Nariko
Nariko is a triangular shawl, crocheted from the bottom up, with a simple, classic and clean look that is broken up by spike stitch star stripes. This was such a soothing shawl to crochet and it received a lot of admiration before it was finished. I added the tassels as I just love a tassel on a shawl and was very lucky to have some beads that matched the colours in the spike stitch star stripes perfectly.
The shawl is suitable for adventurous beginners. The main shawl is crocheted with half treble (UK term) stitches and there are photo tutorials for the spike stitch stars and adding tassels to your finished shawl included in the pattern. The stripes are worked as you go so once the shawl is finished it is ready to wear.
It is extremely cozy in a soft yarn and wraps around the shoulders easily. I have found myself wearing this shawl a lot recently as the weather turns a bit cooler and it just feels so snug.
Kai
Kai is the sister pattern to Nariko. Kai is a fun and interesting cowl to crochet with changing stitch patterns and colours. There are three different stitch patterns that work their way up the cowl. It starts with V-stitch stripes, then moves into spike stitch stars and finally finishes with a boxed block pattern. All three patterns are also suitable for adventurous beginners as they use simples stitches to make very effective patterns. The pattern also contains a tutorial on the spike stitch star pattern.
I love wearing this cowl as depending on how it falls around the neck, different colours and patterns become visible. It is tall and wide enough to cover the whole head if I wish to wear it as a snood in very cold weather and it works well to keep out cold drafts around the neck with its many folds.
Both Nariko and Kai are made with Scheepjes Stone Washed DK weight yarn which is a combination of cotton and acrylic. It is an extremely soft yarn that crochets very easily. I used Moon Stone (white), Canada Jade (green) and Coral (orange) for both designs and Black Onyx as the main colour in Nariko. There are many colours in the Scheepjes palette though and I am excited to try out a few more colour combinations.
Happy crocheting,
Sarah x