Neck and neck

At the beginning of January I showed a lineup of what I'd been working on, including the Celtic Cable Neckwarmer that was part of my holiday stealth knitting.  It was made using that well-known knitter's crack - Mmmmmmalabrigo.  And after completing the neckwarmer to my great joy I discovered that I had almost half the skein left over. To make another gift you ask? Uhhh, no. (What are you new here?) To make something for me.

This is Sonia's Ribbed for Your Warmth cowl pattern and it is so soft and snuggly and I just lurve it. I noticed a few months ago when we skipped immediately from summer into winter without enjoying a fall season, that I had a lot of crewneck shirts I never had a chance to wear since I went straight from tank tops to turtlenecks.  Something like this will make a huge difference and now I understand the whole cowl craze.  It really does serve a purpose. I almost want the weather to get cold again so I can wear it. No, strike that. I don't really want it to get cold again. But I know it will and I'm getting ready.

I'm also interested in trying some of the shorter scarves that have become popular. Whether you call them neckwarmers, mini-scarves, or scarflettes, I can see the positive side of just having a short, warm, colorful bit wrapped around your neck without any extra bulk or more importantly, long dangling ends. (Other cat owners are nodding their heads here.) It also seems like a great way to use up one single skein of yummy yarn, when you'd need a few for a long scarf.  So I started this:

My So-Called Pidge, using a skein of Yarn Place Adalie Bulky that I purchased at last year's Stitches West.  I think I'm going to complete all but the buttons, and then shop for those at this year's Stitches West, sew them on in my hotel room, and wear it home. Sounds like a good plan to me!