Diagonal Rib Infinity Scarf from Stitch(es) - Day 5

Before we begin, let's take a moment to recognize this is my 250th post.  Wow.  Who'd have thunk it??? I hope you've enjoyed the journey as much as I have!  We now return to the subject at hand:


Heading for the final curl...

I’m finally at the end of that l-o-n-g expanse of knit-5-purl-3.  The diagonal ribbing truly ads something special to the piece.  I can’t say until I’ve put it on, but I believe it will factor in how the scarf will drape around my neck.  I certainly know will feel soft and warm.  It’s been an eerily warm winter so far in Chicago...and I can’t help thinking payback is on the way.

Given my druthers, I’d suppose I’d opt to make it a bit wider.  I only received one skein of the Shibui Baby Alpaca, but it doesn’t seem to be enough to make it the full 7+ inches called for in the pattern.  I had to measure out the far end of the yarn.  I felt I needed to mark a “stopping point” to make sure I'd reserved enough yardage to do the five rows of stockinette.  I want that clever roll I need to match the beginning edge.  

It’s fine the way it is, but some part of me would prefer another three inches or so of width.  It feels like 10 inches to play with would be optimal.  It’s just a hunch--I haven’t gotten it around my neck yet.  And, let’s not forget that a wider scarf would mean three more inches of endless knit-5-purl-3 and I’m really done with that.

My original charm with this project still holds:  it’s a cute basic taken up a notch with some thoughtful pattern design.  Well worth a try--especially if the Chicago winter’s about to have its way.

Diagonal Rib Infinity Scarf from Stitch(es) - Day 2

Tell me how you really feel...

There are projects where texture really matters, and this is one of them.  Nothing can ruin your day like a scratchy scarf irritating your neck--even if it is one of the most beautiful things you’ve ever knitted.  I’m not at all above relegating even gorgeous projects to the limitations of a turtleneck (as in “not touching my bare neck again, sister!"), because beauty does have its costs.  Yet, there is a special place in my heart for those projects that FEEL as good as they LOOK--and not just to my fingertips.

Sue has matched the soft loft of this baby alpaca with just the right needle size to give a plush feeling that still allows for warmth.  That’s the sign of a quality designer in my book.  Anyone can knit a rectangle and call it a scarf--it’s a great designer that knows just why diagonal rib will give a lovely drape and why a size larger needle would be too open but a size smaller would stiffen things up.

And then there’s the color.  I’ve tried to help the camera catch the deep, botanic teal of this yarn, but I’m not having much luck.  Take my word for it--it’s lovely.  With just a hint of color variation to give a mysterious depth.

At first I thought I was going to need a marker to notate the beginning of each row, but when I realized I was just shifting each set of “purl 3”s over one stitch to form the diagonal line, It no longer mattered where I was in the loop.  Just the right amount of thinking here--no zone-out miles of garter or stockinette, but no brain-bending lace charts, either.

A really lovely project that I'm enjoying!

Diagonal Rib Infinity Scarf from Stitch(es) - Day 1

Infinitely refreshing!

After all that chart-peering lace, a nice gentle pattern like this one from Stitch(es) in Winnetka is a refreshing change.  Sure it takes a bit of concentration--and a chunk of time--to cast on 296 stitches, but that doesn’t sap the brain cells the way a lace chart can.

My favorite trick for casting on a whopping load of stitches like this is to place a marker every twenty-five stitches (they've been removed in this photo, sorry).  That way, after nine markers, I know I’ve only got 21 more to go.  Much less stressful than counting (and recounting and recounting if I know me) to nearly three hundred.

I’m especially fond of patterns that make good use of yarn’s natural properties.  Remember the pooling colors of our tie-die neck warmer?  The one that came with the side order of amnesia?  

It’s especially pleasing when patterns capitalize on things that normally bug me, like the curling nature of stockinette stitch.  The first five rows of this infinity scarf--or cowl, as I often call it--are just that stitch.  Placed where it is, I think the curl of those first five stockinette rows will add a nifty design element rather than an annoying tendency. 

I admit, however, that it’s a bit early to tell.  As such, it’s win-win:  if it curls, that’ll be a neat edge.  If it doesn’t, even better.  Well done, designer Sue Peterson!