I recently knit up the “Street Art Cowl” designed by Imagined Landscapes, and fell in love with its unusual but very wearable bandana-cowl construction. Inspired to design my own, I began experimenting with stitch patterns, and this was my favorite. The name Jabot (ZHaˈbō, ˈZHaˌbō) is French for an ornamental frill or ruffle—exactly what the ruching becomes.

The Sock Perfection yarn in Queequeg was begging to be knit up in this. It is part of Purple Lamb’s Moby Dick Collection and is a really soft superwash Merino/Nylon blend. It was sweet to see the different shades of pinks, purples and blues pop in this stitch pattern. After blocking, this yarn becomes incredibly soft and drapey, so it is just perfect for this cowl.

The Jabot Cowl starts by being worked flat like a triangular shawl. Once it is wide enough to fit over your head and still be attractive (I decided on 26”/66cm), it is joined to be finished in-the-round.

Please note that I knit this pretty loosely because I was using bamboo needles, and I don’t like to knit tightly on those. If you aren’t inclined to knit loose, I’d suggest you keep going up in needle size until you get gauge. When you get to the kfb rows/rounds, it’s almost impossible to knit loosely, and that is ok.

I used 20” circular needles from the start, but because it is knit flat for awhile, straight needles may be used until it’s time to join in the round.

If you need help with the Garter Tab Cast On, Staci from Very Pink does a great tutorial on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-Y8LSfAHW4&t=0s&...