Infinity Scarf Pattern

Well I promised my friends in my Crochet with Us! Facebook Group that I would post the pattern recipe for the Infinity Scarf I'm making so without further ado, here it is:

I used Hand Maiden Mini Maiden in Stardust, which is a wool/silk light fingering yarn that I won’t gush about right now or you’ll be reading all day, with an “F” (3.75mm) hook, but you can use any yarn and appropriate hook that you want. When in doubt, check the yarn label for a hook recommendation but remember that’s just a guide line. Be a rebel! Go up or down a size just to see what happens. Or be really crazy and change by 2 sizes. Heh heh. Damn the man! He can’t tell us rebel hookers what to do!

Pattern is easily customizable. Just chain a multiple of 11 + 4. Want it longer? Just keep stitching. Want it shorter? STOP! J

This is a simple two row repeat pattern. The only tricky stitches are front post double crochet (fpdc) and back post double crochet (bpdc). If you’ve never used either stitch, this is an excellent pattern to learn them and get comfortable with them.

Here we go:

Chain 37

Row 1:  3dc in the 4^th ch from hook, *sk next 2ch, (dc in next chain, ch 1, skip next ch) twice, dc in next ch, sk next 2 ch, 3dc in the next ch,** 3dc in the next ch, rep from * across ending last rep at **, dc in last ch, turn

Row 2:  Ch3 (counts as dc), sk 1^st dc, *3dc in next dc, sk next 2dc, bpdc around post of next dc, ch 1, sk next ch-1 sp, dc in next dc, ch 1, bpdc around the post of next dc, sk next 2dc, 3dc in dc, rep from * across to turning ch, dc in 3^rd ch of turning ch, turn

Row 3:  Ch3(counts as dc), sk 1^st dc, *3dc in next dc, sk next 2dc, fpdc around the post of the next dc, ch 1, sk next ch 1 sp, dc in next dc, ch 1, fpdc around the post of the next dc, sk next 2dc, 3dc in next dc, rep from * across to turning ch, dc in 3^rd ch of turning ch, turn.

Repeat rows 2-3 for pattern.

Easy huh? When it’s as long as you want it, slip or whip stitch the ends together and voila! A simple, yet fancy looking infinity scarf.

Enjoy!

Tamsin Juby

BF Crochet Creations

PS: Share! Share the pattern, share your finished object, make the world a brighter place! But please, if someone asks where you got the pattern, tell them it was from me, or better still, send them here! (but you don't have to, I'm not pimping my blog or anything. ;) ) I like thinking of myself as a skinny Santa Claus gifting the world with probably the only talent I have. Thank you kindly.

PPS: Yes, the “thank you kindly” means I’m Canadian eh.

What to make, what to make, what to make

So I have got A LOT of chunky/bulky weight yarn in my stash. Beautiful, soft boucles in various colors, some thick acrylics and a few odds and ends. I've been searching like crazy for just the right patterns and frankly it's making me a little crazy because I can't find just the right pattern. I want a sweater type garment. Something with a little flare and definitely no turtle or high neck! My neck is only two inches long and anything high necked makes me look funny. So since I can't find what I want even though I'm not entirely sure what it is I'm looking for, I'm going to design my own.

First off. I want to use my bulky yarn. I can't call it chunky because that leads to my darling brother making jokes about alpaca soup as I found out the hard way. :) But since I don't want the sweater to be overly thick I'm going to use a big hook.  Probably M or bigger. With a half double crochet stitch that should make even bulky yarn lacy.

Second, I want an asymmetrical hem. So out comes the scrap paper. 

There. That's the hem I want. 

Now the bodice.... Hmmm.... Something not to heavy. Time to pull out my crochet bible. 

500 different stitch patterns. It's wonderful, isn't it?

So let's try something fairly open.... This one.

Third, make a swatch. This will tell me how many stitches and rows in a four by four swatch.

Now the fun part. Pull out my horribly colored dressmaker's mannequin and take some measurements.

With all this information I'm ready to start. I know right? All this work before I even start?! Custom design isn't easy.  Calculator, paper, pencil. Time to do some math.

Tune in next time to see how all this works out. I haven't a clue so it could be amusing. 

Designing for this dummy

So I thought I'd share my process for designing. It's not hard or complicated really.

First, I get ideas from random things. Pictures on the internet, something I see in the store or on the street, or maybe just some random thought. Last week I was obsessed with figuring out what motif I could use that would easily lend itself to many uses. Finally I settled on the triangle. You can put it together a million ways for a million designs. So I went cruising Pinterest to get some ideas.

www.pinterest.com/tamsin5/motifs/

Well now I really had some ideas. Next, I need to design my own triangle pattern. I might get inspiration from others but my work has to be my own. Crochet is the only thing I'm any good at so it's a point of pride with me. I could spend hours drawing, trying to put together the stitches and then crochet but I'm more a fly by the seat of my pants type. So I grabbed some yarn and started stitching.

So these are variations on the same theme, trying out how the stitches connect and the triangle grows. Once I have an idea how this is working I have to see how they look joined.

 

Okay so far so good. I have a plan. But since I have an idea what yarn I want my final product to be in, I grabbed some left over and started working in that. Big surprise, its Mini Maiden by Handmaiden Yarns. Its like my favoritest yarn ever. Seriously, I'd marry this yarn and have it's babies.

 

Looks a lot different huh? That's why it's important to do samples in the yarn you want to use. Sometimes a whole project can be ruined by using a fluffy yarn when a smooth yarn is called for. Or a variegated yarn when a solid color is needed. But I'm not displeased with the look so I press on.

So that looks kind of cool. Time to roll production. Ball up a skein of working yarn. Mini Maiden in Pinata.

Such a beautiful spring color! It just makes me smile to look at it. And using it is always a joy. The intensity of the color shocks the eyeballs and makes my heart sing. And the feel! Its soft and smooth and silky and wonderful. So now I'm working away with this yarn and we'll have to see what the end result is. I've been known to change patterns mid project so don't be surprised if all this designing was for nothing. 

Do you ever spend hours on a concept only to scrap it once you're into the thick of it?