Easy Poofy Capelet

Capelets are related to ponchos - they're essentially knit like a simple circular yoke, only you don't have the hassle of attaching the sweater :-). This one is really a poof, goes fast as the wind and feels like a soft warm cloud when you're done! It's the winter version of our lacey capelet. It's completely reversible, although the wonderful texture of the yarn doesn't show much else, we can hardly tell one side from the other. This based on the yokes of circular sweaters pioneered by Elizabeth Zimmermann in the 60s.

Level of difficulty

Beginner.

Finished measurements

M-L: 23" (58cm) around the neck. 50" (125cm) at the bottom edge. 14" (36cm) high.
XL-2X: 24" around the neck. 54" at the bottom edge. 15" (38cm) high.
3X-4X: 25" around the neck. 58" at the bottom edge. 16" (30cm) high.

Materials

3 (3,4) balls Crystal Palace Poof (50g, 47yd) color 9377 (walnut), 100% microfiber nylon.
Circular knitting needle size 11 (7mm), or whatever will give you the gauge. Length near 24" (60cm) is most suitable.

Gauge

On stockinette, 4 ½ st = 4" (10cm).

Sizes

Medium-large, (XL-2X, 3X-4X).

DIRECTIONS

Cast on 22 (23, 24) stitches, join the circle.
Do 3 rows of seed stitch: (k1 p1)*, repeat till end of row.
Knit circularly in stockinette till height reaches 2"/5cm (2 ½"/6cm).
Brutally increase, evenly all around in a single row: (k2 inc 1)*. For larger sizes, 3X and above, increase more: (k2 inc 1, k2 inc 1, k1 inc 1)*.
Knit again in plain stockinette for another 2" (2 ½"), till total height is 4"/10cm (5"/13cm).
Do another row of increases: (k2 inc 1)*. For larger sizes, 3X and above, increase more: (k2 inc 1, k2 inc 1, k1 inc 1)*.
Then knit in plain stockinette till total height is about 1½" less than intended length.
Knit another 3 rows in seed stitch (k1 p1)*. (if you have an even number of stitches, add one at end of first row to make row transition mindless.)
Bind off very loosely.
Work in ends with yarn needle.

Notes:

This may be a very simple pattern, but if you're making anything wearable and you want someone to actually wear it, you still must match the gauge or be prepared to adjust the pattern...
A backward-loop cast-on is strongly recommended, since it's the only one that is guaranteed to stretch easily over your head.
Binding off too tightly will definitely make things hang in a very wrong way. We recommend what the Vogue Knitting Reference book calls 'suspended cast-off' for much more elasticity than the standard. Knit 2 stitches, *slip the first over the 2nd but leave it on the left needle so you have a 'single cross' with a stitch on each needle; knit into the next stitch on the left needle, so you now have 2 stitches on each needle; slip the 2 stitches on the left needle off, repeat from *. Do work it much looser than you think possible.
If for some reason you object to brutally increasing, please read the entire works of Elizabeth Zimmerman before trying to tell us anything about it...

We also added a set of matching arm warmers, for the circulation-challenged among us.