The Valentines 2 Doodle Cowl isn’t the first doodle project that I’ve attempted. And I don’t think that it’s going to be my last either.
The only pattern-maker that I’ve really seen use the “doodle” style of pattern is Moonglow Yarn Co. You basically have a bunch of pattern segments that you can mix and match to your liking. Think: a section of gradient hearts or a section of rainbows.
When drafting my own cowl pattern, having an app like Knitting Chart is really useful if you plan on doing so digitally. If the analog style of pattern drafting is more to your liking, a good ole graph paper and set of coloured pencils should serve you just fine.
For cowls, I would personally recommend that you stick to 8ply/DK weight yarn if you’re the kind of person that doesn’t like to spend forever on their projects. Should you go for a 4ply/sock weight yarn, keep in mind that it’s going to take much longer to finish it. Especially if you go for a really detailed pattern, with a lot of colourwork.
I cast on my project with a provisional cast on using the medium pink yarn from the Moonglow Yarn Co Lovebird Lane Valentine Doodle Cowl Kit. It’s not my favourite colour from the kit, so it was ok to use a bit of it for the cast on.
I originally planned for my cowl (pre-blocking) to be around 225 rounds (or 70-ish cm). But, I found that I was running out of the pale pink, red & off-white, so I had to adjust my original pattern, getting rid of the 2 repeat of the giant lips and the heart stamps and doing a variation of the gradient hearts and some stripes with the purple yarns.
My least favourite part of the entire process was undoubtably the grafting of the 2 ends together with kitchener stitch. A right pain getting the stitches off and dealing with the weight of the cowl at the same time.