Knit an Easy Scarf Using Helical Knitting

Last month I shared a collection of helical knitting patterns and mentioned that I was learning more about helical knitting this year and had been working on a scarf using the technique that wasn’t ready yet.

It took me a full six weeks to knit the six foot long (1.8 meter) scarf, but it was so satisfying I didn’t even mind it that much.

I decided that I wanted it to be a stash-busting project and that each section would be in rainbow color order, using various oddballs and changing yarn whenever needed within that color section.

For the “second” color I chose black, a skein of Big Twist that was one of the last things I bought at Joann. I like the contrast between the black and the other colors, and it’s nice to have one harmonious secondary color throughout, though of course you could use odd balls for both colors to make it even more scrappy.

I didn’t pay a ton of attention to yarn weight on this project, though most of it is worsted/medium weight. There’s a little bit of heavier yarn in there, too, and maybe a bit that’s a little lighter, too. This scarf can take all kinds.

And despite it taking kind of a long time to knit, it’s actually pretty fun and easy to do. It was good TV knitting, which you might not expect when first learning helical knitting, but as long as you put a stitch marker where you need to slip your stitches you don’t really need to pay attention otherwise.

You can find the pattern for the helical scarf on my website, as well as a tutorial for how I do helical knitting. If you try this technique I’d love to hear about how it goes for you! I really enjoyed it and expect more projects of this sort coming in the future.

I love the look of mesh tops for summer, but I don’t know that I would ever actually wear one that’s full of giant holes, even though I admit they look cool (in both senses of the word) on other people.

What I would wear, though, is something that’s still lacy but maybe a little bit more subdued, like this chevron lace knit top from Yarnspirations.

This easy to knit T-shirt style top is worked flat in two pieces from the bottom up, using and easy lace pattern that’s a repeat of 10 stitches and four rows (though the wrong side rows are just purled, so there’s only two rows you need to learn the pattern on).

It has little cap sleeves that are worked as part of the top by casting on stitches where you need them.

If you’re new to lace knitting this is a good one to try because the pattern includes both written and charted instructions, and the only skills you need are yarn over, knit two together, slip slip knit and slip 1 knit 2 together pass the slipped stitch over (which makes a centered decrease).

There are four size options available (which they claim is enough to cover XS to 5XL), with finished chest measurements ranging from 38.5 inches (that’s 98 cm) to 59 inches, or 150 cm. The amount of ease would vary widely depending on your size and the size garment you choose. For example the largest size is said to fit a chest measurement from 5258 inches/132-147.4 cm, which gives you a range of ease from 1-7 inches, or 2.5 to 17.78 cm, depending on your size. Just something to be aware of when you think about how you want it to fit.

The project calls for Red Heart Cotton Breeze yarn, which isn’t a yarn I’ve tried yet, but it’s a DK weight acrylic and cotton blend, which should make a lightweight top that’s great for summer.

Grab the free pattern from Yarnspirations.

[Photo: Yarnspirations]

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