe it's the time of the year, I don't know. Getting out for a good walk in the woods or fields does the trick for me, preferably with a dog that wears me out with the stick-throwing ;-) Have a lovely, happy weekend xxxx

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  17. I really love this cowl. I think I may have a go at making one! Haven't done any knitting for a VERY long time!! Love the colours you have used. I don't know the yarn 'Drops Andes' can you tell me how thick it is... ie DK, 4 ply etc so that I could find an alternative here in Switzerland. Thank you!

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  18. Sandra, Love it! Looks like ice cream! Thank you for the pattern. I have Pinned away. Have a great weekend!

    Best,

    Sheila

    http://sheilazachariae.blogspot.com/2013/11/technicolor-blanket-in-all-its-glory.html

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  19. Enjoy your blog so much:) Love the cowl pattern! So many lovely patterns to discover here:)

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  20. Sandra, the cowl is so beautiful. You make me want to pick up my needles and start right now :-) we are so many to go from one task to the other I know that feeling and I am every day trying not to rush. I said I am trying... ;-) but I think if you are aware of the fact that your life is busy it is a good thing. So many people are taken in the daily rush that they don't even realise it and there is no stopping then ... Reading your blog brings peace and calmness to my soul, it slows me down actually so thank you! :-) and I love your metaphor about savouring the end of the book you love! So true! :-)) i am happy this cowl did it for you. And you made me laugh with your little add that not all lives my be re-thought ... hahaha! Have a beautiful and restful weekend! Jitka

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  21. Divine. Love your colors. I am making something similar with that horrible Drops Cotton Light yarn... But it is a great project. We're on the same page you and me I think. Today I've not felt great at all. Maybe I'm coming down with something or maybe I'm just burned out. Now after lying on the couch all day not even being able to crochet I feel a bit stronger. Me too am slowing down. I want to enjoy Real Life me. make my projects without stress. Do things for myself rather than for others for a while. Really think things over. What I'm doing, where I'm going with all this. You know what I mean. I don't want to give it up, no no, just find the balance. I wish there was a "Blogger v. Life Balance course" with hands on tips on staying cool, regular and not stressed being a blogger with a great audience. I certainly need some advice... I'll share them with you if I come up with some great tips.
    Take care and snuggle up. This shawl looks like pure therapy on a cold November day. Perfect.
    xxx
    Annette

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  22. Brilliant. I love these kinds of super simple, super effective projects. It looks fabulous!!


    I know that 'must slow down' feeling too, but I never quite seem to manage it, I do hope you fare better :)

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  23. Aw, Sandra, you're wee face looks so sad in that pic. Sending you special hugs and hoping things get less busy for you soon. Love your new cowl loads and loads. The colours remind me of Neopolitan ice cream!:-)

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  24. Yes, to everything you said! The cowl is perfect - the blocks, the colours, the stitch, all just my cup of tea. Last winter I knitted myself a chunky moss stitch cowl, but a shorter one, and just whip-stitched up the back, and I enjoyed the whole process for all the reasons you listed.


    I recently vowed that all my crafty makes would be sloooow, and about the process, but then the Christmas makes began and now it's all "hello deadline" and the pressure's on again. x

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  25. Love the cowl, and the colours, especially the blackberry.

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  26. Sandra, this is why I don't blog or often make things for others as when you do there is an added pressure. It is one of the reasons that I so appreciate your blogs and lovely projects. I don't know quite how you lose that pressured rushy feeling but I hope that you manage to as it can't be so much fun to feel like that. Hope you find some time and space to rebalance.

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  27. colors are so pretty together...sort of mint-chocolate chippy...with cherries on top.

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  28. I love the cowl, so pretty with delicious looking yarn. Well done.
    Hugs,
    Meredith

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  29. Love it! Love the colours, love the blocking, love the stitch. I can't knit, but I might try to crochet this cowl in a moss stitch.

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  30. Hi, Sandra. First of all congratulations for this work, it is so so cute... I love the colors and stitch of rice and all project is beautiful. You are so creative! and what colors combination! very well! Secondly I will to tell that you take your time, I think that happens to everyone... we are possessed and we have fifty thousand projects and we are with stres and we want to make all ... Can not be one worker and so neither can be so creative ... this causes we us stressed! I hope that your thoughts and redirect your life and that you find peace and inner balance again. Best wishes to you. Thanks once again for being here and sharing!

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  31. Everything you do looks so pretty and the reason I was attracted to your blog (well, there wee many but I digress) was the calmness I felt, the peace in the colors you choose and the happiness I feel whenever I see pictures of your handiwork. Thank you!

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  32. Hi Sandra. Can you please tell me which colours you have used of Drops Andes? Thanks!
    Jolande

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  33. Wow, I love that !!! The colors are beautifull, thank you for the inspiration !!! Regards, Kasia from http://kasiaknits.blogspot.com/

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  34. Great cowl. I love the seed stitch and drops yarns!

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  35. It's beautiful - especially the colours. I know exactly what you mean too, I've had a crazy two weeks, it's been all go and no time for myself and then I started knitting a new blanket and I feel like I'm centered myself again just by forcing myself to relax.

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  36. Such pretty colours... I think moss stitch is my favourite, love those wooly bumps too!

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  37. I've been working on something very similar! I decided to extend the number of stitches and I'm making mine into a wrap... it is going to take a lot longer to make but it is as you said... soothing to knit... and I won't even be bothered at the end with connecting the ends! :D
    Yours is gorgeous, the colors as always with your projects are luscious!
    Hugs,
    Beth P

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