Joe Loves Martha Scarf

Once upon a time, I was in a yarn store (hard to believe, I know) and I decided to buy some yarn for the Go Go Garter Scarf from SnB. But when I got home, I discovered that the pattern called for a super chunky yarn and what I bought was only chunky. I really wanted to make the Go Go Garter Scarf from super chunky, but what to do with the chunky yarn?

Like most middleaged geeks, I looked for an answer on the Internet. When I found a likely pattern, I printed it out and got to work.



Now, many knitting patterns tend to be rather terse if not downright vague and/or written in a secret code that only advanced knitters know. But this pattern was incredibly detailed, explaining every step of the way. Where did I get this pattern? Why, it's the "Basic Scarf" aka "Knitting 101" pattern from Martha Stewart. And then I knew this scarf was for my brother because Joe loves Martha.



The original pattern was all one color in a worsted weight yarn; mine has
color blocks in Lion Brand Wool-Ease Chunky. Despite the garter stitch border, the sides curled stubbornly. I tried blocking it by pinning and spritzing, but had to resort to a full soak to get the whole thing to lay flat.



And because everyone "borrows" Joe's stuff, I added his name, using the letter templates from here. This was my first attempt at monogramming. Originally, I tried knitting in two colors, but abandoned that in favor of stitching the letters after the fact. Still, it took me over two hours (and we won't look at the back). No wonder I put off finishing projects. At least, this one will get into the mail before spring.