According to Irish legend, Etain fell in love with the fairie king, Midhir, and became his consort. As punishment for her their transgression, Midhir’s wife transformed Etain into a butterfly and conjured a storm to send her swirling around the world forever. Etain eventually escaped the buffeting winds, but not for hundreds of years, and it was many years and many trials more before she and Midhir found each other again.

Our Etain shows that centuries-long separation and flight in an opulently cabled knit. The primary motif is a swirling wind that morphs into and buffets a stylized butterfly, before transforming back into a fierce gale. Finished as a cowl, the butterfly’s path becomes a seemingly endless, solitary tour. Alternately, Etain can be finished as a scarf, wherein the resolution of the butterfly’s long journey is always in sight.

Knit in Why Knot Fibers’ Steady in the dreamlike Patina colorway, Etain embodies the struggle of being parted and the hope of reunion.

As Modeled: There are two primary versions of Etain, a 30” around cowl and a 60” long scarf. Each is 5.5” wide, and each could easily be made longer by working additional repeats of the wind motif. The model is wearing the 30” cowl with grafted ends.

Instructions: Etain’s cables are charted only at this time, but the rest of the directions are written out.

Extras: You’ll either need to have a cable needle or be comfortable cabling without one. (Try it! It’s great!) A spare size 7 needle is helpful for the I-cord transitions and, if you’re making the cowl, for the optional three-needle bind off. A couple of stitch markers wouldn’t hurt, either.

I-Cord Edging: Both the cowl and scarf versions include trim I-cord selvedges on the long edges. The scarf additionally includes an optional I-cord cast on and bind off that makes the rounded edge flow continuously around the scarf. Completing the optional, continuous I-cord is just the whitsiest bit fiddly, but it makes for a really lovely finished knit.

Candor: For reasons beyond me, the last page of the pattern’s .pdf only prints right-side up if it appears upside down in the electronic version. If someone can fix that oddity or tell me how to, I’ll happily provide them with the Kokoro Pattern of their choice.