10 September, 2012

I need your help.... please!

I need your advice - pretty please with cherries on top!
 
You see, I've made this cowl and well, I'm not happy with it. I thought it would sit nicely, softy over my chest but ugh, it doesn't - the yarn/crochet is too stiff, it's not long enough to wrap around my neck twice & I quite frankly feel like a duffus (as the photo shows!).

The yarn I'm using is Noro Taiyo but, sigh, I dunno, it's just not sitting right.
What do you think, should I undo it & give up?
Should I undo it & make it larger (longer)?
Should I add the second ball & make it taller to cover my ugly mug?

Should I undo it & use a real pattern rather than experimenting and failing badly?
Should I undo it & just make a scarf?
Have you used Noro before? It will get softer won't it?  (it' 40% cotton, 30% silk, 15% wool & 15% nylon)
Arghhhh.
...help me please...
Oh and I did ask my hubby for advice ..his answer:: what is a cowl?

15 comments:

  1. Maybe more open space in the crochet so it has space to lay.

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  2. hi! i crochet since i was 5, i'm 42 now and if i received a penny every time i had to undone and redo... i'll be rich! in my experience: is the best way to learn, not the fastest, but if you take notes, measures, etc, it can only improve!! I don't know noro yarn, they don`t sell it in my country (not sure, although) do what your heart tell you to do!
    good luck!

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  3. the fabric it created looks really dense which is why its not laying the way you were hoping it would. Try making it with a larger hook and maybe to a DC CH1 (skip one stitch) DC CH1. It will be a more airy fabric but it will help it lay nicely.

    Love the yarn

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  4. Bummer! Perhaps the hook wasn't big enough? Or perhaps a lacier pattern would work better to get a nicer drape? It's not what you will want to hear, but if it were mine I know I would rip it back and start again because if I'm not happy with it, I know it will just sit in my closet and not get worn.

    These are both nice patterns I think - http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/cardiff-cowl

    http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/bellflower-infinity-scarf

    I haven't used that yarn before. You would think it would get a bit softer after a wool wash, but if the stitches are too tight, it probably won't relax how you want it too.

    :)

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  5. I have never used that yarn before so I dont know if it would get longer with a soak. I would undo it and knit it twice as long so you can wrap it around your neck how you want to wear it. I usually just knit cowls so that they fit just around my neck so I dont get cold!

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  6. Yes it is looking rather Stiff...you Might want to try a thinner wool and something that's soft....even if you made it longer it would still be stiff.
    Good Luck.
    Cheers

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  7. I don't know but the yarn is beautiful! Good luck friend!

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  8. Hi Rie..longer and thinner I think...and maybe using warmer colours on the edge near your face as the green makes your skin look a little pale. I am sure the next one will make you a lot happier..good luck.

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  9. I'm not familiar with the yarn used, but if it's stiff it means your tension is too tight. Use a bigger hook and a lacier pattern, dc rather than sc, tr rather than dc etc would help.

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  10. I feel a pillow coming on, nice colours though!

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  11. Because of its stiffness I'd go for a scarf OR button up one side, stitch up the other and make it in to a cushion cover! Lol, when I made a cowl, my husband said "Your making A COW?!?!"

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  12. I haven't used Taiyo, but I have used other Noro yarns and most of them soften with washing and wearing. In fact, they soften every time you undo the fabric and try again, which I learnt through knitting and re-knitting a scarf many times in Silk Garden, just to get the colour transitions right. I would use swatch in a larger hook and then try soaking it and leaving it to dry and then pick it up and play with it for a few days and see how the fabric changes.

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  13. I have never used this yarn but wonder if you keep washing it with fabric conditioner it might soften up a bit ? My sister knitted me a cowl which fits better when it is folded over which also makes it nice and warm and cosy :)

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  14. Hi!

    I love the color of the yarn!
    If you want you can check out my "simple cowl" pattern (:
    greetings senna

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  15. Well, it doensn't look that bad and the colours are beautiful...
    But if you don't like it, why don't you felt it or simply work around it and make an winter bag?

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