Christmas Knitting: C's Scarf

As I've mentioned before, most of my knitting is gift knitting.  Sometimes for swaps, sometimes for birthdays or baby showers, sometimes informal "just because" gifting.   And then there's the formal gifting of Christmas.  Last year I made C a hat, the Modern Rib Hat, to be precise.  It was made out of gold and black for the Hawkeyes as they are his favorite.

I thought about another hat, but wanted to do something different.  So this year, he was gifted a scarf.

C got a new coat this year.  A terrific navy pea coat.  I decided that the best thing for his new coat would be a lightweight scarf that could be dressy when needed, but casual enough it could be worn anytime.  Enter Cerus Scarf.  As I perused the patterns on Ravelry, I just wasn't finding anything I was happy with, there didn't seem to be a pattern that fit the needs of C.  I didn't want anything bulky or too heavy.  This quickly eliminated any ribbing action in the scarf, in my opinion.  I also didn't want it too long because he doesn't normally wear scarves and I didn't want it to be a hassle when worn.

I saw this pattern in the list, and after looking at several finished objects, I decided this was it.

If done properly, the stitch pattern gave the scarf a wonderful woven look that was simple and classic.  In addition, this scarf was a little different because the scarf was knit from one long end to the other.  I hoped this would make the knitting go faster.

(Please excuse the lighting, I took the pictures at night - there's really no substitute for great natural lighting!! - Pictures outside are more true in color.)

I also liked that I could use a variegated yarn without getting wonky pooling or funny patches of color.  I like variegated yarn, when used in the right places.  Again, the linen stitch did wonders for the colors.

After admiring a few Raveler's scarves, I chose Manos del Uruguay Silk Blend Multis in Adobe for this project.  The navy paired with the creams and grays seemed perfect when matching C's coat.

At this point, I would like to mention that I worked on this scarf for about a month.  The first 2 1/2 weeks were only on this scarf and nothing else.  I knew scarves could take a long time to knit.  Shoot, I still have my very first scarf on the needles, and although it's getting closer to the finish line, it's time consuming and a bit redundant.  So I was having a hard time knitting and knitting and knitting on this scarf.  Would I knit it again?  Absolutely!

I meant to wait and share this post after I'd taken pictures of the recipient wearing it, but I keep forgetting to get over to their house in good light.  Maybe tonight...  And once I do get pictures, I'll just have to write a 2nd time about this scarf! :)

One tip if any of you out there are interested in this gem....when binding off the edge, be sure to do so loosely.  I did mine a little too tight so the scarf doesn't lay completely straight, one edge has a natural curve to it.  The doesn't hinder the use any, but you know how we knitter's get...it's hard to look past things we'd like to change. :)

What did you knit for Christmas?