Lately I really enjoy knitting ribbing strangely enough so I'm planning on knitting another balaclava in Cascade 220 and updating my pattern. The original free pattern I did for the old Knitlist is HERE. Here's a shot of a very old one (probably 12 or more years old made out of acrylic). DH still uses it although you can see it is pilling.



The balaclava is done in worsted weight on K2P2 ribbing on 92 sts on size 7 (US) dpns. I think it would work well also for a cowl if you wanted a thicker, warmer version. Just knit the ribbing in the round until it is 7" or so.

The orange cowl shown in my last post was a great success with DH - I used Knitpicks' Gloss fingering weight (although it seems a bit thicker than other fingering weight yarns) and 92 sts and size 5 (US) dpns. I was going for something light instead of warmth. The two below are knit in Knitpicks' Shine sport weight cotton also on size 5 (US) dpns and 92 sts. I worry though that the cotton will stretch out too much over time. I've decided for mine that I prefer them closer to 6 1/2" than 7" - that way they will come just up to my chin.