WIP Wed - Smokey Pearl Scarf

Not long after I started my Flutterby scarf, I found myself itching to cast on for something else. This seems to happen a lot when I'm working on one project at a time, so rather than fight it, I used it as an opportunity to de-stash and use yarn I'd already purchased.



Somehow or another, I ended up fixating on the Lace Ribbon Scarf from this spring's Knitty. The funny thing was, I decided it would be just perfect in Malabrigo lace. Haha! Yes, I decided to start another scarf from one skein of Malabrigo lace… so I have two going right now, one in a multi-colorway and one in a semi-solid. Grin. They're both for me. And I don't feel bad at all. I've had some issues as of late with family, inducing feelings of extreme exclusion; so I feel like it's time I stop pouting and start acting to change the way I feel. I can't change the people making me feel that way, after all… (even though I've tried. That's about as much as I feel comfortable sharing here.)

Anyhoo, if you can't tell yet (or are new here - Hello!) I LOVE MALABRIGO LACE*. It's just about the softest 100% wool I have ever laid hands on, (and I shop by sticking my hands on every sweater in a store,) it has great yardage per skein - 470yds! - and it's the perfect weight for a lace beginner. It's thin enough for lace projects, but it's thick enough that it's less frustrating for someone unfamiliar with really fine weight yarns. They dye it in so many colors, and you can also get un-dyed for those who dye their own (Kool-Aid is awesome for this, see my mini-skein experiment.)

Even though it's a 24 row repeat, I found this pattern very fast moving. (I have 13 repeats of the chart done!) I chose size 6 needles because I wanted 5's, but my other Malabrigo lace scarf is on them, so I went up one. I've always been on the tight side, tension wise, so I tend to go up in needle size regularly anyway. The repeat was also super easy to memorize. At first it looked like such a big chart, but it's really only 4 rows alternated in a certain sequence in those 24 rows.

I love the movement of this piece... normally I would've dismissed a zig-zag as "not my thing," but I'm so happy I didn't let that stop me. I seriously love this piece… the design is balanced but not boring, easy yet still somehow challenging and versatile. (Originally I wanted to add beads to this, but I wasn't sure I had enough, and wondered how well the thin one-ply of the lace would handle lots of beads sliding over it.)

*I've linked to Eat.Sleep.Knit for this yarn. There's plenty of places to buy it, but they ship fast (and they had the color I wanted - Molly. That's for another project! I'm currently crushing on Cuarenta. Hehehe.)