Sapphire Mountain Cowl

Sapphire Mountain Cowl by Selena Miskin

What Is Being Made

The Sapphire Mountain Cowl is a knitted cowl designed by Selena Miskin that showcases a beautiful two-color slip stitch pattern. This finished piece measures 37 inches in length and 10 inches in width, making it a versatile neckwear accessory suitable for layering and everyday wear. The cowl combines two distinct colorways to create visual depth and interest through strategic color placement.

Yarn and Materials

This project uses Mountain Colors Mountain Goat, a premium yarn blend consisting of 55% mohair and 45% wool. The total yardage required is 460 yards, distributed as one skein each of two complementary colors. The original design features denim as the primary background color paired with sweet lavender as the secondary color. Since sweet lavender has been discontinued, Selena Miskin recommends three equally beautiful alternatives: birch tree, harmony waterfall, or cornflower. Any worsted weight yarn of similar characteristics can be substituted if Mountain Colors Mountain Goat is unavailable.

Needles and Notions

Construction requires the following tools and supplies:

• US 8 knitting needles
• Crochet hook of similar size for provisional cast on
• Waste yarn for the provisional cast on method
• Tapestry needle for weaving in ends and finishing

Knitting Techniques and Stitches

The Sapphire Mountain Cowl employs slip stitch colorwork as its primary patterning technique. This two-color slip stitch method creates a sophisticated fabric by strategically carrying one color in the background while slipping stitches to bring the secondary color to the foreground. The technique results in a more solid appearance for the darker denim color, which effectively showcases the lighter, more variegated sweet lavender (or chosen alternative color) against it.

The pattern uses fundamental knitting abbreviations and techniques:

• k - knit stitch
• p - purl stitch
• wyib - with yarn in back
• wyif - with yarn in front

A provisional cast on is employed using waste yarn and a crochet hook, allowing for a seamless join when the live stitches are grafted together at the end. This technique creates a polished, professional finish without a visible seam.

Difficulty Level and Gauge

This project is rated as intermediate difficulty, making it suitable for knitters with some experience in basic techniques who are ready to explore colorwork methods. Notably, gauge is not critical for this design, offering flexibility for knitters and reducing the need for extensive gauge swatching before beginning the main project.

Design Inspiration

Selena Miskin created this cowl to showcase the exceptional qualities of Mountain Colors Mountain Goat yarn. The designer was inspired by the desire to combine two beautiful colorways from her stash in a way that would allow each color to enhance the other. The slip stitch colorwork technique achieves this goal by using the solid denim as a backdrop that allows the variegated characteristics of the lighter color to shine through, creating a sophisticated and balanced finished piece.