It's another language...

...those crochet terms. Ach! Every time I encounter them, I am flummoxed. If a knit pattern calls for some element of crochet beyond the basic chain stitch, I either try to fake it or simply find a way to ignore it. Neither is a good option, because really? A bit of crochet in the finishing of a garment can really make all the difference!

Thus it was with my Scarf on a Whim. The official pattern name is Ribbed Scarf with a Crochet Edging. So, yeah, you'd think I'd have been prepared for the crochet part, right? Uh huh. I finished knitting the scarf last night and attempted the crochet edge. It was so wrong. I was using the wrong size hook for one thing, and I was too tired to go downstairs and dig around for the correct one. So I ripped out the errant edging and called it a night. My final thought was, "Maybe it really doesn't need the crocheted edge! It looks nice with just the eyelets!"

This morning dawned with a hint of sun in the sky and I looked at the scarf again. Yes, it looked ok without the edging, but I was sure it would look much better with it. So I dug around for the right hook, sat down and tried again. This time, however, I was baffled by the terms...double crochet, triple crochet...eh? Seriously? My crochet is limited to chain stitches and granny squares, the latter I can do only because I have the process memorized but have no idea what the stitches are called.

Finally, after buggering this edging up a couple times, I did what I should have done from the get-go and dug out my crochet stitch dictionary. Aha! Pictures and explanation! What a novel idea! In no time, I had that edging done, and darned if it didn't finish the scarf off beautifully. LOL


It's a little on the short side, as I like my scarf lengths to be, but it is pretty...elegant, even. And I just love the Rowan Felted Tweed! I've wanted to make something from it for so long (in fact, I have a couple sweater lots of it stashed away). It really is a fabulous yarn.

So, another FO! That brings the WIP count down to EIGHT! And there are still a little more than two days left in January! You know what that means, right? It means I have time to try and finish one more project. I'm leaning towards the Socktoberfest socks...I think they'll go quickest, even though they are a cable pattern. The February Lady Sweater is my other possibility, but I've got so much bad karma knit into those freakin' sleeves already that I just don't want to tempt the knittig fates into messing up my finishing run here in the last leg. So...socks. I think that will be my final finishing goal this month. Then it will be February and I can cast on something new! LOL (I'm so sick, I know...but I make no apologies.)

Honestly, in order for me to ever get any good pictures of me modeling my own knitwear, I have GOT to get someone in this family to learn how to use my digital SLR! I tried to give the girlie a crash course today, and this exasperated expression on my face is the result of how that went. :::sigh::: Who knew it was so much to ask to have the entire knitted garment in the picture, as well as my whole head, and to have it in focus? Gah.