Ocean Currents
Ocean Currents is a scarf (which can easily be modified into a cowl) constructed to strike a balance between interesting design elements and being unostentatious enough to wear comfortably for even the most decoration-averse individual. While to the casual glance, it might appear to be a standard striped scarf, on closer inspection it incorporates syncopated colour sequences, alternating colour transitions and zig-zag stockinette contrasts. Double thickness, it promises warmth, particularly when coupled with soft, high quality yarns. This pattern is a quick and easy knit which can be customised in colour and length to suit a large variety of different tastes.
YARNS USEDIN THESE PHOTOS:
1 hank (221 yards/202m/50g) quince & co. tern - Beach Glass 417, 75% American wool/25% silk (Colour A) 1 hank (221 yards/202m/50g) quince & co. tern - Prout's Neck 420, 75% American wool/25% silk (Colour B) 1.3 skeins (234 yards/214 m/65g) Shepherd Baby Wool Merino 4ply - New Navy 2354,100% pure wool (Colour C) GAUGE: 28 stitches and 30 rows to 4 inches - blocked stockinette stich Section A: This pattern is written this way so that it can be made into a cowl if so desired. DIMENSIONS: Variable depending on personal preference. Scarf shown is 5.2 inches wide by 52 inches long. NEEDLES: 3.5 mm/US 4 (DPNs or long circular needles for magic loop)
TOOLS:
Some smooth scrap yarn of a similar weight, Crochet hook of similar size to needles for provisional cast on, Tapestry needle for weaving in ends.
INSTRUCTIONS-Section A
CO 72 stitches on DPNs or using magic loop with colour C, using a provisional cast-on. Join in the round. K all st for 3" (approximately 25 rounds) \* Do not cut yarn of colour C but leave it hanging on the inside. Attach colour A and K all st for 2 rounds using your favourite jogless stripe method. Use this method whenever you change colour in this pattern. Do not cut yarn of colour A. Pick up colour C and K all st for 2 rounds. Break yarn of C, leaving a 6" tail to weave in. Pick up A. "K 1 round with colour A Ktbl 1 round with colour A" Repeat these 2 rounds ("..") another 4 times or until the zig-zag stockinette measures 1.25” (approximately 11 rounds) Attach colour B. Do not cut yarn of colour A. lf you ended on a plain K round, Ktbl 1 round and then K 1 round. If you ended on a Ktbl round, then just K 2 rounds. (The theory behind this is that a Ktbl round actually twists the stitches currently on the needle rather than the stitches being made that round.) Pick up colour A but do not cut yarn of colour B. K 2 rounds with colour A and break the yarn, leaving a 6" tail to weave in. K with colour B for 6" (approximately 50 rounds with the yarns used above) Repeat between the \*\* for as many repeats as desired, cycling the colours in the same order A-B-C-A-B-C etc. Finish 3" into a 6" stripe of colour C.
INSTRUCTIONS-Section B
If you want to make a cowl, pick up the stitches of the provisional cast-on and prepare to graft with the active stitches. If you want to make a scarf, determine how much more (if any) you would like to add on to the ends of the scarf. In these pictures, I completed another 3" of colour C on both sides and did another zig-zag stripe on both ends. Once you are satisfied with the scarf or cowl, before grafting, weave in all the ends (if you did not do so along the way) and then graft both ends/together. Since the scarf is essentially a tube with both ends sealed off, you can leave small ends showing on the inside without worrying about them. This is particularly useful for the final tail of grafting which cannot be woven in on the inside because the inside is no longer accessible. Try to weave it in as innocuously on the outside as possible and then leave the tail hanging on the inside of the scarf. Block the finished product.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
Fingering weight yarn allows this double thickness scarf to be warm without being too bulky but use whatever weight yarn you feel like! The syncopated colour scheme arises from using 3 colours but 2 widths of stripe - the photos here display the scarf with 3 shades of blue but it will work brilliantly with other colour combinations too! The dimensions of the scarf are variable. Cast on more stitches or do more repeats of the pattern to give a different sized scarf.
Questions and comments: Email: thomaskhoo01@gmail.com Ravelry ID: ThommyK Copyright 2014 @ Thomas Khoo, all rights reserved.
