Thursday, July 31, 2014

Glacier Bay Scarf

I designed the Glacier Bay Scarf for a family knit-along taking place during an Alaskan cruise.  With a combination of brand-new and seasoned knitters, the pattern needed to be super-easy, yet interesting, and provide fast visible progress.  This pattern  includes only knit, knit 2 together, and yarn over, and due to the open mesh sections knits up really quickly.  The design of the scarf is reminiscent of rippling waves interspersed with horizontal sea ice.


Glacier Bay Scarf
Materials:
Approx. 220 yards worsted weight yarn (or heavy worsted)
U.S. Size 10 straight or circular needles (or 10.5 if using heavy worsted)

Gauge is not important, though adjust needle size if resulting fabric is firmer or looser than you prefer (I like it pretty loose).

Abbreviations:
K - knit
K2tog - knit 2 together
YO - yarnover

Instructions:

Set up:
- Cast on 21 stitches using any cast-on technique you like (cast on 19 if using heavy worsted and larger needles).
- Knit 8 rows (hint - there will be 4 garter ridges on each side)

Begin slanted mesh section:
- Row 1 - *(K2tog, YO)* until 1 stitch remains, YO, K last stitch
- Row 2 - K across
Repeat rows 1-2 for a total of ten times, ending AFTER a row 2. (Hint - there will be 10 rows of holes that can be easily counted.)

Horizontal section:
Knit 7 rows
(until there are 4 ridges on each side).

That's it! Repeat these two sections until your scarf is long enough or you run short of yarn. Cast off at the end of a horizontal section.

If you are detail oriented, you can block the scarf, pinning to enhance the zigzag. Or not.

Happy knitting!