The pick me up scarf

Here's a quickie little knit-update.

Way back when. I took a sad trip to the yarn store and was seduced by that gorgeous bright alpaca. When it made it's blog debut, it had been a few rows of the lace ribbon scarf, from Knitty. Well it turns out that that pattern isn't so great for following in a crowded airport, and by the time I got home, it was completely flubbed up. The poor yarn went through 3 more attempts to become scarves in the intervening months. I think one was from Knitting New Scarves, I have a vague recollection that one was My So Called Scarf, one was something I made up. Nothing was really making me completely happy, there was pooling, blah blah. Finally before the move last year, it too was completely frogged and the poor yarn was put back in the stash.

A month or so after the move, I was feeling the need for the bright colors again and I rewound the ball, so all that kinky yarn would be at the end and I sat down determined to make it work. Same needles, different pattern and voila:

It took most of a year, knitting a few rows here and there when I needed to feel a little cheery. Sometimes it came to knit night when there was nothing else easy enough to work while chatting and sometime last fall it was done, and pressed right into service. I call it the pick me up scarf. It is soft and bright and everything the yarn promised it would be.

If you have some yarn that needs to be something like this here's what to do:

Cast on 33 stitches.

Row 1: K3, K2, *yo, sl 1, k2tog, psso, yo, k1; rep from * to last four stitches, K1, slip 3 stitches purlwise wyif.

Row 2: K3, purl to last three stitches, slip 3 stitches purlwise wyif.

Row 3: K3, K2tog, yo, k1, *yo, sl 1, k2tog, psso, yo, k1; rep from * to last 6 stitches, yo, sl 1, psso, k1, slip 3 stitches purlwise wyif

Row 4: K3, purl to last three stitches, slip 3 stitches purlwise wyif.

Rep these 4 rows until you run out of yarn. Bind off, wet block and enjoy.

That's it, easy peasy.

Let me know if you make one, or have troubles with the pattern!

Striped AL

I'm interrupting the political commentary for a little while because I have something to share with you, that and I'm still plugging away on the reading so I don't have much new to report.

A new scarf for hubby out of some very yummy yarn. It's sort of a mash-up of a couple of techniques and not at all a new/original pattern, It's basically this (rav) pattern, but without the self striping yarn and three yarns instead of two and a six row repeat to get this particular striping pattern. If you want to do one exactly like me here's the deal. Yarn: 1 ball each of three colors Elsebeth Lavold Classic Al, I used black(A), foggy(B), and ecru (C)

Needles: 2 US size 10, 6.0mm double-pointed

Cast-on 23 stitches with color A.
Slide stitches to opposite side of needle
K1 P1 Across with color B.
Slide stitched to opposite side of needle
Work in pattern across with color C.
*Turn.
Work in pattern with color A
Slide
Work in pattern with color C
Slide
Work in pattern with color B
Turn
Work in pattern with color A
Slide
Work in pattern with color B
Slide
Work in pattern with color C
Repeat from *
BO with Color A when you run out of yarn.

ETA: to make the edges neat, be consistent with twisting the yarns. I always bring the new yarn up the back.