A most amazing scarf

This is the scarf that Emily made. Isn't it beautiful?!? She alternated 2 rows of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Worsted with 2 rows of Inca Alpaca some Jo Sharp yarn (I think), and the effect is breathtaking! I love the way the colors dance with each other for the length of the scarf. The different textures and weights of the two yarns make it even more appealing, both visually and tactilely. And it's so soft and warm! Thank you so much, Emma!

Emily's Odessa

Last night John and I exchanged holiday gifts with our dear friends Emily and Chris. They bestowed upon us a most amazing scarf. This is a scarf I had been admiring and petting while Emily was still working on it, before it had a designated recipient. How did she know it was just what I wanted? John and I have both worn it already (not at the same time) and it's around my neck as I type this. Pictures are forthcoming.

We gave Emily this Odessa hat:

I loved knitting this pattern! I didn't make any modifications. It took 121 beads and one skein of RYC CashSoft DK with just a few yards left over. Before I gave it to Emily, John agreed to model it for me:

After trying it on, John wants a hat that fits the same way, maybe even this same pattern but without the beads. I'd love to knit this again, so he'll probably get his wish!

I hope Emily enjoys wearing this hat as much as I enjoyed making it!

Emily's Odessa
Started: Dec. 15
Finished: Dec. 17
Pattern: Odessa by Grumperina
Yarn: RYC CashSoft DK, 1 skein
Needles: US 4 plastic circ, US 6 Addi Turbos, US 6 dpns

Irish hiking gifts

This Irish hiking scarf and matching wrist warmers are for my mother-in-law. The only modification I made to the Hello Yarn Irish hiking scarf pattern was to use "uneven cables" which I found in Barbara Walker's Treasury of Knitting Patterns. Instead of putting 3 stitches on a cable needle and knitting the next 3 before knitting the 3 from the cable needle, you put 2 stitches on the cable needle and knit the next 4. I like the way these cables turn out, and they're a bit easier to do. I went with a 6-row repeat, as opposed to the 8-row cables in the Hello Yarn pattern.

The finished scarf is about 60" long. The ends don't fan out much because I did the first cable row on row 3 (the Hello Yarn pattern has you do it at row 8). Likewise I ended the scarf 2 rows after the last cable row.


I improvised a matching wrist warmer pattern, after a botched attempt at modifying the wrist warmer pattern from Last Minute Knitted Gifts. The wrist warmers I made are 36 stitches around (3 repeats of the 12-stitch cable pattern). I started at the arm, and after 22 rounds began increasing for the thumb gusset. I increased 2 stitches every other round until there were 42 stitches. In round 35 I bound off 8 stitches at the thumb, and in round 36 I cast on 2 stitches to complete the circle. After another 10 rounds, I bound off.

1/15/07 EDITED TO ADD: I have posted the complete pattern.


Irish hiking scarf
Started: Nov. 1(?)
Finished: Nov. 30(?)
Pattern: From Hello Yarn
Yarn: Bernat Satin, Sterling, 3 skeins (used very little of the 3rd skein)
Needles: US 8 Addi Turbos

Irish hiking wrist warmers
Started: Dec. 1(?)
Finished: Dec. 9
Pattern: My own
Yarn: Bernat Satin, less than 1 skein
Needles: US 8 dpns