Scarf Workshops

"Once again, it's Christmastime. How can I be completely blindsided by a holiday that happens on the same day each year is absolutely beyond me. You'd swear they only announce the date for Christmas in November and I have maybe three weeks to cope with the news. Once again I am nowhere near ready....." from "Yarn Harlot, the secret life of a knitter" by Stephanie Pearl MacPhee.

Are you a little behind in your Christmas knitting? Maybe we can help. For the next three Saturdays we are offering FREE SCARF KNITTING WORKSHOPS for a few of our favourite quick knits.

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 3rd from 3pm - 4:30pm

SLIP STITCH DESIGNS

#1 cowl on Ravelry, HONEY COWL, can be knit either short or long. A simple slip stitch pattern creates an interesting waffley texture.The original design was knit in DK but the pattern offers advice on adjusting for various weights of yarn. The pattern is a FREE DOWNLOAD at

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/honey-cowl

Several versions of LINEN STITCH scarves can be found on Ravelry. One very large & colourful version is MINI-MANIA knit with bits of left over sock yarn.

A FREE DOWNLOAD for Mini-Mania can be found at

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/mini-mania-scarf

Mini-mania is a huge scarf knit with very fine yarn so it may not be your best choice for last minute Christmas knitting. Many people have knit smaller versions of linen stitch.

Linen Stitch knit with Misti Alpaca Hand Paint sock yarn.

Linen stitch in Misti Alpaca Pima Cotton & Silk

For a really quick project a Linen Stitch Cowl. Above is CHICKADEE COWL. Several knitters posted their finished cowls on Ravelry with their lovely pooches as models.

Chickadee Cowl is a FREE DOWNLOAD at

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/chickadee-cowl

A slight variation on linen stitch is TIME WARP shown below. Linen stitch slips single stitches, Time Warp slips multiples.

Time Warp is a FREE DOWNLOAD at

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/time-warp

All these patterns involve "slipped stitches" which is a very easy technique once you understand a few basic rules.Most of these designs can also be adjusted to use chunkier yarns which would make them an even quicker knit. We have store samples knit in linen stitch with Debbie Bliss Riva (chunky) and Woolly Bully (bulky) which knit up in 1 or 2 evenings.

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 10TH from 10:00AM - 11:30 AM

YARN OVER ELONGATED STITCHES

There are a number of interesting patterns which use elongated & dropped stitches.The simplest version is one such as DROP STITCH DRAMA SCARF shown below.

Close up of drop stitch detail.

This basic drop stitch pattern can be found as a FREE DOWNLOAD at

http://www.stitchscene.com/#/drop-stitch-drama-scarf/4549092286

A more interesting use of elongated stitches is one of my favourites I have been knitting for years. I call it my YARN OVER WAVE scarf. Grouping stitches of varying lengths produces little oval shaped pools which are a dramatic use for hand paint yarns. The little patches of special stitches allows the yarn to purposely colour pool creating fascinating and often dramatic designs.

Yarn Over Wave Scarf knit with Fleece Artist Sea Wool.

A very effective use of this stitch is knitting a scarf length wise with a Noro style yarn.

There are several patterns on Ravelry using this stitch. I have my own favourite available at the store.

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 17TH from 10:00am - 11:30 am

TRIANGLES

There are hundreds of Triangular shaped shawls and scarves on Ravelry. My favourites are the shallow skinny ones with long tapered ends and not to long at the point. One of my absolute favourites is ROLLERCOASTER.

Detail of ROLLERCOASTER.

One of the things I love about the structure of Rollercoaster is how it can be knit with any amount of yarn. You start with 2 stitches and gradually increase until the size you like or until you are almost out of yarn, and them cast off.

Rollercoaster is truly just a triangular scarf, not a shawl.

Rollercoaster is a FREE DOWNLOAD at

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/rollercoastertriangle

Rollercoaster with a little lace inserted shown above. FREE DOWNLOAD at

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/cablecoaster-peekaboo

SQUIGGLE, a variation on Rollercoaster with some dropped stitches inserted. FREE DOWNLOAD at

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/elefantenkringel

Another shallow triangle scarf I love is AZZUS shown below. The structure of Azzus is different from the Rollercoaster triangles; it also starts with a few stitches and increases in a top down direction. Rollercoaster is knit side to side. Both produce long skinny triangular shaped scarves. Azzus also can be knit to any size or until you run out of yarn.

With a little help understanding proper placement of increases and/or decreases, these scarves and their variations quickly become TV knitting and can be easily adjusted to any weight of yarn, even chunky if a really quick knit is needed

Azzus is a FREE DOWNLOAD at

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/azzus-shawl

I have a pattern for a lace and garter stitch variation knit in Misti Pima Cotton & Silk which has been very popular.

All these workshops are FREE.We do ask;

1. Please, only yarns purchased at Serenity Knits

2. Please give us a call at 905-710-3283 or drop us an e-mail at info@serenityknits.ca, subject scarf work shop dated ___. We would just like to have a general idea how many people to expect.

3. A few of the patterns are Free Store Patterns which we will be happy to provide. For patterns for which links have been provided, please download your own copies and bring them to the class.

Any questions, feel free to give us a call.

Beth