smariek knits: Cable Scarf Series

Showing posts with label Cable Scarf Series. Show all posts

Sunday, November 16, 2008

St. Albans Valentine Cable Scarf

Pattern: St. Albans Valentine Cable Scarf
Yarn: Elann Luxury Merino Superwash DK, Ruby Red
Needles: 5 mm, US8

More photos of the St. Albans Valentine Cable Scarf

St. Albans Valentine Cable Scarf Row-by-Row Instructions

St. Albans Valentine Cable Scarf Chart

St. Albans Valentine Cable Fingerless Mitts

Things move slowly Chez Smariek. I finally made the Row-by-Row Instructions available for this scarf. :-)

This is Scarf #15 in my Series of Cable Scarves. You can see most of my patterns in the sidebar on the right side, however the most comprehensive listing of "stuff" is in my Pattern Bibliography page. :-)

Instead of rewriting what I already wrote about this scarf, you can read more about it in my 13Nov2009 Post and in my 11Nov2009 Post.

My series of cable scarves...

Stitches used in this scarf include:
Oxox Cable, BW1 pg 255
Seed Stitch, BW1 pg 11
Valentine Cable, BW1 pg 253
Wave of Honey Stitch, BW1 pg 272

Yarn info:
Elann Luxury Merino Superwash
100% Machine Washable Fine Merino Wool
21-22 st/4 inches 3.75-4.0 mm (US 5-6)
112 m (122 yards) per 50g (1.75 oz) ball
$3.98 USD

Thursday, November 13, 2008

photographing red

Scroll down for more photos of my St. Albans Valentine Cable Scarf.

St. Albans Valentine Cable Scarf Chart download here
St. Albans Valentine Cable Scarf Row-by-Row Instructions here

I managed to take some photos of my latest cable scarf yesterday morning and was reminded of how much I hate photographing any red colored knitting. I have such a difficult time trying to get reds to show up well. The colors almost always gets screwed up or the camera can't quite focus. I tried to take a photo of the scarf on me. I don't think any of those shots came out well, regardless of whether I was pointing the camera at myself or pointing it towards my reflection in a mirror. I took some with the scarf against a black background, then decided to try a lighter white background. I think the scarf showed up better against the white. Out of about 50 photos, I only liked at most 15 photos. I went through these 15 and weeded out the ones I didn't like. It's somewhat like getting my eyes examined. Which looks better? A or B? 1 or 2? After a few, they all start to look the same!

Before I could get to the photos, I needed to punt some files off of my computer. This morning I discovered that I only had 300 MB free on my hard drive. Eeks! How did that happen? I've deleted some things (yay, 5 GB free now!) and am in the process of dumping files onto the external hard drive. How much data do you think I have?

Not much sleep happening Chez Smariek. I've been extra tired lately, waking up too early because Missy is waking up too early. She woke up at 4:15 AM on Tuesday, 5:30 AM yesterday, and 4:30 AM this morning. It's as though the one hour time change made no difference! 4:30 AM (current time) would have been 5:30 AM on the old time, so she is waking up even earlier than she used to.

Today Missy & I went to visit DH at work and have lunch. It's been quite a while since she last visited so everyone remarked on how much she has grown. Missy enjoyed fun kid food, thin crust pizza! I had a calzone. Unfortunately, since we didn't have one of our "normal" routine kind of days, it sorta screwed up my attempts at getting her to nap.

Thus I didn't get as much done in the afternoon as I had hoped to. Having started this post at 2:30 PM, then got side tracked with deleting files, backing up files, tweaking photos, raking leaves, cooking dinner, and then the whole get Missy to bed routine (which seems to get later and later as she gets older and older), I'm finally sitting down in front of the computer again with the intention of actually posting this TODAY.

This was my attempt to take a photo of the scarf around my neck. I think I made 20 attempts at this and only liked this one photo. And it is still not a very good one.

I wore my new scarf today. It might have been a little bit too warm for it. I didn't care. I wanted to wear it! I might not be able to wear it again for a little while. I hear there will be a mini heat wave coming. It's mid-November, what kind of heat wave can we there be? I think they meant high 70s. Not wool scarf weather.

Here's a close-up of the scarf.

As I mentioned in my previous post, I thought the XO cables would pair up well with the heart shaped center panel. After wearing the scarf today, and admiring it from various "mirror" surfaces, I am definitely happy with how this scarf came out. I still think this would make a nice valentine scarf.

And another close-up of the scarf. :-)

So remember when I said (above) that I thought the scarf looked better against the lighter background than the darker background? Well, now that I'm looking at the two side-by-side, I think the darker background works better. What do you think? It might be better to click on each to see a larger photo.

I guess what I disliked most about the dark background photos is how the scarf ended up in an unnatural red color.

BTW, Georgi is having a contest on her blog, go check it out.

I am tired now. It's time for bed. I'll try to put together the Row-by-Row Instructions for the scarf tomorrow. Hope Missy doesn't wake up before 6 AM tomorrow...

Copyright © Smariek Knits 2005-2008. All full copyright rights are reserved by Smariek Knits

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Tuesday, November 11, 2008

blocking

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Happy Veteran's Day!

St. Albans Valentine Cable Scarf
Click here to download St. Albans Scarf Chart

Click here to see more photos of scarf
Click here for St. Albans Scarf Row-by-Row Instructions

Note: Chart last updated 6 March 2009 to correct typos in definitions for BC and FC.

Here is my latest scarf, the St. Albans Valentine Cable Scarf. This is Scarf #15 in my series of cable scarves. I've decided that this will be my winter scarf this year. I used my favorite yarn, Elann Luxury Merino Superwash, in ruby red color. The scarf is knit in two halves and grafted at the center so that the center cable panel will be right-side-up when the ends hang down the front. It measures 72" x 7.5" (183 cm x 19 cm); 9" wide after blocking (23 cm).

I started with the heart-shaped valentine cable for my center cable panel, then decided that the best cable panel to pair up with this would be the XO cable. The other little mini-honeycomb panel was chosen so that the design would not compete with the other two cable panels. I think this would make a nice Valentine Scarf.

I was going to wait until tomorrow to block the scarf because I wanted to do it when Missy was not at home. As you can see, I changed my mind. :-) I hurriedly (read: sloppily) pinned out the center cable panel with my daughter "helping". I was nervous the whole time about her poking herself (or me!) with the quilting pins.

Oh, did you notice something strange about the way I blocked the scarf? Are the pins running down the inside of the scarf? You're not hallucinating. I didn't pin it out at the edges. I only wanted to block the center cable panel to make the heart motif "bloom" and show better. Is it too unorthodox to block only a small section? I did not want to block the other cable panels because I liked the way they looked unblocked.

The Chart is available for download now. Row-by-Row Instructions will be available for download soon.

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Copyright © Smariek Knits 2005-2008. All full copyright rights are reserved by Smariek Knits.
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Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Londinium Cable Scarf Pattern

Take my love, take my land
Take me where I cannot stand
I don't care, I'm still free
You can't take the sky from me
Take me out to the black
Tell them I ain't comin' back
Burn the land and boil the sea
You can't take the sky from me
There's no place I can be
Since I found Serenity
But you can't take the sky from me
- Firefly Theme Song

Pattern: Londinium Cable Scarf (scroll down for download)
Yarn: Elann Luxury Merino Superwash DK, Tapestry Blue, 5 balls
Needles: 5mm (US8)

I can't explain why color in recent photos have been way off. It should be darker like this:

The Londinium Scarf, Cable Scarf #14 in my series of cable scarves, is a variation on the Sihnon Cable Scarf, designed for the "equal opportunity" cable knitter since the cables cross to the left and to the right. More info about the cables can be found in “the evolution of a scarf” section of the Sihnon Scarf blog post. This might provide some insight on how the cables are crossed and might make it easier to work the cables without having to refer to the pattern.

Londinium Cable Scarf Pattern:
Londinium Scarf Pattern from Box.com (no registration required, just click on link & save file)

My series of cable scarves...

elann.com Peruvian Luxury Merino Superwash
100% Machine Washable Fine Merino Wool
21-22 st/4 inches 3.75-4.0 mm (US 5-6)
112 m (122 yards) per 50g (1.75 oz) ball
$3.98 USD per ball

Stitches used in the Londinium Cable Scarf include:
Garter Stitch, BW1 pg 10
Left Cross Chain, BW4 pg 213
Right Cross Chain, BW4 pg213

Copyright © Smariek Knits 2005-2008. All full copyright rights are reserved by Smariek Knits.
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Sunday, October 12, 2008

Sihnon Cable Scarf Pattern

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Just a quickie post for now because the whole house is sick. First DD, then me, then DH. I think it's a side effect of DD going to daycare and bringing home lots of goodies. She's been spewing cooties all week.

Il y a toujours du bon dans la folie humaine.
There is always some good in human craziness.
-Auguste Villiers de L'Isle-Adam, L'Ève future, livre I, 3

Copyright © Smariek Knits 2005-2008. All full copyright rights are reserved by Smariek Knits.

Pattern: Sihnon Cable Scarf (scroll down for download)
Yarn: Elann Luxury Merino Superwash DK, Merlot, 5 balls
Needles: 5mm (US8)

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Sihnon is cable scarf #13 in my series of cable scarves. I used my current favorite Elann yarn, Luxury Merino Superwash. Are you guys sick of me mentioning this particular yarn? Sorry, I can't help it. I love working with this yarn. Including this scarf, I have made 8 scarves using this yarn (the others were: Bernadette, 2 Regina, Winterbourne, Hera, Triumph and Ezra). I just hope Elann doesn't decide to discontinue the yarn!!

The color is called Merlot and it is a red wine color, although I could have sworn it had a rust red look to it at times while I was knitting with it. I think it had to do with the lighting. Anyhow, the scarf color is a bit "off" in these photos, it's actually more like the color in the photo of the balls of yarn.

I think the cables are interesting to look at. While they are crossing, there is a center section that weaves over and under. After finishing the scarf, I decided that I liked the way it look unblocked.

Elann Luxury Merino Superwash, Merlot color

THE EVOLUTION OF A SCARF

I thought you might be interested to see how I arrived at the final design for the scarf. It all started with the Chain Link Cables in BW4. There are actually 4 variations: Left Cross Chain (LCC), Right Cross Chain (RCC), Left Wave Chain (LWC), and Right Wave Chain (RWC). At cursory glance, the LWC and RWC look exactly the same as the as the LCC and RCC with the exception of an 8 row offset. It's true that the cable crossings appear at an 8 row offset, however the cables themselves are actually quite different. In the LCC, the front part of the cable always crosses to the left. Similarly with RCC where the front part of the cable always crosses to the right. The Wave Chain cable crosses differ in that the front part of the cable alternates between left crossing and right crossing, this results in the same 3 stitches passing over in front in all the cable crossings. I know this probably doesn't make much sense unless you actually see all four cables side-by-side, and even then the difference is so subtle that it is easily overlooked until you look more closely at the cable crossing instructions.

Despite requiring 2 cable needles, these four cable panels are really not that difficult once you grasp what is really going on. The cable is 9 stitch wide. The center 3 cables weave over or under. You have 3 stitches on the left and 3 stitches on the right. These 2 sets of 3-stitches will cross over each other in either a right crossing fashion or a left crossing fashion. So all you're really doing is combining these two things. You will either work a right cross or a left cross, and then you throw in the center 3-stitch section which goes over or under the cable crossing. Once you understand what is going on, then it becomes quite logical how you manoeuvre your 2 cable needles.

Barbara Walker refers to the various cable crossings as Chain Crossings A, B, C, and D. I find it easier to refer to them as LC-OVER (left cross over), LC-UNDER (left cross under), RC-OVER (right cross over), and RC-UNDER (left cross under). The LC and RC refers to how you orient the left 3 stitches and the right 3 stitches. The over and under refers to how the center 3 stitches will weave relative to the crossing cables. Once you understand which way things are going, you will automatically know what you need to do for the cable crosses in the next cable crossing row.

VERSION ONE:

I started out by choosing the LCC and RCC cables. Looking at the cables from left-to-right, they are: LCC, RCC, LCC, RCC. They are separated by a K1-B. I originally thought of doing P K P, but then changed it to P K1-B P after I cast on for this.

Version 1

It's hard to distinguish the cable crossing where the center 3 stitches pass over the cable crossing. In these two cables, LCC and RCC, the cables are left-crossing and right-crossing respectively. (In the photo below, the panel on the left is RCC and the panel on the right is LCC)

Version 1

After knitting over 80 rows, I looked at what I had so far and decided I did not like the K1-B between cables or the border design I chose.

The advantage of starting with this cable panel combination is that I became intimate friends with all 4 variations of doing the cable crossings: LC-OVER, LC-UNDER, RC-OVER, and RC-UNDER. It was great practice! ... or, I must admit, frustration at times...

VERSION TWO:

Version 2 is pretty much the same as Version 1. Can you spot the differences?

The only difference is that I used K instead of K1-B between the cable panels and I used a garter stitch border on the sides. I definitely prefer the knit stitch over the knit through back loop. One advantage to doing this is that it is much faster for me to knit & purl than to k1-b (on the RS) and p1-b (on the WS).

Version 2

VERSION THREE:

I changed cables for version 3, using only the LCC and using an offset in adjacent panels. I decided I didn't like how the center 3 stitch over and under sections lined up across rows in the previous two versions. I definitely liked the results of the offset cable panels. And the beauty of this combination of cables is that only two different cable crossings are used: LC-OVER and LC-UNDER. So this was definitely easier after having done versions 1 & 2! :-)

I guess I should explain why I chose the left-crossing cable. For whatever reason, I always find it easier to do left-crossing (or front-crossing) cables. This is why the cables in my 3AM Cable Hat are left-crossing.

Version 3

Remember what I mentioned above about the LCC and LWC? In this version, the cable crossings are always left crossing regardless of whether the center 3 stitches are weaving over or under. If one of these panels were LWC (instead of LCC), then those left & right 3 stitch sections would have been right crossing whenever the center 3 stitches are weaving over. It's a subtle difference though and I think most people wouldn't pick up on it.

Version 3, close up

For those of you who feel "uneven" by doing left-crossing cables only, then you may like my Londinium Scarf which may appeal to the "equal opportunity" cabler.

SCARF PATTERN DOWNLOAD

Sihnon Cable Scarf Pattern:
Sihnon Scarf Pattern from Box.com (no registration required, just click on link & save file)

My series of cable scarves...

elann.com Peruvian Luxury Merino Superwash
100% Machine Washable Fine Merino Wool
21-22 st/4 inches 3.75-4.0 mm (US 5-6)
112 m (122 yards) per 50g (1.75 oz) ball
$3.98 USD per ball

Stitches used in the Sihnon Cable Scarf include:
Garter Stitch, BW1 pg 10
Left Cross Chain, BW4 pg 213

Copyright © Smariek Knits 2005-2008. All full copyright rights are reserved by Smariek Knits.
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Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Regina Scarf for MIL

Regina Cable Scarf for MIL

Pattern: Regina Cable Scarf
Yarn: Elann Luxury Merino Superwash, Ruby Red
Needles: 5mm (US8)

I still find it very frustrating to take photographs of any of my red colored knitting. The camera has a difficult time focusing. And when the camera does manage to focus, the photo is always "off" somehow.

Hey, this scarf looks a lot like the pink scarf I made last December! No, I didn't throw it into a pot of dye. I just finished a second one in red. This one is knit with the same yarn, Elann Luxury Merino Superwash, one of my current favorite yarns. Can you tell from how often I've used this yarn? The color is Ruby Red, which is currently out of stock. This scarf is a bit longer than the pink one. I used about 5.5 balls of yarn to work 12 repeats of the pattern for each half.

I started this scarf in January 2008 after my MIL commented on the pink Regina Scarf I wore. It was the first time she really commented on any knitwear I wore to her house. She rarely takes notice of my knitting, so I took this as a sign that she might like having a Regina Scarf of her own. This scarf should have been completed by March or April at the latest. I had knit the first half, then it spent months languishing on our living room sofa where more alluring knits called to me whenever I had a few minutes to knit a little bit. So I thought entering this scarf as my Ravelympics WIPs Wrestling project would help give me that extra push to finish off the scarf. And I really did chip away at it during that 17 day window. Really! Unfortunately I couldn't finish it before the Ravelympics deadline. I like to think that I would have finished the scarf during the last few days of Ravelympics -- I only had ~32 rows left, plus grafting the two halves and weaving in ends -- if it weren't for Miss M coming down with a nasty fever of 104ºF (40ºC), among other not so fun things.

Miss M is still sick so I've been taking care of her, trying to convince her that rest & liquids are best. She missed day care on Monday and I think she misses her friend K there, amosg all the other fun activities in day care. I don't think it is a coincidence that she has come down with something shortly after starting day care this month. We took her to see Dr. L yesterday for some reassurances and I thought it was interesting hearing how we could alternate acetaminophen and ibuprofen every 3 hours.

The bobbles in this scarf are worked by doing a 5 stitch increase, turning the work, and purling 5 stitches. During a short section of the scarf I tried to teach myself to knit backwards so I wouldn't have to keep turning the scarf. It was awkward at first, then I got the hang of it and it became easier. However I didn't feel this was a great improvement since it took me such a long time to purl backwards. Then I reverted back to my old ways, of turning my scarf every time I worked a bobble. There is a nice little article on Knitty about knitting backwards if you want to learn how this nifty technique.

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Sunday, August 24, 2008

Hera Scarf Pattern

Pattern: Hera Cable Scarf (see below for pattern)
Yarn: Elann Luxury Merino Superwash DK, Irish Moss , 7 balls
Needles: 5mm (US8)

Row-by-row instructions are now available! Isn't it ridiculous how long it has taken me to put together row-by-row instructions for this scarf? I made the chart back in May, made the chart available for download in June, and now we're creeping up to September. At least I got it all done this year. :-)

I actually found it more difficult to type up row-by-row instructions for this after not having looked at the pattern for such a long time. That'll teach me to procrastinate!

I designed the scarf on paper on May 3rd. The scarf started out a little rough as I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do, 3 cables or 5 cables? As I was trying out the 5-cable version, I ran into a little snag and had to frog. (I have some links in my sidebar about fixing cable mistakes; I was just too lazy or didn't have enough wine to tackle my particular cable which was a mixture of 3-stitch & 4-stitch cable crossings of either all knit stitches or combination knit/purl stitches). It was just as well. I just couldn't get a good marriage between that sport weight yarn and the 5-cable pattern due to the scratchiness of the yarn. It was definitely not next-to-skin soft thus wouldn't do for a scarf. On May 13, Vicki told me she preferred the 3-cable version. Sometimes it's good to get other people's opinion during the design process. :-) So this ended up being a 3-cable scarf with my favorite DK weight yarn, Elann Luxury Merino Superwash. The color is Irish Moss, which is really lovely when seen in person. In the end, I do like how this scarf turned out. Both 3-cable & 5-cable versions are available for download in chart format.

In June, the pattern become one small square in Benne's blanket; there was a followup post about Benne's Blanket here which has a link to the finished blanket. You must see it! There are some incredible squares in her blanket.

Hera Cable Scarf Pattern in chart format has been available for quite some time, look here:
http://smariek.blogspot.com/2008/06/hera-scarf-sneak-peak-vest-progress.html

Hera Cable Scarf Pattern in row-by-row instructions format:
Triumph Scarf Pattern from Box.com (no registration required, just click on link & save file)

elann.com Peruvian Luxury Merino Superwash
100% Machine Washable Fine Merino Wool
21-22 st/4 inches 3.75-4.0 mm (US 5-6)
112 m (122 yards) per 50g (1.75 oz) ball
$3.98 USD per ball

Stitches used in the Hera Cable Scarf include:
Knit-Two Purl-Two Ribbing, BW1 pg 39
Loop The Loop, BW3 pg 119
Twin Waves, BW2 pg 189
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Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Triumph Cable Scarf Pattern

Triumph Cable Scarf

Pattern: Triumph Cable Scarf (see below for pattern)
Yarn: Elann Luxury Merino Superwash DK, Cafe au Lait
Needles: 5mm (US8)

Here it is! My Triumph Cable Scarf which I designed as my Cable Steeplechase and Scarf Stroke (Ravelympics event) project. I am so thrilled about being able to complete this scarf within the 17 day window. I just hope that watching the Summer Olympics wasn't a prerequisite for this because I did most of my knitting while catching up on other stuff I had Tivo'd. This is Cable Scarf #11 in my series of cable scarves.

I used about 4.5 balls of Elann Luxury Merino Superwash in the Cafe au Lait colorway. This yarn is soft soft soft for a "superwash" yarn, I think it is because of the Merino wool. The scarf measures 173 cm (68 inches). I hadn't yet decided whether I wanted to block the scarf, and didn't want the scarf to become overly long if I did eventually block it. I thought I would like the scarf more after a little blocking, so that the center cable panel can show itself better, however I later decided that I preferred the more "scrunched" up look. So no blocking for this scarf.

Note: Row-by-Row Pattern last updated 9/15/2008. Chart last updated 9/1/2008, corrected 2 squares on Row 1 of chart. Please download newer version(s) if you have a previous copy.

Triumph Cable Scarf Pattern in chart format has been available for quite some time, look here:
http://smariek.blogspot.com/2008/07/triumph-cable-scarf-chart.html

Triumph Cable Scarf Pattern in row-by-row instructions format:
Triumph Scarf Pattern from Box.com (no registration required, just click on link & save file)

elann.com Peruvian Luxury Merino Superwash
100% Machine Washable Fine Merino Wool
21-22 st/4 inches 3.75-4.0 mm (US 5-6)
112 m (122 yards) per 50g (1.75 oz) ball
$3.98 USD per ball

Stitches used in the Triumph Cable Scarf include:
Four-Stitch Cable Crossed Every Fourth Row, BW1 pg 241
Knit-Two Purl-Two Ribbing, BW1 pg 39
Six Rib Knot Cable, BW3 pg 76

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Saturday, July 05, 2008

Triumph Cable Scarf Chart

This is a followup to my original post about the Ravelympics and the swatch I made for it.

Last night I created the chart for the Triumph Scarf swatch you saw yesterday. It's rather amusing how this came about. It all started on Friday when I translated that center-cable chart into row-by-row instructions while adding in the extra cables/stitches on either side of it. I got all of this onto 2 sheets of paper, then transcribed them onto index cards (which I knit from). Then I translated what I had on my index cards into an Excel chart. I must say that as time consuming as this was, it was way easier than doing the chart for my Hera Scarf (btw, I still need to get off my lazy behind and type up the row-by-row for that one). I uploaded the chart to Box.net this morning, so y'all can take a lookie if interested.

I think the only reason I managed to get all of this together so quickly is because Miss M spent the night with her grandparents. It was a nice little change for us, DH & I, to go out to dinner. Nothing fancy, just The Fish Market Restaurant. I've never been disappointed with the fish there. I had sea bass, he had sablefish. It's actually a kid friendly restaurant. I've taken Miss M there for lunch and she loves it. I think having the basil tomato side dish and the flourless chocolate cake has something to do with it. It was a nice change to actually get to eat the tomatoes last night; Miss M usually eats them all.

Ok, I'm feeling good about this. I have my pattern. I have my yarn. I even set aside needles for this. I'm just waiting for August 8 to begin knitting. Hopefully I'll be able to finish by August 24 and have some photos to share with you. I think the Ravelympics is a fun way to motivate me to start and FINISH a knitting project.

Triumph Cable Scarf Chart can be downloaded here:
Triumph Cable Scarf Chart from Box.com (last updated Sept 1, 2008)

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I'm so bummed. My little laptop mouse is dying on me, it works intermittently. While rummaging through a box (yes, we still haven't unpacked from out move), I fished out an old Microsoft Explorer mouse. Plugged it in. It works! Yay! However this mouse drives me nuts!!! The wheel does not click. It's smooth scrolling and feels weird. And that's not all. It often does absolutely nothing when I scroll the wheel. So I end up having to scroll several times before my window actually scrolls up/down. And I find it difficult to scroll precisely. Very very annoying. I'm finding myself using the window scroll bar more than the mouse wheel. I definitely need to find another rodent...

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Saturday, June 14, 2008

Hera Scarf sneak peak & vest progress

Vest seamed at shoulders

I discovered two things as I seamed the shoulder sections of my mom's vest last night. The first was simply purblind. I should have left much longer tails when I bound off the vest sections so that I could use them for seaming the shoulders. The second was forgetting a fundamental property of 100% wool yarn -- that it can be spit spliced! Ok, can you see how these two slip ups can go hand in hand?

Vest seamed at shoulders

I started seaming the left front section first, using the tail from the outer edge and working inwards towards the neck. Unfortunately I only had enough tail to knit about halfway across. Since the other piece had a tail on the inner (neck) edge, I used that to seam from neck edge towards the outer edge. I had enough yarn on this second tail to reach the point where I left off with the first tail.

Left shoulder seam

Here's a close-up of the left shoulder seam. You can see where the two ends met in the middle. It seems quite noticeable to me. And I don't think I seamed properly. I need to learn how to seam. I had the pieces with wrong sides facing in when I did the seaming. I wonder if I was supposed to do it the other way around, with right sides facing in. It's entirely my fault, I should have looked up how to seam before I started.

Right shoulder seam

Here's a close-up of the right shoulder seam. I think it looks a bit neater than the left shoulder seam. This is because I seamed in one direction. I did not have enough yarn to seam the entire section, however a light bulb finally turned "on" and I realized that I could attach more yarn to this end by spit splicing it. Oh, should I mention that I had already cut an extra long piece of yarn to start seaming from the opposite end before this light bulb turned on? Yeah, that happened. So dim witted of me.

Even though I cut off a few plies before joining the two ends, I can definitely tell where the spit splicing occurred. You may be able to see it in the photo above.

In a previous post, I expressed concern about the vest being too short. My mom is petite like me. I decided to drape this over my shoulders to get a feel for how long it would be. The bottom edge reached to my belly button. Perhaps a tad too short. I still have hopes of blocking the vest later and stretching it longer just a wee bit.

In retrospect, I probably could have knit an extra repeat (4-rows) for each block. This would have made the vest longer by 16 additional rows. Oh well, too late now.

Hera Cable Scarf

Here's a sneak peak at my latest design, the Hera Cable Scarf. It is the same pattern I used for that secret project I mentioned before, which I can't blog about until next month. However you can see what it looks like in my Flickr photostream.

I designed this a while back and made 2 versions. One has 3 cable patterns, the other has 5 cable patterns. I prefer the 5 cable version, however I haven't yet been able to find an appropriate yarn to knit up this version. Vicki saw both designs and told me she preferred the 3 cable version.

Elann Luxury Merino Superwash DK yarn, Irish Moss color

I wanted the Hera Scarf knit in Elann Luxury Merino Superwash DK yarn. Unfortunately it didn't work out in the 5 cable version of this scarf, where it ended up being over 12 inches wide. I thought this was too wide for a scarf. So I used this yarn in the 3 cable version instead. The color is Irish Moss, a very pretty green that is better represented by the photo above of the 2 balls.

I am still trying to find an appropriate yarn for the 5 cable version. Elann Baby Cashmere is so soft (perfect for a scarf) but doesn't provide crisp stitch definition for cable patterns (something I learned when I knit the Osiris Cable Scarf). I thought I would try Elann Highland Sport. The stitch definition was better with Highland Sport, unfortunately I thought this yarn was too scratchy to wear around the neck. So I'm still trying to make a good marriage match between my Hera Scarf 5-cable version pattern and some nice next-to-skin-soft yarn in an appropriate fingerling weight or sport weight. Any suggestions?

I haven't had time lately to type up row-by-row instructions for my Hera Scarf, but I do intend to someday. However I did upload the charts last month to Box.net, where both 3-cable and 5-cable versions can be downloaded.

Hera Scarf Chart downloads:

Hera Scarf Chart - 3-panel version from Box.com
Hera Scarf Chart - 5-panel version from Box.com

The cable pattern is a bit "yarn thirsty", as most cable patterns are. But this one seemed especially thirsty compared to the other cable scarves I made.

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Today is World Wide Knit In Public Day. As I was driving down El Camino Real in Sunnyvale, CA, around 12:10 PM, I noticed a Purlescence sign in the "park" by Mathilda(? sorry, not exactly sure what the cross street is), and 3 people in chairs under a canopy covering. They didn't appear to be knitting though, perhaps the event hadn't officially started at that the time I was passing by.
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Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Shadow

Pattern: Shadow Scarf (see below)
Yarn: Elann Highland Wool, autumn peach, 5 balls
Needle: 4.5 mm (US7)
Blocked size: 8.5 in x 67 in (21.5 cm x 170 cm)

This is cable scarf #9 in my series of cable scarves, knit with about 4.5 balls of Elann Highland Wool in autumn peach color. It's not really my color, so the scarf is definitely not for me. This is not even a color I would normally gravitate towards when shopping for yarn. However I was compelled to choose this color because it got so very tiresome knitting in the same colors all the time, viz. the pinks, purples, blues, and greens. This was exactly the change my eyes needed.

At first I wasn't sure whether this pattern from HG5 would work out well for a scarf, but I was pleasantly surprised and pleased with it after knitting a few repeats of the pattern. It's a simple cable pattern that would work well as a "manly" scarf. And there aren't so many different types of cable crossings in this scarf to make it a daunting knitting project. If you don't like the cables twisting towards the left, you can make them twist towards the right by replacing CF6 with CB6.

Blocking the scarf will help prevent edge curl. I didn't block the scarf aggressively, it was 20.5 cm x 154 cm (8 in x 60.5 in) before blocking and 21.5 cm x 170 cm after blocking (8.5 in x 67 in).
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Shadow Scarf Pattern:
Shadow Scarf Pattern from Box.com (no registration required, just click on link & save file)

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Shadow Scarf:
http://smariek.blogspot.com/2008/04/shadow.html
Hera Scarf:
http://smariek.blogspot.com/2008/08/hera-scarf-pattern.html
Triumph Scarf:
http://smariek.blogspot.com/2008/08/triumph-cable-scarf-pattern.html
Ezra Scarf:
http://smariek.blogspot.com/2008/09/ezra-cable-scarf-pattern.html
Sihnon Scarf:
http://smariek.blogspot.com/2008/10/sihnon.html
Londinium Scarf:
http://smariek.blogspot.com/2008/10/londinium.html
St. Albans Valentine Cable Scarf:
http://smariek.blogspot.com/2008/11/scarf-15.html

Stitches used in this scarf include:
Pattern # 24.24, HG5 pg 62
Seed Stitch, BW1 pg 11

Elann Highland Wool yarn info:
100% Highland Wool
Machine Wash, Dry Flat
19 st / 4 inches, 4.0 - 4.5 mm (US6-7)
100 m (109 yards) per 50 gm (1.75 oz) ball
$2.38

Monday, April 14, 2008

Beaumonde

Pattern: Beaumonde Scarf (see below)
Yarn: Elann Highland Wool, Orchid Pink, 4 balls
Needles: 4.5 mm (US7)
Unblocked size: around 6 inches x 55 inches

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This is Cable Scarf #8 in my series of cable scarves. When I first saw this stitch pattern in the New Knitting Stitch Library, I knew I had to make a scarf using it. I thought it was a very interesting use of dropped purl stitches within the cables! This scarf is great for mindless knitting in front of the TV because you spend most of your time doing ribbing, and then you throw in a few 11-stitch cable crossings, Yarn Overs, P2Togs, and dropping stitches here and there to keep things from getting too monotonous. Yes, that's right, there is an 11-stitch cable crossing. I normally do my cable crossings without a cable needle, however I did use one for this scarf.

I started out with a 2 stitch seed stitch border on the sides. It wasn't until I was halfway through the scarf when I decided it would have been better with a 1-stitch border. However by that time I was too lazy to frog the whole thing and start over for just this minor detail. It took me much longer than I expected to finish this scarf since I had to put it aside for some time to give my hands a rest (due to pain and numbness from knitting and typing).

Close-up of Beaumonde Scarf.

Photos show scarf unblocked. I liked the look of it unblocked, so I decided not to block fearing that the cables would come out flatter than I like. There's a sort of swirling in the pattern that somewhat makes me think of cinnamon rolls, even though they're not spirals like those rolls. Maybe I think of that because I've got the munchies...

I used 4 balls of Highland Wool yarn, and I pretty much used all of it. This is how much yarn I had leftover when I was finished with the scarf:

Leftover yarn from project.

Although the original pattern has dropped stitches, you can also choose not to drop stitches. It's up to you to decide which you prefer. The photo below shows what it would look like if you do not drop stitches:

This is what it would look like if you choose the no dropped stitch version.

There's a subtle difference between the two and I like them both. BTW, that little hand you see in the photos is my 3 yr old who always tries to "help" when I'm taking photos.

A little tip when working the dropped stitch rows. You have to tease the stitch downwards to create the ladder. Don't worry, the dropped stitch will stop at the previous Yarn Over. It's easier to work the stitch downwards after you have finished knitting the row. You can also wait until you've knitted a few more rows before doing it. Or better yet, wait until you're completely done knitting the scarf and then tease down all those dropped stitches at one time. I'd suggest waiting at least a few rows before you do it cuz this will make it easier for you if you ever need to tink back.

Here are a few more photos of the scarf, and also my not very good attempt to take a photo of worn:

Beaumonde Scarf Pattern:
Beaumonde Scarf Pattern from Box.com (no registration required, just click on link & save file)
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Stitches used in this scarf include:
Pattern # 178, NKSL pg 115
Seed Stitch, BW1 pg 11

Elann Highland Wool yarn info:
100% Highland Wool
Machine Wash, Dry Flat
19 st / 4 inches, 4.0 - 4.5 mm (US6-7)
100 m (109 yards) per 50 gm (1.75 oz) ball
$2.38