Jussi Tonttu Cowl

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(Socks, Mittens, Hat, and Cowl)

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For this years’ Christmas design, I took my inspiration from folklore. Originally the Finnish Tonttu was believed to live in the nearby forests. He would protect the farmstead, its’ family and animals when treated with respect - offend him or misbehave and you would be punished! To thank him for his year-round protection it was customary on Christmas Eve to leave him out a bowl of porridge topped with a generous knob of butter.

When he first hopped off my needles, I asked my Finnish cousin to suggest a traditional name. Jussi is Finnish for John and, as it is pronounced “you-see”, it seemed the perfect name – “you-see tonttu”!

Method: This stranded colorwork cowl is knit in the round from the bottom up. Featuring a cute tonttu and motifs based on traditional Finnish patterns, it can be worked in three or more contrasting colors.

The colorwork in this design is both charted and written out, you do not have to be comfortable reading charts to enjoy knitting this cowl!

Size: This pattern is written in 4 suggested sizes but is easily adjusted to any desired length (notes for doing this are included). All instructions that differ depending on the size you are knitting are indicated with parentheses and color coded like this: S (M, L, XL).

SizeFinished CircumferenceFinished HeightS18½”47 cm9”23 cmM22⅛”56 cm9”23 cmL25⅞”66 cm9”23 cmXL29½”75 cm9”23 cm

Yarn: This pattern works well with three (or more) solid colors of DK yarn. You can use any DK yarn that you like and with which you can get tension/ gauge.

Please note I do not recommend using yarns with a high cotton content as cotton doesn’t stretch as much as other fibers and this will affect the fit of your cowl.

This is a great pattern to experiment with color and use mini skeins or any leftovers lurking in your stash. Be creative, have fun, but keep in mind changes will affect yardage and number of ends to weave in. The amounts of each color required will depend on how many colors you pick, where you choose to use them in the hat, and which size you are knitting. As a guide for the cowl pictured (size S in three colors) I used the following quantities of Cygnet Pure Wool Superwash DK:

MC – 208 White approx. 65 metres (71 yards)

CC1 – 2150 Tartan Green approx. 60 metres (66 yards)

CC2 – 2185 Geranium approx. 55 metres (60 yards)

Gauge: 6.5 stitches and 7 rows per inch (2.5cm) over colorwork pattern.

Needles: 3.75mm dpns, long circular for magic loop, or 15” (40 cm) circular needles or size needed for gauge.

Other Materials Required:

Stitch Markers

Tape Measure

Scissors

Darning needle for sewing in ends