Knit a Scarf with a Dragon’s Tail

The Dragon’s Tale scarf from Nim Teasdale is just so much fun I had to share it. It’s a crescent-shaped scarf with lace detailing along one side to look like scales, and the tips of the scarf are made to look like the dragon’s head and tail, respectively. Complete with safety eyes, though of course you could use buttons or even just embroider French knots or x shapes if you’d rather.

The head is shaped with cables, and both the cables and the lace are charted, but the full pattern is also written out if you prefer to work that way. There’s just one increase and one decrease in each row of the border, so it’s a pretty simple introduction to lace knitting if you haven’t tried it before. The edge also has an integrated I-cord border to give it more definition.

The head can be worked flat or in the round if you want to give it a little more realistic of a look.

And if you don’t want to use the head and tail at all, you can just make a pretty scarf with a wave and some dragon scales if you’d rather.

Both the width and the length of the pattern are adjustable, and it calls for DK weight yarn but you could also use worsted if you have some handy.

This pattern was originally released in 2014 and you can find the old pattern with 250 projects to show you what it looks like in all kinds of yarns on Ravelry. (There’s a really great rainbow version in there, for example.)

The new pattern has updated charts and is also available on Ravelry. There’s also a shawl version if you’d rather make it bigger and more reminiscent of dargon wings.

I do love the creativity of knitters and am glad this one was refreshed so it got on my radar this time around!

[Photo: Nim Teasdale]

Double knitting is a lot of fun to do, but if you’re new to the process it can be intimidating to start with a big project. That’s why I have a little set of double knit coasters on my website that takes you through the basics, but these double knit hot pads are also a great option when you’re learning double knitting or just looking for a small project.

My love of quilt themed projects is well documented, so you can imagine how I feel about the Folksy Hot Pads from Shelli Can (Ravelry). These quilt block inspired hot pads use DK weight yarn and there are two pattern options and three size options for you to choose from.

Nifty Knitter Designs has a ton of double knit potholder patterns, but I wanted to highlight this one with a maple leaf since we’re headed into fall where I live as I write this. This would be a great one to use on your Thanksgiving table or all through the season. It calls for worsted weight yarn.

Interestingly, a lot of the potholder knitting patterns I found have animals on them, which is fun. Indian Love by Sonja Neukomm features an elephant decorated with flowers and is available on Ravelry. this one calls for sport weight yarn and the pattern is in English and German. The pattern also includes a lotus flower design so you can knit both.

Cat’s all Folks by Susan U is a free pattern on Ravelry with a checkerboard cat design. This one is so cute and looks like a lot of fun to knit in sport weight yarn.

As knitters we love our sheep, and there’s also a sheep themed double knit potholder from AMHIYU. This design calls for worsted weight yarn and looks great in black and white, but you can use any colors you like.

Finally, there’s this lovely set of five double knit potholder patterns from Knitting Knicely. You’ll find a squirrel, rabbit, deer, bear catching a fish and a fox in this set. These call for super fine yarn which allows them to have more detail.

Ready to take on a bigger project? Check out more double knitting patterns.

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