According to my definition (I don’t know whether it’s the same as anybody else’s), a cowl and a snood are both a tube of fabric that sits around your neck. The difference between them is that a cowl stays there, whereas a snood is long enough that it can be pulled up and over the top of your head. The snood above is one that I knitted for a Christmas present, and I have to admit I was quite sad to give it away. Thankfully there’s enough yarn left over (Fyberspates Scrumptious Laceweight) that I might one day get around to knitting another one for myself.
This one I made today, from a remnant of soft cotton/viscose blend jersey, and half an old t-shirt of Paul’s. It needs to be a smidge longer, so that it can cover the head without creating a chilly gap at the back of the neck, but its size was determined by the materials available. Next time I’ll start with yardage, and make it a little bit longer. I quite fancy a fleecy version of this as well, as long as it doesn’t bunch up too much under the chin.
The main endeavour of the day has been drafting a pattern and making up a few cowls, which are now listed in the Etsy shop. I’ve been wondering for ages what on earth I could make from the remnants of jersey fabrics in the stash, and sitting with a very cold neck at work the other day prompted these cosy little neck warmers! They just pull on over the head, and you can either drape them in an artistic and casual fashion, or fold them down neatly like a turtleneck. The floral one is the same on both sides, and the spotty & stripy one is reversible. I’ve listed two of those on Etsy, though I’m extremely tempted to keep one for myself. (I’m keeping the stripy snood though, so perhaps two grey neck-warming things is a bit much.)
One of the things I really need to improve this year is the photos for my Etsy listings. Despite my endless wittering on Facebook, the vast majority of the visitors to my little shop are coming from within Etsy itself, so I need to upgrade my listings to attract as many views as I can. I like the white face with the white wig – I think it gives a context to the photos whilst keeping the emphasis firmly on the product. However, I am aware that the polystyrene lady looks a little… well… cheap. Sadly, having spent all my money on hat blocks, I can’t afford to upgrade her for a classier model any time soon, so I’ve been thinking about how I could get rid of the polystyrene texture. Papier maché, perhaps, with a layer of white paint over the top? I also need to improve my listing photos generally. They look fine on my Mac at home, but on any other computer they seem very grey and dull, which isn’t quite the look I want to go for! Perhaps a little re-calibration is in order.
I’m aware that everything I’ve posted here lately has been “Look, I made a thing!”. This must be especially dull if you’re already following The Eternal Magpie page on Facebook, as I tend to post all my Things over there as I go along. There is other stuff rumbling along in the background (I broke a tooth, my job is changing, the new house keeps throwing challenges our way, my health is still a mess), I’m just not quite sure what to say about it all just yet. I have a few days off work at the end of this week and the beginning of next, so I’m hoping to take some time to have a bit of a think. (Probably enforced by dental anaesthetic, yuck.) I’m really enjoying all of the Things I’m making at the moment though, and I hope you are too.
