Wintergreen Hooded Scarf in Berroco Ultra Wool Handpaint & Berroco Aerial

Wintergreen Hooded Scarf

What Is Being Made

The Wintergreen is a versatile two-in-one accessory that combines a hooded bonnet with an attached scarf, designed by Alison Green. This intermediate-level knitting project creates a coordinated winter piece featuring a bonnet with approximately 10½ inches of depth and a scarf measuring approximately 7 inches wide by 44 inches long, making it suitable for layering and cold-weather wear.

Knitting Techniques Used

This pattern employs the brioche knitting technique, a specialized method that creates a distinctive textured fabric with excellent elasticity and drape. The brioche construction involves working with yarn overs and slipped stitches in a specific sequence to build the characteristic ridged appearance. The pattern is worked in the round using circular needles, which allows for seamless construction of the bonnet and scarf components. Knitters have the flexibility to use either a single 40-inch circular needle with the Magic Loop method, or to switch between a 16-inch circular needle and double-pointed needles as the project progresses and stitch counts decrease.

Stitches and Stitch Abbreviations

The primary stitches used in this pattern are specialized brioche stitches, which are abbreviated as follows:

• Brk (Brioche knit): A stitch worked by knitting together the slipped stitch from the previous round with its accompanying yarn over, creating the brioche texture
• Brp (Brioche purl): A stitch worked by purling together the slipped stitch from the previous round with its accompanying yarn over
• Sl1yo (Slip one with yarn over): A combination move where a yarn over is created before slipping the stitch purl-wise, setting up stitches for the brioche knit and purl stitches in subsequent rounds

An important note for knitters: each visual row or round in brioche knitting is actually created by working that row or round twice, which affects how you count progress through the pattern.

Materials: Yarn and Needles

This pattern calls for two Berroco yarns held together throughout most of the project. The primary yarn is Berroco Ultra Wool Handpaint, a 100-gram ball weight yarn, with 2 balls required in colorway #33303 Mojito. This yarn provides the base structure and the handpainted color variation. The secondary yarn is Berroco Aerial, a 25-gram ball weight yarn, with 2 balls needed in colorway #3437 Basil. These two yarns are held together as one to achieve the desired gauge and fabric characteristics, except during the tubular bind-off, which is worked using only the Ultra Wool Handpaint.

For needles, the pattern specifies a 40-inch circular needle in size 8 (5 mm), or the size needed to obtain proper gauge. Optional alternatives include a 16-inch circular needle and double-pointed needles, also in size 8 (5 mm), for working smaller circumferences, or the Magic Loop method as a needlework technique preference. Stitch markers are required, with one marker in a different color to mark the beginning of each round.

Gauge and Finishing

The pattern specifies a gauge of 13 stitches and 20 rows or rounds over 4 inches in the basic brioche pattern after blocking, when both yarns are held together. Achieving proper gauge is essential for accurate finished measurements, and the pattern instructions emphasize checking gauge before beginning the project to ensure the bonnet depth and scarf dimensions are correct. The pattern includes a tubular bind-off technique for a professional, finished edge.