I want to make some Christmas gifts and practice knitting on small projects.
Materials
- partial skein of yarn, Pagewood Farms similar to U-Knitted Nations Lana de Nube, est. 83 yds.
- US size 19 (15.0 mm) plastic needles, 14"
- a variation on print-to-PDF version of the free pattern
- a single large signature button
- a sewing needle and thread to match the button
Step 1: Match found yarns to vintage buttons
I have a stash of yarns I found in the art supply exchange and some were gifts.
I have a selection of vintage buttons from mom's and aunts' stashes; some were my great-grandmother's too.
I tried to pair a selection of both so I can make 7-8 different ones.
Step 2: Match yarns to patterns
I found a variety of free pidge
scarf patterns on Ravelry.com and matched the yarns and needles I have
to appropriate patterns. I chose to start with a
Triangle Pidge Scarf (called a Wasabi Cowl for the color, maybe) as it uses a fairly
simple set of stitches. I used keyrings without fobs for stitch markers and this worked fairly well.
Step 3: Follow the pattern instructions
I relied on a number of YouTube videos to do
M1R (Make 1 Right) increase and
M1L (Make 1 Left) increase. I used keyrings without fobs for stitch markers and this worked fairly well.
Step 4: Evaluate the progress
I chose that pattern because the pictured yarn seemed most similar to
mine, and I had that size needles. I decided this art yarn was too variable in width for this stitch, so I frogged the project.
Step 5: Start a new project
I searched Ravelry for scarves with similar yarn and I even tried googling "best knit stitches for handspun art yarn" to no avail. I had been working on a
Half-Linen Stitch Pidge Scarf and was liking the results, so I decided to try the stitch with this yarn. I cast on 13 stitches as that seemed like a good width for a warm winter cowl, and knit two rows of Garter Stitch as I'd thought the four rows in the pattern were too broad. I only did one knit edge stitch on each end of each row, and later discovered that with the odd number of stitches, this is actually called a Pigeon Eye Stitch, if I'm understanding it correctly.
Step 6: Evaluate the length
I've been testing the length as I go along by wrapping it around my own neck and trying to envision it with the buttons in use, hoping that the recipient has a similar neck size.
Step 7: Add buttonholes, if necessary
This particular yarn and stitch have large enough holes I don't need to specifically include a buttonhole for the button I chose -- I don't want it to be too loose when fastened!
Step 8: Cast off
I used the __________ cast off (include link).
Step 9: Add buttons
I played with the fit and the lie of the scarf around my own neck to determine where I thought the button would look and work best, and then sewed it on using doubled matching embroidery floss and an embroidery needle.
Step 10: Block
I used the __________ blocking method (include link). I had some cardboard and some extra contact paper I put on it so hopefully the scarf would dry faster rather than making the cardboard wet.
Results
I like the look, but I'm waiting for it to finish drying before I can confirm.
WORK IN PROGRESS