Feedback

I've been getting some satisfying feedback from the people I gave scarves to for Christmas. The recipient of the pink Tilted Blocks said she opened the parcel and thought, 'Well, that isn't going to work,' but when she put it on, it did.

The silvery blue Aria has gone to Paris with its new owner to see in the New Year.

I didn't finish the Tahoe Shag until well after Christmas, yesterday I think. It took one ball of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sport in the shade Lake Tahoe and it's about 52 inches long, but I think it'll stretch in wear.

Sylvester can be seen modelling it here. It can be worn hanging, or knotted once, or en jabot like Vivienne.

I liked the daintiness of this one but I don't think it really occurred to me that as the yarn made smaller flaps, it would take me much longer to knit the length I wanted. Doh. How long have I been knitting?

The colours are lovely anyway.

I haven't heard from the recipient of the Manos Shag yet, and the recipient of the green Tilted Blocks was so overwhelmed by the earrings I gave her that she forgot to mention the scarf.




And did anyone give me a scarf? Well, they did, but it wasn't a knitted one so that's all right.

Starting the Shag Scarf Today

I have some multi-colored Rowan yarn (garnet/black, mustard/black, and violet/black) I got at a recent bag sale. I'm trying to choose which one to use for Shag. I'm glad to get started on this project!

Joining Up

I shall be away for a few days, so if you have an overwhelming urge to join the knitalong I'm afraid you will have to contain yourself. You can send requests though, to kns DOT kal AT gmail DOT com and I'll send you an invitation as soon as I get back. I'll be back around Friday.

You can keep posting, and I look forward to seeing all the Shags, Twisteds and Drifting Pleats on my return.

Meanwhile, happy knitting and an even happier Christmas to all the knitalongers and everyone else who drops by.

First New Scarf---Shag

Bought some hand-dyed silk chenille and decided it would be interesting for Shag. No pictures yet, but have done 1 1/2 squares so far. Washed the swatch to see if it would fluff up before I make a final decision on which needles to use.

I am very excited about finally getting started on this KAL

Meandering Stripes

Hi! Lynne saw my scarf on Flickr and invited me to join the KAL, so here I am. I knit this Meandering Stripes scarf in some of my handspun singles yarn for my aunt for Christmas. The scarf took about 150yds and is around 4 inches wide and 45 inches long. I think I used a size 9US/ 5.75mm needle, but I can't remember off the top of my head. I'm very happy with the scarf and my aunt loved it. I'm trying to decide which scarf to knit next, probably Hourglass, out of more handspun.

New Wave

After a few failed attempts, I'm on my way. And the "failures" were really quite silly, and completely my fault. I read through the instructions until I was pretty clear but I never bothered to check out the recommended yarn. Bad me! Because of the needle size I just assumed that the yarn was thicker than it was. So when I substituted with Andean silk I went down .5 mm on each needle. I don't think the silk content helped much either. This pattern needs a crisp yarn, not a flowly one. Upon realizing my mistake (after going to the source yarn's site all ready to order) I switched over to Cascade 220 from my stash and back to the recommended needle size. I still cast on with more stitches than the pattern calls for because I like a wider scarf. Now all seems to be smooth sailing. I'm also using two circs (Knitpicks Options) instead of DPNs. Much easier!

Looking inside the gap

Combining the stitches

Even though this is basically stockinette in the round, it remains interesting because of the two needle sizes and the combining stitches and rib division. Every time you recombine the stitches with one row of rib, you are basically flipping sides. When divide them again you are putting the larger stitches on the smaller needles and vice versa.

A Shortened Shag

The 90 grammes of Debbie Bliss 'Maya' I had gave me a 32" scarf, which I think is still very wearable as a jabot with a brooch.

I used 6.5 mm needles (6 mm gave me too firm a fabric), and this took from the 22nd of November to the 12th of December, although it would have been much quicker if I hadn't been working on several other projects at the same time. It was very straightforward to knit; the only difficulty I had was picking up stitches evenly across the rectangles, and practice soon perfected that. I'm thinking of Meandering Stripes next with some dark charcoal and light grey aran weight I have lying around.

Tilted Blocks, Etc.

I've finished the pink Tilted Blocks and I'm about to wrap it up so that I can post it tomorrow.The colour isn't at all right in this photograph, but it's my last chance for a picture. The real colour is much more pink, and less violet.

Much more like this, except that the scarf isn't blurred.

I've also taken the opportunity to photograph all the New Scarves I've done, as most of them are leaving my hands tomorrow.


I have, you will not be surprised to learm, already cast on another Shag, in Lorna's Laces Lake Tahoe, although it occurred to me tonight that I might have miscounted and this one might be extra. We'll see.

Shag scarf

This is my first project from the book, probably the first of many. I used Colinette Tagliatelli. One hank makes a short scarf--I won't be wrapping it around my neck a few times, but it's going to be a fun scarf to wear.

Help for Debbie G!

Hi Debbie. Helen alerted me to your comment, “I am a little confused about how to add the contrast color in the slip stitch section”, in the Hourglass Special post.

Here are some additional instructions and photos I hope will clear it up...

From Step 2 in the book: Rib stitches have already been divided in order to knit around.

Step 3: Now you are starting the 2-color slip stitch pattern. This section is knit around. When you knit around, a pocket is formed in the center. That’s where you will hide the ‘knot and tail’ from tying the contrasting color onto one of the main color strands.

The next photo shows the contrasting color yarn (light grey) tied onto one strand of the main color. This main color strand will be carried up through the pocket. The remaining main color strand will be used to work your slip stitch pattern along with the contrasting yarn.

The following photos show the unused main color yarn being carried up through the center, hidden in the pocket until you need it again. The yarns being used to knit the slip stitch pattern are seen off to the right.

I hope this helps, but if more is needed, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Tilted Blocks Again

I ripped the lavender Scottish Tweed and am converting it into Tilting Blocks. See the sidebar for a jigsaw of it, if you've got something you want to put off doing for a while.

The yarn is a lovely colour. It's for my aunt as a Christmas present; I think I'll get some nail polish in the same shade too. That will amuse her.

I've remembered that I have some pearly grey Malabrigo which would look very good as Meandering Stripes and would show off the short rows well. It was intended to be an Elizabeth Zimmermann ribwarmer, but that project has been unravelling in my mind for a while and now that I've seen Steffi's photos I think it's just the thing.

Counting Rows

Lynne has asked me about the pink wriggly row counter I mentioned here. This isn't my own idea, but one that I got from a website a few years ago when I first started surfing knitting websites. I've looked for it today but I can't find it.

As I said, I can't be relied upon to turn one of those little row counters that slides on to the needle, and although I'm a little better with five-bar gates I'm still not very good. I bought a clicker at one point and that was quite good for a while but then I sort of trailed off and forgot about that. I know you can get those clever bangles that have numbered beads on them, but I would probably still forget that after the novelty had worn off.

The beauty of this is that it sits on the needle between stitches, so you can't miss it. When you reach it, you slip the next loop on to the needle, so when you get to the last loop you know it's time to start again. When I'm shaping a sleeve, I'll have a four-row one and a six-row one and so on, and I can relax. I like to make them out of a yarn which contrasts very sharply, so that I don't knit them into the thing I'm knitting while I stare glassy-eyed at the television.

You need a piece of yarn longer than you think you'll need. Nowadays I always make them on one of the needles I'm going to use, ever since the time I made a very long one and then discovered that the loops were too small. Sigh.

Pictures for Helen

Hey Helen, even though you seem to have decided to keep 'shagging', I thought I would post the pictures I took of my stacked wedges anyway.

Enjoy!

Thanks for the Thoughts

Thanks for the thoughts about the Meandering Not Stripes. I still think the tweed doesn't show up the structure enough, and anyway it looks better in stripes (fancy that!) because they show off the structure too. I was looking at the Tilted Squares I already did and decided to do that again, because it's a fun shape, and I am putting to the back of my mind the thought that the recipient would really like Shag. Still, I don't have to decide just yet, because I am still busy with the second Noro Shag. I'm still endlessly fascinated by the colour changes. Oh good, there's a turquoise bit coming up, I think.

Sign Ups

There are some invitations which haven't been taken up yet; if you're waiting for one, please check your spam trap in case it's got stuck. But if you've got distracted by having to knit ten presents, that's OK.

Jeanne, Lynne is waiting breathlessly to hear about your problems with the Hourglass :)

Do drop in on Flickr and see some of the New Scarves that are showing up over there.

Decisions, decisions, decisions

I'm confused. I am undecided. I don't know what to do.

I bought some Rowan Scottish Tweed Aran in a shade of pinky lavender which someone I know loves, so that I can make her a scarf for Christmas. I cast on Meandering Stripes (yes, I know my scarf isn't striped) and I've done one right curve and almost all of a left curve, and I just don't think it suits this yarn.

The ones that Larry and Steffi have shown here look as if they're from a softer yarn, and I don' t think this fabric will lie properly. (What does this look like on a human? Can someone post a picture?)

I've pretty well resolved to rip this, but before I do I would like to know what pattern I am going to use instead. Should I do another Tilted Blocks? I know it looks good in a tweedy yarn. Or should I do yet another Shag? It shows off every yarn so well and I know the recipient would love it. Or is there another pattern in the book that I should consider? I want to do Drifting Pleats and some others, but I just don't think the tweed will suit them.
Comments and suggestions, please. Help me to decide.

Another Shag, and Another

I finished another Shag, this time in Noro Silk Garden. It's shade 47. I've wanted to make one in graduated yarn ever since I saw Wendi's here. The colours are all naturals, grey, brown, charcoal and a lovely gingery shade. Who would have thought brown could be so interesting?
It took slightly less than two balls, and is 51 inches long. This is the back, looking very dinosaurish and scaly... but in a good way.

And guess what I did when I'd finished? Cast on another one, this time in Silk Garden 236? Surely not?

I'm sorry the photograph isn't very good, but we only had about ten minutes of daylight today, and I missed it.

The pink wriggly thing is my 17-row counter. I have proved incapable of turning a revolving row counter consistently, and of marking five-bar gates, but even I can't miss this.

I am toying with the idea of flicking some of the flaps, but haven't quite worked up the nerve yet, so these all face the front.

Hourglass Special

Hi Knitters,

I finished up the hourglass scarf and I love it. What a fun project. This is actually the first knitalong I've ever joined but how could I resist?Koigu Kerstie is such a treat to knit, squishy, yummy yarn. I made a few modifications from the original pattern. I made mine a bit wider and I shortened the length between the hourglass shaping. I also made mine quite a bit longer than suggested. That's the good thing about making your own scarf. You can make it however wide and long you'd like. This was a quick, quick and fun knit.

Yay scarf knitting!
best, susan b anderson

Finished Parallelograms

The Parallelograms scarf is done. I'm pretty pleased with the results. I only used one skein of each color. I wish Tahki's Chelsea Silk was still available.

I have another skein of each of the colors and a friend of mine who loves the Parallelograms is getting those for Christmas. She has the book on order. We're planning a mini-knit-a-long for after the first of the year. Just the two of us making some of the more challenging patterns.

I also knit another Tilted Squares scarf yesterday. Haven't taken the time to photo it yet. Maybe tonight at our knitting group holiday party. It would be nice to see it on an actual person.

Finished Aria

I've finished the Aria scarf. I used Rowan's Natural Silk Aran, a blend of silk, linen and viscose, because the scarf is a present for my god-daughter, who is allergic to animal fibres, but it suits the pattern very well and would be a good choice for anyone who wants a drapey, ripply, swirly scarf.
I wanted it extra long, so I used six balls of the yarn (71 yards per ball, nine inches of Aria). I've had it hanging up since I finished it, and it's stretched a bit, which was what I wanted, so that she can wrap it round and round. It was a very satisfying knit and I'm delighted with the result.



It keeps looking like a deliciously frilled sea creature, whenever it's draped over the sofa or curled on the floor.

You can see even more photos at my blog.

Or do the new jigsaw in the sidebar here.

shag, in blue max

Here is my attempt at the Shag scarf, done in a chunky Lang M.A.X. (50% wool, 50% acrylic) I had lying around in the stash.
I went up to a 6.5mm needle in order to have a less-stiff fabric.
It took me a few squares to understand the concept, but then it went quite quickly after that.

If I had more of the yarn, then I would have kept knitting for a longer scarf.
I think I likely flipped a square the wrong way a few times, but I am happy with the final result.
It's very warm on one's neck!

Yes, I am likely to try this again in other yarns in future.

Lisa in Toronto

Stacked Wedges on Parade

Hey all, here's my first new scarf, all done and finished!

Really happy with this one: it was quick and easy and the result was fabulous! The yarn that I chose did indeed hide some of the cool short-row effects, but the main effect of the 'wobbling' is a lot of fun.

Yarn details:

• 'Salima' from On Line yarns
• Colour #3
• 60% cotton/20% acrylic/15% linen/5% polyamid
• 50gr=80 metres
• 180gr used

Finished measurements: 13.5cm wide and 185cm long
Needles: 5mm

Linked Rib, finished

My Linked rib scarf is done! 2 skeins of Summer Tweed wasn't enough, so I had to order more. But now it's finished and I really like the way it turned out! It gets lots of attention, too. Everyone comments on its unusual design. There are more pictures of it on my Flickr stream, and on Ravelry.

Now I might have to knit some other stuff for a while, but I'll be coming back to Knitting New Scarves at some point. There are a couple of other scarves I have my eye on. :)

News

We've had another wave of sign-ups, so welcome to all the new scarfalongers and I hope we're going to see more exciting interpretations soon. It makes me wonder, how does Lynne feel about knitters merrily choosing to make her scarves in different yarns, changing the length or the scale, or otherwise altering her precious creations? Is it worrying, or is it exciting to see the designs going out and having a life of their own?

Susan B. Anderson, author of Itty Bitty Hats, is knitting the Hourglass in some lovely Koigu Kersti: go and have a look.

I just noticed yesterday that the scarves are shown in the book in alphabetical order, which is why it doesn't need an index - isn't that fab?

I'm up to date with sending invitations to join, so if you haven't heard from me, please check your spam trap or feel free to get in touch again.

Drifting Pleats - first, but not the last!

I just finished knitting my very first scarf from Lynne Barr's book - Drifting Pleats - and it was a thoroughly enjoyable experience! The end product is not too shabby, either!

I used a wonderful handspun single-ply wool/silk - Single-Dyed Phat Silk Phat from La Lana Wools. I knit the scarf using Bryspun plastic needles.

There are more details on my blog, including more photos!

Needles to say, I'm already scheming my next project from this book :). Did you know that Melanie Falick has a gallery of "New Scarves" on her blog? All 27 scarves in a convenient layout, so we can see them side by side instead of flipping back and forth in the book!

Getting Started

Hello all. I've been happily browsing the book since it arrive a few days ago, trying to decide where to start. I decided to ease myself in gently with 'Shag', using a very nearly complete ball of left over Debbie Bliss 'Maya' (since it worked so well for Helen). Apologies for the poor photo - dark green is never easy to photograph well, and artificial light really doesn't help. This is my second attempt, the first having been ripped out late at night because it didn't look right, and I was too tired to work out why. So far this time it's going smoothly, although it's mystifying my husband.

I have also set myself the challenge of seeing how many scarves I can knit from the book without buying new yarn. I'm afraid the answer may well be "most of them".

Aria

I've been looking for a yarn to use for a scarf for my god-daughter for a while, with Christmas in mind. She's allergic to all the animal fibres and I knitted her a cotton one with some lovely Interlacements yarn a while ago, but I wanted something softer and more eveningy.

An lys was having a splendid clearout of Rowan yarn and I came across vast supplies of Natural Silk Aran, which is silk, linen and viscose. I'd used it once before and loved it, but hadn't been able to justify buying it again. When I found it at half-price, I scooped up a supply of black to make something for myself and then went back a couple of days later and got a supply of shade 461, which is called Flax and is a silvery pale blue. My god-daughter, being a sensible girl, is very fond of blue.

I swatched a couple of other scarves in the book first: Shag, which I'd already made and wanted to do again, but the yarn was too fine and floppy; and Twisted, for which I found this crisp yarn a bit too unforgiving and thought would be better done in something with a bit of stretch.

On looking through the book again, I came across Aria, which I had mentally allocated to some variegated blue-faced leicester but which I now re-examined. I cast on and whizzed off, and haven't looked back.

This yarn is put up in 50g balls, which only contain 71 yards and I get about nine inches of scarf to one ball of yarn. I'm sure it will stretch in wear. I want to make it long enough to wrap round and round.

As you can see in the second picture, the texture is very floppy and the scarf can be folded in half lengthwise, doubling the frill. I hadn't expected the yarn to be this drapey, and it's perfect.
That's the fifth ball you can see sitting on the top. I usually start to get bored with a scarf some time after I pass the half-way point: I keep holding it up and looking at it, and sighing. I start wondering if it would be all right a little bit shorter. Or quite a lot shorter. But I'm not doing that this time. I think one of the reasons is that I finish a ball of yarn often enough to feel a real sense of progress, and another is the little sense of achievement after each triangle that forms the frill.

I often watch films while I'm knitting and my projects fall into those I can do while reading subtitles, and those which require greater concentration. This one can be done while reading subtitles, laughing and talking, but doesn't get boring.