Today … a temporary respite from my musings about weeds and garden challenges. Gardening is one way (technically) to work with my hands, but some of my other passions also involve handwork. In a post from last year, I referred to my family name, suggesting the influence (both as a writer and as a knitter) my forebears may have had on me. There’s no doubt:  I am a knitter.

Last fall, my daughter-in-law (DIL) resigned her patient coordinator position and became an entrepreneur. (Hooray!) She bravely launched a vintage clothing and housewares boutique in our community. (In a down economy, she’s — thankfully — enjoyed a good measure of success.)

Her unusual boutique suddenly offered me a ready outlet for my handwork — I mean, there are only so many gifts family members will endure before they say “enough with the knitting!” Given this opportunity for DIL to sell my creations, I definitely let the knitting needles fly. Pictured here, DIL is wearing a red cowl, doubled around her neck for warmth. I used Lion Brand Homespun yarn to emphasize its cozy texture, rendering a subtle seed stitch design.

The pattern I used was a Lion Brand design. The model (pictured in the free pattern link) wears her cowl long. In Lion Brand’s example, the use of Hometown USA yarn displays the seed stitch with greater clarity. I think both looks are attractive.

My DIL liked this pattern so much, I knitted additional cowls in different colors. A couple she sold at her store; others were gifts.

Though I didn’t use the Lion Brand pattern for all, here are several others I made and she (almost immediately) sold. Fun!

  Of course, it never hurts to have a beautiful young model eager to wear your creations!