Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Scarf for Paul

I wanted a super simple project to knit at a Memorial Day weekend BBQ. Paul and I were going to see some of his college friends. And last year I found by having knitting in my hands I snacked a whole lot less than I had in the past.

I really wanted something that would feature the yarn I bought at Unique Designs by Kathy. But I knew it wasn't enough to make a scarf for my husband. And he liked the yarn.

Unique Designs by Kathy Handspun Kid Shetland

I decided to make a scarf for him by adding another yarn.

I figured the handspun would really be best featured by something simple. I decided to just go with garter stitch. Super simple for knitting for chatting and easy to drop in the middle of a row if needed.

I cast on 80 stitches on the size 4 needles. However, after a few rows it was turning out 12" wide. My husband's ideal scarf width it 8-9". So I ripped it out and cast on 60. That gave me around 9" which is good.

When I added the Bernat Cashmere Blend, I knit one, then knit 2 together. This way I decreased to 40 stitch to get it around the same width. It isn't perfectly even but I think I can block it and the two areas should look pretty even.

I am doing a basketweave stitch pattern for the body of the scarf. I handed Paul my first scarf which is a sampler scarf and told him to pick the pattern he liked. I find the basketweave is very simple. I am doing k4, p4 for 5 rows & then p4, k4 for 5. That way it seems to come out roughly square.

I think it should look good and I think he might wear it. Though again, I wanted to make a heavier scarf for him. As the other one I made for him is cotton. But he only wears it when it gets really cold. And for him, that is 20 below! *sigh* But the Bernat Cashmere is actually mostly acrylic. It is only 5% cashmere. So it won't really be any warmer. But honestly, that might be better for him as he might wear it more. *laugh*


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