Friday, February 20, 2009

Res Completa: Scarf for My Sweetie

Back in December, I won the most amazing blog giveaway from Canary Knits: 6 balls of Rowan Tapestry (a delightful blend of wool and soybean fiber) and a gorgeous original-design sweater handknit from the same by Ms. Canary Knits herself*. It didn't take long for me to fall in love with the loveliness of the yarn with its neutral-but-not-at-all-boring browns and gradual self-stripiness. Then the week before Valentine's Day, I was playing around with stitches and fell in love again: with linen stitch. I started thinking about what would happen to a variegated or self-striping yarn done up in linen stitch, and that Rowan Tapestry practically flung itself at me from across the room. The result? A scarf that I loved every moment of knitting (linen stitch is so soothing!) and that ended up being gender-neutral enough for a man-knit. And because so much love went into knitting it, I thought it only fitting to give it to my own love for Valentine's Day.



Pattern: Improvised - I cast on 355 stitches and worked the scarf vertically in linen stitch. Finished measurements were ~8x45".
Yarn: Rowan Tapestry, a little more than 3 balls of color 170
Needles: US 8 circs
Start to Finish: February 5-12, 2008



Above you can see how the scarf looks on both sides: all smoothly textured on the knit side, and nubbly and cool on the purl side. The photos above were taken on a cloudy day so the colors did not come out true to life. The below photo is slightly more accurate.


(The most pleasant sick day I've had - knitting under a big blanket on the couch, watching Jane Austen-themed episodes of Masterpiece Theatre and kept company by a most cuddly companion).


*The lovely sweater by Canary Knits. I love it! Thank you again!!!

22 comments:

Ellen said...

Gorgeous scarf! I love the linen stitch, might have to try that soon.

Susan said...

That scarf did come out great! I remember reading Canary Knits' blog post that you won. Nice!

Anonymous said...

the scarf looks very luxurious! but holy cow hilary, 355 cast-on sts?!

Claudia Bugh said...

Fantastic scarf! It looks absolutely smashing on your's truly :)))

I'm so impressed with the sweater/contest you won. That fits you perfectly - you are a lucky duck (make that a swan instead)!

Hope you are feeling better now :)

Elena said...

Lovely scarf!

Thea said...

you're right - best giveaway ever. i love that scarf you made - and the sweater fits you perfectly (really, what are the chances??)

Anonymous said...

wow, the scarf is fabulous! The linen st is perfect with that yarn and colorway. The sweater looks great too.

Gudrun Johnston said...

Truly handsome scarf with lovely subtle tones...and what a perfect fir on the sweater...quite a score!

April Klich said...

Linen stitch just keeps growing on me every time I see it. I might have to start something with it soon.

The sweater looks wonderful too.

Aline said...

I love this scarf! well done.

Eliza said...

That is GORGEOUS. Your scarf is the perfect use for both linen stitch and that yarn. I am going to have to add that to the queue!

Teresa said...

Your scarf is really absolutely beautiful! I think I'm in love with the linen stitch now (and thanks for the linky too).

I'm so glad the sweater fits! Thanks for posting a pic - I'm happy it's found a perfect home :)

the Lady said...

Wow, lucky you! And what a beautiful scarf!

a friend to knit with said...

okay. that linen stitch looks awesome. i have never knit it......and in that yarn! so good.

and let me tell ya. could you look any better in that sweater??!! it was MADE for YOU!!!!

Jules said...

They're both beautiful! How ingenious to do it the long way to get nicer stripes. Cute cat, too, she goes very nicely with the scarf!

Jules said...

They're both beautiful! How ingenious to do it the long way to get nicer stripes. Cute cat, too, she goes very nicely with the scarf!

rhodespedal said...

What an amazing scarf!

Anonymous said...

That scarf is lovely. I've never done a linen stitch, but it looks like it could keep a scarf from being dull.

Lisa Stepi said...

Both projects are beautiful - now I want to try the Tapestry!

Philigry said...

i love that scarf. so beautiful, and very expensive looking. you look great in the sweater too!

Monique said...

I like this. A simple knit.

Mia said...

New as I am to Linen stitches I found your side, a lovely scarf you made, think of doing one for my husband. Thank you for showing :)