It’s cold outside. She walks slowly down Guerrero Street and decided she deserves a great meal. She is alone at Delfina. No one is coming to join her. Still, she feels excellent and thoroughly enjoys the panna cotta. Alone again, she walks to Dolores Park to sit in the sun and watch the dogs. She is perfectly content, with no one to tell her she should be busy doing something else. She buys her single ticket at The Castro Theatre and watches a Miyazaki film.

I designed this cowl as a tribute to the city of San Francisco, CA (USA), where I used to live. Because of the city’s microclimates (where it can be sunny on one side of the city and drizzling on the other), I needed adaptable accessories to protect me from the unpredictable weather.

The cowl is knit in the round, from the top down, with optional short rows to add drape to the collar. The final shape resembles a semicircular shawlette wrapped around the neck. It features a textured stripe pattern that is simple and fun.

To make this pattern, you need to know how to: knit; purl; yarn over; knit stitches together; purl stitches together; knit in the round; knit into the front and back of a stitch to increase; and work short rows (optional).

Yarn
Approximately 393 yards (359 meters) of sport weight yarn (150 grams)
Shown here: 3 skeins of Knit Picks Galileo (50% Merino, 50% Bamboo; 131 yards 120 meters / 1.76 ounces 50 grams). Colorway: Sand

Needles
Size US 7 (4.5mm) needles with 16” (40cm) and 24” (60cm) circular cable. Adjust needle size if necessary to obtain correct gauge

Notions
Tapestry needle; 1 marker

Gauge
About 19 sts and 26 rows = 4” (10 cm) in unblocked Stockinette stitch

I want to thank the wonderful testers huacaya, Elizabeth11, zeknittingbird and aardvaark for your helpful comments and suggestions.