A Celebration

Today I have something very special for you, my Valentines.

No, it isn't a scarf. Instead, I've changed the price of my crocheted Scrappy Bear to … free!

You should have just enough time to make one for a special someone on the 14th. It works up very quickly using small amounts of yarn.

Click here to download the instructions for "Scrappy Bear".

Redux

Today we're revisiting one of the most popular scarves published on this blog to date: "Purple Peacock" by Angela Boehm.

We're doing this for two reasons. First and foremost, I have surgery Wednesday at (Holy Hospitals Batman!) 6:30 a.m. So Tuesday night I went to bed too early to finish creating the pattern for the scheduled scarf.

The second reason is that so many of you loved the scarf and the photo tutorial for broomstick lace. Doesn't Angela have beautiful hands?

Enjoy.

Click here to download the "Purple Peacock" pattern and instructions by Angela Boehm.

Laissez les Bon Temps Roulez

Forget the beads … you won't be showing them anything but your skills when you strut with the crew wearing "Mardi Gras".

A little ditty, it only takes 130 yards to whip up this scarf.

Despite and snow, this afternoon I trekked around the neighborhood with a pile of scarves around my neck. It was time to shoot some scarves for patterns. You know, I must be getting quite the reputation for being weird because no one stares at me anymore.

Click here to download the instructions for "Mardi Gras".

Head's Up

What? You expected normal? That's just a setting on a dryer.

Over on Ravelry.com I have a group called Year of Scarves. One of the discussions invites people to tell me what kind of scarves they'd like to see, as well as yarn preferences and other details.

I got a request for a scarf with a hood. Tried that. Got bored.

The "Silly Scarf" hat fits most heads.

(And here's what I've learned making and selling hats at the Easton Farmers' Market: adult medium and child medium are the same size.)

The back of the hat has a short row so that there's a bit more warmth at the base of the head. And the ends are long enough to wrap around your neck.

Click here to download the "Silly Scarf" hat pattern and make your own.

Mulling It Over

I had no intention of including a felted crochet scarf in the 2014 collection. While many people do successfully created felted (fulled) crochet, I've been less than satisfied.

Throwing caution to the wind, and avoiding the label of being a crochet bigot (I actually crochet more than I knit), I'm including this scarf, "Felt Like Crochet".

And, for the record, it did felt quite nicely.

The felted piece did, however, sit on my cutting table for over a month as I puzzled over what I could do with it. The stitches are still slightly visible, which means there are tiny weak spots throughout the piece.

I wanted to take advantage of that. Only yesterday I finished a technical edit of a beaded jewelry book. And that got me thinking about beads … then jump rings (the round metal circles that you can open) … and so, here you go.

Click here to download the instructions for "Felt Like Crochet" and see how it's done.

Posts and Gates

You can thank Taff for today's scarf. That's her Ravelry.com name or Ravatar, as it's called over there.  In the Year of Scarves group, she has been pointing out every time I release a crocheted scarf. So here you go. Another one.

I've been crazy for front and back post double crochet stitches ever since Jane Snedden Peever introduced me to Aran crochet. In fact, it was her design submission to a book I was developing, Crocheted Sweaters, that caught my attention and led to two books entire filled with her work: Aran Crocheted Sweaters and More Aran Crocheted Sweaters. (I still have a couple of boxes of first edition Aran Sweaters if you're interested in one. Order from huxley90 at Amazon.com.)

Anyhow, "Gates" doesn't have cables, but it's an excellent way to get used to working front post double crochet and back post double crochet stitches. Because single crochet is worked in the center of many rows you'll really get a handle on the placement of the posts.

Click here to download the "Gates" pattern and learn how it's done.

Do the Wave

I wasn't planning to offer another crocheted chevron scarf so soon after "Zipping Along".

But, well, here it is.

Angela Boehm is so good at creating these—and coming up with fun color combos—that I couldn't resist.

Besides, the stitching is simple enough that you can work on it while watching the game this weekend.

Hmmmm….maybe "Odd Balls" worked up in team colors?

Click here to learn how it's done and download today's pattern.

Say What?

Angela Boehm, who has made a tremendous number of scarves for Chase the Chill, comes up with some really fun ones that I'll be sharing with you throughout the year.

Today's pattern shows two of them. They're the exactly the same, except for the colorways. She tricked me, because it took a bit of scrutiny to figure out that these scarves are based on the granny square technique.

That alone makes "Great Granny" and ideal project for beginning crocheters.

Click here to download the instructions for "Great Granny".

Winter Wonderland

Winter is a wonderful time, filled with snowmen and skiing and crisp, fresh air . . . none of which I enjoy. It's freakin' cold here in the northeast.

The only solution is to bundle up. You can laugh in the face of the chill with this scarf, "Snowballs".

It's a quick crochet project that's worked with a bulky chenille and a join-as-you-go process.

Warm Snowballs. What a concept.

Click here for the instructions for how to crochet "Snowballs".

Going Round and Round

It’s great when the piece you make is reversible. It’s even better when each side has a different, but just as appealing, look. You get two times the fashion statement with the effort of a making only one cowl. The effect of today’s pattern, "Swirls", does just that.

But those characteristics weren’t the launching point of the quest for a new design. I was playing with the two-color spiral crochet technique, applying it to hats I sell at the Easton Farmers’ Market. Like usual, this stitching led to a “what if” scenario that soon took on a life of its own. (By the way, this exploration pre-dates my I-cord obsession, which I mentioned last week. Coincidence? I think not.)

Click here to download the directions for "Swirls".

Enough About the Knitting

Last week was knitting, knitting, knitting. And a smidge of crochet. I didn't realize there wasn't a balance of the two techniques until the week was over. Odd, considering I'm more known in the crochet community.

To make amends, the "True Mobius" scarf is crocheted. And it's special because the way it's stitched adheres to the mobius principle. A mobius is more than a circle with a twist.

There are oodles of patterns that tell you to cast on—or chain—a number of stitches, give the length a twist, and then knit or crochet round and round. You’re building rows up from the starting point.

There are true mobius patterns, of course, but they aren't as common. And don't get me started on the patterns that are worked up in rows before seaming the ends together.

For a knit or crochet version, a real mobius starts in the center. It's twisted so that every round you work builds stitching on both sides of the center. This means every row has twice the circumference of the finished work.

"Ode to Hal" introduces the true crocheted mobius. I've included a photo tutorial for getting started, which is the challenging part of this project. The scarf is named for a friend, an engineer who is obsessed with sculpting interpretations of math shapes, equations, and concepts.

Click here to download the instructions and see how it's done.

Introducing Angela

I first met Angela Boehm when she joined Chase the Chill a few years ago. After learning about our need for scarves, she promptly bowled me over with her prolific knitting and crocheting. (Of course she does both.)

In any given year Angela creates hundreds—yes, hundreds—of scarves for the annual bombing and giveaway.

At one point, her quest for variety led to working her way through the patterns and stitches in reference books.

In addition to her generosity, I admire her willingness to try new things. Today's pattern, for example, evolved because Angela taught herself broomstick crochet, practiced, and then designed this scarf.

Angela has been learning about pattern testing, and is now dipping her toes into designing professionally.

Here's her "Purple Peacock" pattern.

Chicken and Egg

I learned to crochet before I knit. Luckily, though, my grandmother made sure I was introduced to both knitting and crocheting while I was still young enough to learn to enjoy both. So I can't say I have a preference for one or the other.

That's why you are getting free instructions for both crocheted scarves and knitted scarves. In fact, I've made both knit and crochet versions of quite a few stitch patterns. This knit pattern, "Dreamweaver", is a good example.

There's been a bit of a struggle, however, deciding the order that I'll release projects. Do I present the knitted version one day and the crocheted interpretation the next? Or put one out there and give the date that the other will be released? What do you think?

Click here for the "Dreamweaver" pattern instructions.

Light at the End of the Tunnel

Since January 1, I have become a clock watcher.

As the midnight hour speeds toward me like an out-of-control train, I continue preparing the next day's offering.

Since January 1, I’ve only had to stitch one scarf, "Diva’s Boa", as the rest were made well before the start of the year. The how-to photos, instructional clean up, layout, and upload are executed in the hours leading up to the release.

And so it is with the no-purl cowl. It's just shy of 8 p.m. as I finish the how-to photos for the wrap-and-turn tutorial.

Ever the optimist, I'm certain that I'll have a normal schedule because I have managed to shave off an hour or so each day.

And leaving you with that thought, here are the instructions to  today's aptly named scarf, "Zipping Along"...

A Boa Without the Novelty Yarn Price Tag

Dipping a toe in the water is for wimps. It's best to run off the end of the diving board at full speed. Without diving lessons. And so it was with today's scarf.

Browsing through an old version of The Harmony Guide to Crochet Stitches (yup, reading charts and symbols for pleasure) I encountered the astrakhan. It immediately became the featured stitch for a t-shirt yarn (tarn) large rug project had been percolating.

What I like about this long, loopy stitch is that it's more secure than the common loop stitch and makes it possible to stitch up a boa-like creation usually reserved for novelty yarns. It adds excitement to a plain yarn, stability to a weaker core, and loop volume to a lighter weight yarn.

Click here to download the instructions and learn how to make your own...

It’s All About the Sheep

The vision was a scarf that used both knit and crochet in a meaningful way.  Having recently completed several morning glory vine-like scarves, I wanted this new project to represent an ivy-covered trellis. But it was not to be.

The trellis yarn needed the strength to hold its shape when saddled with the weight of the vine, and enough grip to prevent the woven vine from slipping around. But Briggs & Little Heritage looked so pretty that I pitched out the ivy concept. Maybe for another scarf.

I've always loved this strong, warm B&L yarn that's spun from the sturdy creatures residing on Canada's east coast.

Click here for the instructions for today's offering.

Welcome!

Soooo…this blog's title makes it pretty clear what I'm going to talk about. Really, what more is there to say?

Quite a bit, actually, because I don't think I know a single designer who just whips out, well, anything, without brainstorming, swatching…and usually a lot of frogging.

So here's what I'm doing. And what you're getting.

Every day this year I'm giving you free instructions for a scarf. Every. Day. Knit, crochet, or a combination of both. Here, I'm going to talk about the creative process for that day's featured work. There will be a photo. And a link over to Ravelry.com to download your instructional pdf.

But act fast if you like something because the next day those instructions won't be free. Inexpensive, but not free. You can also buy an entire week or month of instructions for less than getting each one individually.

Wait 'til you see what's in store for you...The fun begins on January 1. See you then!

All the best,
Susan Huxley