Berroco Lygia Cowl Knitting Pattern

Berroco Lygia Cowl: Two-Color Brioche Knit Design

What is Being Made

The Berroco Lygia is an intermediate-level cowl designed by Alison Green from the Ginkgo Fall 2017 Collection. This finished cowl measures approximately 10½ inches wide by 57 inches around after blocking, making it a generously-sized neck accessory suitable for comfortable layering and wear.

Techniques Used

This cowl is constructed using bottom-up construction and is worked in the round on circular needles, creating a seamless tubular fabric. The primary technique featured throughout the pattern is two-color brioche knitting, an advanced stitch method that creates a distinctive textured, reversible fabric with excellent drape and elasticity. The pattern incorporates brioche increases and decreases to shape the cowl, allowing for precise shaping while maintaining the brioche stitch pattern.

Stitches Used

The Lygia pattern utilizes several specialized brioche stitches:

• Brk (Brioche Knit): Knitting a slipped stitch together with its accompanying yarn over from the previous round
• Brp (Brioche Purl): Purling a slipped stitch together with its accompanying yarn over from the previous round
• Sl1yo (Slip 1 with Yarn Over): Creating a yarn over followed by slipping a stitch purlwise to set up brioche stitches
• Brkyobrk (2-stitch increase): A two-stitch increase worked into a single stitch using brioche knit technique
• brRdec (2-stitch right-slanting decrease): A two-stitch decrease that slants to the right
• brLdec (2-stitch left-slanting decrease): A two-stitch decrease that slants to the left

Materials and Gauge

This project uses Berroco Ginkgo yarn, requiring 2 balls each of two coordinating colors: #9639 Quartz (CC1) and #9670 Pewter (CC2). Each ball weighs 50 grams. The pattern calls for a 36-inch circular needle in size 8 (5.00 mm) or the size needed to obtain the specified gauge, along with one stitch marker for tracking rounds.

The required gauge is 11 stitches and 22 rounds over 4 inches in pattern after blocking. Checking gauge before beginning is essential for achieving the correct finished dimensions and proper fabric characteristics in this brioche stitch design.