shawl collared cowl

I made this shawl collared cowl for my blog friend Amy as part of a swap. Amy told me to surprise her with something knitted or crocheted. I wanted to include some of my handmade buttons on whatever I made because Amy's husband is a woodworker, so I knew she'd appreciate them. When I saw the shawl collared cowl pattern it reminded me of Amy right away--simple and classic. The funny thing is that when Amy received her cowl she told me that she'd picked out the same pattern to give to her mother-in-law (a knitter) for Christmas. I was pretty spot on with my choice!

Amy mentioned that she liked my crochet-covered stones, so I couldn't help sending her one. This is one of Margie's lacy river rocks patterns.

Of course you just have to stop by Amy's blog to see what she made for me. It's a beautiful knitting bag! She let me pick out the main fabric and colors for the bag, so I went with blue, red, yellow, and pink. I love the embroidery she did to tie in all the colors! As part of the swap she also sent one of her screen printed "Winter Wash" tea towels. I am so happy with our trade. I've been using the knitting bag every day since I received it. I'll have to get some photos soon.

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I wanted to share what my knitting projects look like this week because I've gone a little crazy with casting on lately. I'm working on braided cable mittens, a Rosa hat, a pair of Rainbow Brite socks, and a Baby Surprise Jacket. Under all of that crazy knitting is a seed catalog because I'm still dreaming of my backyard garden and stockpiling egg cartons for starting seeds.