The word “scrivadelly” appears in a picture book called Du Iz Tak?, which is written entirely in a made-up language. Scrivadelly seems to mean beautiful, and I find this cowl very beautiful. Like the story, it’s organic and kind of earthy and swoops around back to the start. Like the made-up language, it’s evocative and somehow makes sense despite itself.

Construction starts at the front, with a leaf pattern widening out before partly transitioning to plain brioche ribbing. Irregularly placed increases and decreases keep the pattern angling left as it gradually narrows, travelling around the back of the neck and finally being seamed to the top of the starting tail. The finished item sits snug against your neck and chest but spreads over the shoulders; it can be worn under a coat as a dicky, spread out elegantly or bunched up for a more casual cowl.

I’ve combined two incredible, glowing yarns in this: a hand-dyed merino single, and a fine mohair/silk lace-weight, which not only adds halo and warmth but also keeps that twisty singles behaving nicely (singles are not ideal for brioche). It must be said that working brioche in double-stranded yarn is a pain. You could make your life easier by choosing a single yarn instead, about aran weight. But this way is really so scrivadelly.

Pattern uses one skein of each yarn: 2 x 366m of fingering, and 2 x 240m of lace-weight mohair blend.

Circumference at neck: 22 inches/56cm
Circumference at neck: 47 inches/120cm approximately

Notes/errata:
– Please note that the directions appear below the stitch patterns – i.e. scroll down for instructions for the cast-on, and how many times to repeat the body patterns.
– In the Ending Tail, Row BC5 should read:
“Row BC5: K1, sl1yo, (brp, sl1yo) to Rib decrease marker, brp3tog, sl1yo, (brp, sl1yo) to last st before Rib increase marker, brp3-in-1, sl1yo, (brp, sl1yo) to decrease marker, brp3-in-1, sl1yo, (brp, sl1yo) to last st, k1. Return to start. 57 sts.”