Neon Scarf

For me, this is a bit of a long-run pattern: In the beginning of the Corona pandemic I bought some neon coloured sock yarn in an attempt to do something out of my (color) comfort zone. At the time I didn't know what to do with it, it was just something vaguely adventurous to me. So I started to knit a big shawl without a clear final idea. I tried, ripped back, (re-)calculated row/stitch numbers, tried again etc. In the end five parts of this (10 part) piece were knitted twice, before I was happy and the it was finished in April 2023. And then it took a little while to make sense of my notes, to write it down as a pattern and ask a friend to knit one of these.

The result is a colourful shawl, in bold neon colours that are reminiscend of the 1980s. It is also a lovely mixture of colours, textures and knitting directions, i.e. a bit of a challenging knit and NOT a beginner pattern.

The knitting pattern (PDF) for this shawl is available via

• Ravelry
• Payhip
• Loveknitting (soon)

You can get a 25% introduction discount with coupon code "NEON". Discount ends March 7, 2025.

The pattern PDF is 25 pages long contains

• written row-by-row instructions – 15 in-process photos (9 of which showing how to do the outside zigzag-edge)
• a description of the general construction
• charts of three parts of the shawl
• short photo tutorials of the following techniques – needed to knit this shawl
• pick up and knit stitches from the edge of your knitting
• pick up and purl stitches from the edge of your knitting
• short rows with wrap and turn – and picking up the wraps
• knitted cast on

To knit this shawl you need the following materials:

• a total of 2065 metres fingering weight sock yarn in four colours (I used Zwerger Opal Uni Solid, colorways Black, Neon Pink, Neon Green and Neon Orange)
• 790 metres of the main or background colour (MC, black in the title picture), i.e. 185 grams of fingering weight super wash
• 510 metres of the first contrast colour (CC1, pink in the title picture), i.e. 120 gram of fingering weight super wash
• 340 metres of the second contrast colour (CC2, green  in the title picture), i.e. 80 grams of fingering weight super wash
• 425 metres of the third contrast colour (CC3, orange  in the title picture), i.e. 100 grams of fingering weight super wash
• 3mm circular knitting needle – as long as you possess (since the last row is about 2 metres long, your knitting will be scrunched up, anyway :)
• three short 3mm knitting needles, I used needles from a dpn set
• (optional) 3.25mm circular knitting needle to knit the last bind off and the I-cord edge – and to make it  a bit stretchier
• stitch markers might be useful as a counting aid when you want to make sure that you have a certain number of stitches – especially when there are more than 200 sts on your needles; as a thrifty solution you can use slip knots made from scrap yarn
• yarnstoppers to prevent stitches from falling off your needles while knitting the zigzag-edge (ordinary rubber bands will do nicely)

A version in more muted colours without the zigzag edge

Size and Gauge: In garter stitch 13 stitches gave 5 cm in width, and 13 ridges (26 rows) 5 cm in height – this was measured on a blocked piece. The finished piece measures about 200 cm in width (wingspan) and about 88 cm in depth.

Wrong Side view

Sinusoid Scarf

This scarf is constructed sideways from  tip to tip. It is knitted all in garter stitch and uses intarsia technique to create a wavy sinus curve edge with holes at the lower edge. Because of this construction, the length (wingspan) can easily be adapted.

The knitting pattern is available on

• Ravelry 
• Payhip
• Lovecrafts (soon)

The pattern PDF is 8 pages long and contains 

• written row-by-row instructions 
• pattern chart
• a short photo tutorial for intarsia knitting 
• a schematic and a short explanation of the construction

To knit this scarf you need the following materials

• Fingering weight yarn in two colors – I used a total about 600 metres (167 grams):
• about 120 metres (30 grams) of C1 (neon green in the pictures, I used madeline Tosh, Merino light, colorway Infrared Sky 455-O)
• about 480 metres (135 grams) of C2 (dark blue in the pictures, I used Wollmeise Pure 100% Merino Superwash )
• 3.25 knitting needles
• optional: removable stitch marker (to mark the beginning of one repeat), to make counting easier

Brioche Intersections Scarf

I love two-colour brioche - it is a gorgeous technique because it creates a lovely, squishy texture that is comfortable to wear. Plus, it can be used to create quite intricate patterns.

This pattern is for a beautiful wide scarf – and uses a stitch where two brk-columns cross to create a pattern of Xs.

The knitting pattern is available via

• Ravelry
• Loveknitting 
• Payhip

The pattern PDF is 16 pages long and contains

• row-by-row pattern instructions
• photo tutorials for the following brioche stitches
• brk2inc (two-stitch increase in brioche)
• brkLdec (left leaning two-stitch decrease in brioche) 
• brkRdec (right leaning two-stitch decrease in brioche) 
• brkX (combination of a two-stitch decrease and two-stitch increase in brioche - to create Xs)
• a schematic of the construction and the increase/decrease stitches

To knit a similar scarf you need the following materials

• a total of 310 grams of fingering weight yarn (i.e. about 155 grams of each color)– in two colours: I used two semi-solid yarns
• Wollmeise Pure (dark blue) 
• madelinetosh Tosh, Merino light, Frosty 470-O (very light mint)
• 3.25 mm knitting needles – straight with double points or circulars
• 2 stitch markers
• a tapestry needle for weaving in ends
  

The finished piece measures 155 cm in length and 42 cm in width (blocked).

As for gauge: in pattern 21 sts measured about 10 cm in width and 23 rows about 10 in height.

Herbstlaub

Two-colour brioche is a marvellous technique. It creates a lovely, squishy texture that is comforable to wear and it can be used to create quite intricate patterns – in case of this scarf irregular leaves, like the ones falling in autumn. (“Herbstlaub” is the german word for autumn leaves.)

The middle stripe effect is created by switching the dominant color in the middle of a row.

This knitting pattern is available via

• Ravelry 
• Payhip
• Loveknitting 

The pattern PDF is 14 pages long and contains

• row-by-row pattern instructions
• a schematic and a description of the pattern idea
• photo tutorials for the following brioche stitches
• brk4inc
• brkLdec
• brkRdec

In order to knit this pattern you should know how to knit two-colour brioche.

To knit a scarf like this you need the following materials:

• a total of 1000 metres of fingering weight yarn – in two colours; for two-color brioche I prefer (semi-)solid colors
  I used Wollmeise Pure Merino Superwash, two skeins (150grams each)
• 3.25 mm knitting needles – straight with double points or circulars
• 2 stitch markers
• a tapestry needle for weaving in ends

The finished piece measures 150 cm in length and 30 cm in width (unblocked) – and 160 cm in length and 35 in width (blocked). 

Firebird

Short rows and variegated yarn are a gorgeous combination because of the yarn is shown in the best possible way. This shawl consists of rhombuses that stack up to be triangles which in turn form a (slightly angular) semi-circle – or to be precise half of an octagon.

Even though this shawl is knitted all in garter stitch, it is NOT an instant gratification project because it requires some concentration. 

Knitted in Lace weight yarn the finished and blocked piece measures about 159 cm in width and about 78 cm in depth. Since it is knitted all in garter stitch, it basically looks the same on both sides.

The pattern PDF is available via

• Ravelry 
• Loveknitting 
• Payhip 

The pattern PDF is 15 pages long and contains

• written row-by-row instructions for knitting this piece
• schematic of the construction, i.e. how the rhombuses stack up to create the shawl
• chart(s) of one rhombus
• a cheat sheet that summarizes the pattern on one page
• short photo tutorials for the following techniques
• short rows with wrap and turn and picking up the wraps
• crochet CO (at the edge of a knitted piece)
• backwards loop CO

To knit this piece you will need the following materials

• about 1900 metres of Lace weight yarn – I used Wollmeise Lace (colorway Allegria) - here's a link to the yarn's Ravelry page
• 3.25mm knitting needles – I used circulars that were 80 cm long
• a crochet hook of a similar size (I used a 3.5mm hook)
• a tapestry needle – for grafting and to weave in ends
• 7 stitch markers
• (at least) 1 removable stitch marker to mark the RS of the piece

Traverse Brioche Scarf

Two-colour brioche is a marvellous technique. It creates a lovely, squishy texture that is comforable to wear and it can be used to create quite intricate geometric patterns. 

This rectangular scarf is knitted with a criss-cross pattern, i.e. a stitch that combines increases and decreases, combined with a zigzag effect that is created by switching the dominant colour within the row. Since it is done in two-colour brioche, both sides look great.

This scarf is made with Lace weight yarn, which provides a light summery touch. The one I knitted (half alpace, half merino) only weighs 170 grams; it measures 150 cm in length and 45 cm in width.

The pattern PDF is available via

• Ravelry 
• Loveknitting
• Payhip

The pattern PDF is 9 pages long and contains

• row-by-row pattern instructions
• photo tutorials for the techniques you need for this piece:
• brk4inc
• brk4dec 
• brk4dec4inc
• a schematic / cheat-sheet that explains the increases and decreases for this pattern

In order to knit this pattern you should be familiar with basic two-colour brioche knitting.

To knit a scarf like this you need the following materials

• a total of about 1100 metres of lace weight yarn – in two colours,
  I used two (semi-)solid yarns: 
• as LY I used light green Holst Garn, Titicaca (colorway “Wasabi”) 
• as DY I used royal blue Wollmeise Lace (colorway “Kornblume”) 
• 3 mm knitting needles – circulars or other needles with two points
• 2 stitch markers 
• a cable needle or a clippy stitch marker – for some of the brk4dec4inc and brk4dec stitches
• tapestry needle for weaving in ends

Crossings Shawl

I've always wanted to created a half-circle(-ish) shawl in brioche, but it took me a while to think of a pattern with the appropriate number of increases. 

In general,  Two-colour brioche is a marvellous technique. It creates a lovely, squishy texture that is comforable to wear and it can be used to create quite intricate geometric patterns. 

This shawl is started with only a few stitches at the top center and knitted (and increased) outward. That way the size is easily adaptable - and the pattern can also be used for a different yarn weight.

The pattern PDF is available on

• Ravelry
• Loveknitting 

The pattern PDF is 8 pages long and contains:

• row-by-row pattern instructions
• photo tutorials for the brioche increases and decreases you need for this piece:
• brk2inc – a brioche increase
• brkX – brioche stitch that creates the lattice effect

If you want to knit this pattern you should know how to knit flat two-colour brioche.

To knit this shawl you need the following materials: 

• a total of 360 grams (or 1550 metres) of fingering weight yarn – in two (semi-)solid colours:
  I used Zwerger Opal Uni Solid – in the following colourways  
• DY: 5192 dunkelbraun (dark brown) 
• LY: 9932 himmelblau (light blue)
• You can use a different yarn weight – the only thing that you have to adapt is the needle size (slightly bigger than the yarn calls for)
• 3.75 mm knitting needles – preferably long circulars 
• 4 stitch markers
• a tapestry needle for weaving in ends

This gave me a shawls that measures about 62 cm in depth  and about 170 cm in width (measured from tip to tip).

WS of Crossings Shawl

Tulpenzwiebeln Scarf

A while ago, I became quite obsessed with two-colour brioche – so obsessed that I even ventured far out of my colour comfort zone. This scarf is a fun and colorful two-colour brioche project – and once you get into the rhythm, the pattern is easy to remember.
You start with a few stitches and increase until the scarf has the width you like. That's why it can easily be used with other yarn weights as well.
As to the name, "Tulpenzwiebeln" is the German word for tulip bulbs.

The pattern PDF is available for purchase

• on Ravelry, 
• on Lovecrafts and
• on Payhip. 

It is 9 pages long and contains:

• row-by-row pattern instructions
• photo tutorial for the following brioche stitches: 
• brk2inc
• brk6inc
• working a brk6inc in the next row 
• brk6Ldec
• brk2Ldec (on top of a brk6Ldec) 
• a schematic of the construction and the increase/decrease stitches

To knit this pattern you need the following knitting skills:

• basic two-colour brioche

The following materials are necessary to knit this scarf:

• 150 to 200 grams of fingering weight yarn (in at least two colors) –  the pattern is written in a way, that you can use it for other yarn weights as well
• 3.25 mm knitting needles – straight with double points or circulars
• a tapestry needle for weaving in ends

The scarf I knitted is (blocked) 210 cm long and 19 to 21 cm wide. It is constructed in a way that you start with a few stitches only – and you gradually increase until your scarf is as wide as you want it to be.

A Different Kind of Openwork - E-Book

An interesting knitting pattern can consist of added features, but also of features that are missing. For the scarfs of this e-book, I took the second route. The scarfs feature square holes to decorate the knitted fabric. These holes are knitted without cutting your yarn, i.e. you get the effect without having to weave in a multitude of yarn ends. 

I've already published two knitting patterns using this technique (Negative Spaces Scarf  and Escalera Scarf) and have even held a class about it - using the patterns and additional materials explaining the general idea. So I thought it might be a interesting to create an e-book with all this material. And here it is.

This e-book is available for purchase on Ravelry here.

It is also available via Gumroad:
Buy my product

Once you get the hang of the technique, these scarfs make good TV-knitting - the main part of each is done in plain garter stitch. Besides garter stitch you need to know how to do a backwards loop CO and how to knit a k2togtbl.

This e-book includes

• a description of the technique to knit square holes without cutting yarn - together with a pattern for a small swatch with 6x6-sized holes and an explanation how to knit holes of a different size
• two patterns using this technique: 
• Negative Spaces Scarf - a plain rectangular scarf decorated with square holes at the edges and 
• Escalera Scarf - a triangular(-ish) scarf knitted sideways with steps and square holes at the lower edge

Bärentatzen Scarf

Ever since I knitted a brioche-lace combination for my Mum (see Luftbläschen Scarf) I wanted to do another project that incorporated both techniques.
So, here’s another scarf that combines the fluffiness of brioche with the elegance of lace - and because it’s brioche, it’s reversible. Once you get the hang of it, its fun to do - and I really like the result .

As to the name, the stitch pattern reminded me of certain piped chocolate biscuits that are tradional here, called Bärentatzen (which literally translates to bear claws, but American bear claws are a different bakery item). The photo at the end of this post shows Bärentatzen.

The pattern is available as a PDF

• on Ravelry, 
• on Loveknitting, 
• on Payhip and 
• on Gumroad.

It is 10 pages long and contains:

• the complete written patterns to knit this scarf
• a chart of the pattern repeats
• photo tutorials for the following stitches /stitch combinations
• brk4stdec: a double centred decrease in brioch
• brk2stLdec: a left-leaning decrease in brioche
• brk2stRdec: a right-leaning decrease in brioche
• sl1yo, yo, brk: i.e. a yarn-over between two stitches when knitting brioche
• kp1, i.e. knitting two stitches of the sl1yo, yo into the yarn-over of the row below
• yo, sl1yo, brk: also a yarn-over between two stitches in brioche, but in a different sequence to make the pattern look symmetrical on the other side
• pk1, i.e. knitting two stitches of the yo, sl1yo into the yarn-over of the row below

Skills you need to finish this scarf

• knitting brioche (in one color)
• a certain stamina while knitting - this is knitted in lace weight yarn and brioche, i.e. it grows extremely slow

Materials

• about 250 to 300 grams of Lace weight yarn (I used Wollmeise lace, colorway Hamam)
• 3.25 mm knitting needles
• 1 removable stitch marker (or a bobby pin) to do the 4st brioche decrease
• a tapestry needle to weave in ends

Luftbläschen Brioche and Lace Scarf

This year my Mum wanted a new scarf for her birthday. So I took her to the yarn store and asked her to select whatever yarn she wanted. She choose a beautiful purple wool/silk mix in Lace weight. I wanted to knit something with a bit of structure, but I soon found that the yarn didn't lend itself to this and was better suited to a lacy pattern. In the end I settled for a combination of brioche and lace stitches – and I am very pleased with it.

It results in an elegant and squishy scarf with a reversible lace pattern that looks the same from both sides.

As to the name, Luftbläschen is the German word for little air bubbles.

The pattern PDF is available via

• Ravelry and 
• Loveknitting
• Payhip and
• Gumroad.

This pattern pdf is 5 pages long and contains:

• the complete written patterns to knit this scarf
• photo tutorials for the stitches and stitch combinations that are used in this pattern 
• yarn over between brioche stitches and how to knit it
• a left-leaning decrease in brioche

Skills you need to knit this pattern:

• knitting brioche (in one color)
• a certain stamina while knitting - this is knitted in lace weight yarn and brioche, i.e. it grows extremely slow

To knit this you need the following materials 

• about 160 grams of Lace weight yarn (around 1300 meters) - for the piece in the pictures I used West Yorkshire Spinners Exquisite Lace (here's a link to the yarn's Ravelry page)
• 3mm knitting needles
• 4 stitch markers plus 1 removable stitch markers
• a tapestry needle to weave in ends

Escalera Scarf

Recently, I was invited to hold knitting workshops for the first time. I decided to have one on knitting square holes without cutting yarn – a technique I had used in my Negative Spaces Scarf. Since I had only one pattern with this technique, I wanted to design a second one in order to have something more to show and also to remind myself of how to do it.

This scarf is knitted sideways and all in garter stitch , but with square shaped holes. Once you've mastered how to do the square holes, this scarf is great TV or travel knitting.

The pattern is available for puchase 

• on Ravelry
• on Loveknitting and 
• on Payhip.

The pattern PDF contains:

• a photo tutorial on how to knit the square holes without cutting  yarn, 
• a schematic plus explanations of the scarf's construction
• row-by-row instructions to knit this scarf

Materials

• about 200 grams of fingering weight yarn – I used a Zauberball (Colorway Teezeremonie)
• two stitch markers – one of them removable
• 3.25 mm knitting needles
• a tapestry needle to weave in ends

The scarf I knitted measures 185 cm in length and 50 cm at its widest point. But the pattern is written in a way that you can adapt the size.

Necessary Knitting Skills

Besides plain garter stitch you need the following skills to knit this scarf

• backwards loop cast on
• bind off
• knitted cast on
• k2togtbl

Random Lace Tiles

A few years ago, I (see this blogpost) I thought it would be interesting to do lace stitches in a random manner. It turned out that it also looked gorgeous on a finished object (see Random Lace Scarf or Random Bubbles Scarf).
I was reminded of this idea when I was asked to give a workshop on random lace ... so I thought that I might as well do it again in order to get an idea back into my head :)
So here is a combination of random lace with simple garter stitch - i.e. a mix of two very different textures.

The important thing about random lace is ... it's random. That's why I don't give exact stitch sequences. So, this is not a standard knitting pattern with stitch-by-stitch and row-by-row instructions but rather an invitation to try out an idea for a (really) unique scarf.



This work by Knitting and so on is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.






What You Need

Materials

• about 220 gr of fingering weight yarn (I used Wollmeise Pure Merino Superwash - Colorway Ballerina) - my finished piece measures about 30 cm x 170 cm.
• 3.25 mm knitting needles (straights or circulars)
• three stitch markers - one of them removable
• a tapestry needle to weave in ends

You can use other yarn weights as well. I'd advise to use needles that are slightly to big for the yarn in order to get a loose texture.

Other Requirements

• The ability and the willingness to count your stitches over and over again … since there are not pattern repeats or anything that could help, it’s easy to lose track of where you are in the row. This is a concentration exercise, i.e. NOT something that I would take to my local knitting group. 
• The patience to knit a piece that will look extremely crumpled and not very attractive while you are knitting it. I will look so much better after blocking - see picture below. 

How to Knit Random Lace

It's best to use a yarn that blocks well, e.g. something that has a large percentage of wool. I used standard sock yarn and 3mm needles.

I decided to do only "knit stitches" on both sides of the piece - to go with the garter stitch of the other rectangles, i.e. I randomly did k2tog's, ssk's yo's and double-yo's.
(For ideas with a clear knit and purl side, see Random Lace Scarf or Random Bubbles Scarf).

The important thing is to make sure that the number of stitches stays the same after finishing one row, e.g. if you started off with 22 stitches, you need to finish each row with 22 stitches (loops) on your needles.

If you want a neater pattern, do one increase and corresponding decrease next to each other. For a more organic look, do a few increases and only then the necessary decreases. I would advise, however, not to do this too much, since then your piece will be askew.

For me it was easier to only count the increases and decreases, i.e. I added 1 to my count when I did an increase and subtracted 1 from my count when I did a decrease. So you should end the row with a count of 0.

I'd advise you, to knit a small swatch of random lace and block it, to get into the idea. You can use this swatch to decorate small things (like a phone sleeve or a pencil holder).

Instructions for this Scarf

CO 68
Row 0: k23, pm, k22, pm, k23
Rows 1- 44: sl1, k to marker, knit 22 sts of random lace (up to next marker), k to end
After a few rows, mark the side of your even numbered rows - just to make counting a bit easier. Without this marker, there is no way to distinguish between the two sides.
Rows 45 - 88: sl1, k22 sts of random lace (up to marker), k22, knit 23 sts of random lace
Repeat rows 1-88 five more times
Repeat rows 1-44 once more.
BO
Weave in ends.

Block it.