This Lacy Knit Kerchief Honors the New President of Iceland

I’ll admit to not knowing a lot about global politics and national elections in other countries, so I was happy to read the back story on this pattern, Hölluklútur by Maja Siska.

This little lacy kerchief was inspired by a candidate for president in Iceland, Halla Tómasdóttir, who wore a silk neck scarf during the first televised debate of the election season. She said she wore it because she felt a cold coming on, but whatever the reason, it became a bit of a symbol among her supporters, with others wearing them at campaign events and rallies. She ultimately won the election and is now the president, having been inaugurated on August 1.

This mesh lace scarf is an asymmetrical diamond, worked by increasing on one side and decreasing on the other. It’s finished with a crocheted picot edge, but you can use a different edging if you don’t know how to crochet.

It uses lace weight yarn, but if you wanted to make a more substantial scarf or shawl in the same style you could use heavier weight yarn. As it is, this is a quick and easy project that’s a good introduction to mesh lace knitting if you’ve never done it before.

It only uses about 130 yards, or 120 meters, of yarn, so this might be a good project for using a bit of leftover yarn from another project, or a small single skein you’re not sure what to do with.

The pattern was developed for South Iceland Wool Week and is available as a free download on Ravelry. The pattern is offered in English and Icelandic.

If you’re looking for more easy lace knitting patterns to try, check out this collection of easy lace scarves, or this one with easy lace knitting patterns including other projects aside from scarves.

[Photo: Maja Siska]

Fall will be here before we know it, and that means there are holidays coming right behind where we might be entertaining at home. It’s always fun to have a hand knit touch in your home for other people to see, and if you’re going to be in the kitchen all day you might as well have some nice knit dish cloths to use.

I love this little plaid hand towel from Darling Jadore. Use a little bit of leftover cotton yarn from another project for the plaid portion. It looks like the horizontal stripes are worked as you knit and the vertical stripes are done with duplicate stitch, making this a quick and easy project even newer knitters can make.

Combine garter stitch and an easy eyelet pattern worked sideways to make the Annette Dish Towel from Cluck Cluck Boots, which is meant to be reminiscent of flour sack towels. It calls for DK weight yarn and you can work it in one color or two (or even three!).

Add a little more texture with this set of kitchen towels from Whileberry Creative. They’re mostly worked in garter stitch with borders in easy knit/purl patterns, and you can work them in sport or worsted weight yarn.

Two of Wands Shop has another cute allover knit and purl pattern they call the Seersucker Textured Tea Towel. It’s an easy repeating pattern worked in worsted weight yarn, and there’s a chart in the pattern you can use, but don’t have to, if you want to practice knitting from a chart.

The Classic Cloth dish towel from Handmade Home by Connie is another one that can use a little leftover yarn in a contrasting color, or you could color block it our use stripes throughout the pattern. This one uses worsted weight yarn and another easy repeating knit purl stitch pattern.

If you like to hang your towel on the oven handle or elsewhere but it’s always falling off, try the Stay Put kitchen towel from Fancy Step Knits. This project is worked in garter stitch and includes a hole partway through so you can pull the towel through itself over a rod or handle. Stripes are optional but a nice addition.

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