I’m not sure I’d call it a speedy knit, but I did cast off for the cowl on Tuesday night. Less than a month per project is an improvement, I suppose?

Considering that I cast on and knit without swatching, checking gauge, or really counting stitches, it came out at just about the perfect size. It’s big enough to slip down over my shoulders, and long enough to fold over at the neck.

That does make for a rather dramatic neck opening that I will probably close up with a shawl pin for warmth.

I haven’t worn it yet, so it remains to be seen whether this style works well for me, but I’m hopeful.

I have been having a hard time finding a new project to cast on (with all this wool around, I’m not sure why that statement is even possible, but there it is.). Knit night snuck up on me yesterday, and caught me with nothing on the needles. With limited time to plan, I grabbed a ball from the stash and cast on for a pair of handwarmers.

This time, the educated-guess cast on method isn’t working quite as well; the ribbing is ok, but the mitts are a little snug. If I’d switched to stockinette for the hand as I’d originally planned, it might have worked out, but I think these will probably be frogged and reknit with an extra 2-4 stitches.

I did an asymmetric increase pattern at the thumb to avoid interrupting the 1×1 rib. I do like the increase line, but I’m not sure I’m a fan of the slanted look it gives the rest of the ribbing, so I may rethink that next time around, too. Fortunately, handwarmers are small, so it isn’t a big deal to pull back and start over. Who knows…I might even come up with a more interesting project in between. For now, it’s just nice to have something on the needles again, and to be making progress. Here’s hoping that it continues!