Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Cabled goodness

On the agenda for today is the aforementioned cable scarf for my sister.  She really liked the scarf I made for Jake (so she said), but I was sad that it had a "right" side and a "wrong" side.  That is, it really only looks good on one side of the scarf, and the other side looks all not cabled and kind of lumpy, actually.  Also, I didn't really want to make the same scarf again.  I found a pattern for a reversible cable scarf on the Lion Brand website, solving my first problem.


My second problem, that I didn't want to make the same scarf again, was pushed aside by me telling myself that I wasn't really making the same scarf again, since I was cabling on both sides of the scarf, instead of just the right side.

Katie chose Lion Brand Vanna's Choice yarn in the colorway called "Fern," which has apparently been discontinued.  Yipe!  I'd better hang onto the leftover skeins I have.  She's a big fan of brighter colors, and disregarded the fact that it didn't match anything, since her former winter jacket was black with a red lining (which wasn't a bad match), but now she has a blue and grey jacket.  She has also recently acquired some blue and grey mittens knit by her loving sister, so it doesn't match those either.  I digress.

 

Vanna's Choice yarn is 100% acrylic, but it is very soft and luxurious, in my opinion.  It is easy care, and comes in loads of great colors!  It's also really great to work with when knitting.

I altered the pattern a bit, adding maybe 2.5 inches of ribbing to both ends rather than the seed stitch, and doing a border of knit 1, purl 1 ribbing rather than seed stitch there.  I should have done more purl stitches in the border to define the cables more, but there is always next time!  Also, something I wish I had known for Jake's scarf, I slipped the first stitch in every row, making a much neater edge that I was very happy with.  Jake's scarf looks a little ruffly, but I'm just pretending that that was what I was going for.  Here is Katie looking mostly happy with her new scarf...




A closeup of the cabling




And Pip obviously helping me knit the scarf.



Maybe someday, once I get over using exclamation points, I'll stop posting pictures of my cat too.  I do have another cat as well, but she hates having her picture taken, so I have yet to capture anything that relates to what I'm posting.  Here are a couple of links for you:

Reversible Cable Scarf pattern: http://www.lionbrand.com/patterns/50368.html?noImages=0
Classic Cables Scarf pattern: http://www.lionbrand.com/patterns/80755AD.html?noImages=
Just a reminder that you may have to create an account on the Lion Brand website to view these patterns.  In fact, I'm pretty sure you do.  Thanks for being here today, talk to you soon!

3 comments:

  1. Hello!
    That is a beautiful scarf and I love the color! While you're posting on cabling, I want to take your advice from the Lion Brand Blog and try a cable project! Do you know of a very beginner cable pattern?
    Thanks so much!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi!
    I'm glad you're going to try cables, they really are very easy and a lot of fun. I love watching the design come out while I'm knitting it, and telling myself, "I did that!" Very good for the self esteem. :)
    My first cabling project was the grey cable scarf mentioned in the post before this one. This scarf could also be a beginner project, but would be a little more involved since you would be cabling on both sides. One suggestion I would make is that if you're going to make either of these scarves, you print off the directions, and write out each row individually (if the pattern says row 4: repeat row 2, for example, write what you're going to do out for each row), and use some system to keep track of what row you're on. I have a magnetic board that I put the pattern on, and move a little bar magnet down the rows as I do them.
    I found a couple of patterns from Lion Brand that would be pretty good, and I was trying to put the links in this comment, but the computer isn't letting me.
    *Knit Cabled Wristlets: These would give you a good introduction to cabling, without making you want to throw the whole project in the fire if you don't like cabling. Also, this project is basically knitting a rectangle, and then you sew up the side, leaving a hole for the thumb. I want to make some of these for times when my hands are freezing, but I still want to knit!
    *Learn to Cable Scarf: This is a different cable, and I chose the other scarf I did simply because I preferred the look of that cable. This scarf is made out of bulky yarn, so it will go super quickly. Read the reviews on the pattern, because some people talk about how it curls in on the sides, and someone might discuss how to prevent that.
    Either of these patterns would be good for someone who is just starting, but any pattern with one kind of cable should be fine. Just type in the pattern name on Lion Brand. Whatever pattern you choose, I would definitely suggest keeping track of what row you're on. I don't know how to count rows between cables yet, so that's the only foolproof way I know how to keep track of when I need to cable again. Good luck cabling, and let me know how it turns out!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you so much!!!!!
    I'm not sure which I will try but I'm thinking the wristlets!
    THANK YOU! :-)

    ReplyDelete