Scarf 63 & Scarf 64 Get Married

Last weekend I went to Vermont to celebrate the wedding of one of my dearest friends.  It was an absolutely gorgeous weekend of tranquil scenery and lovely new friends.  Here we are with the happy couple, standing in front of Sunset Lake, where the wedding was held.  (And yes, I admit, this photo does make us look like we're auditioning for roles as hobbits and giants.  Let's just say there's a little height difference.)  

These dear friends live in Boston, so naturally I wanted to make them scarves as a wedding gift.  She had been weaving when we got married and made us the loveliest throw pillows, so it was fun to weave her a wedding gift in return.

Knowing they liked deep, warm, earth colors, I started by yarn shopping at Gauge Knits and picked up some rust and eggplant and red and brown yarns.  I started with Scarf 63 for the groom and decided on stripes.  I alternated orange and red stripes with a thin line of dark teal running between them, and used a deep, dark brown as the weft yarn (the one that goes side to side) to tone everything down a bit.  

Here's Scarf 63 on the loom.  Below you can see it all woven up.

For the bride's scarf, I went for a lightweight ruffle.  Using the same red wool as Scarf 63 and a mohair/silk blend in the same rusty orange color, I added in a stripe of dark, eggplanty-purple.  Hers was woven in a thinner stripe, with alternating purple and red, with just a few lines of the orange mohair on the end for a frothy look.  I spaced the stripe yarns farther apart than usual so the scarf would have a gauzy openness and stay very lightweight.  I used the mohair as the weft (side to side) yarn, so that the whole thing is barely held together with these very thin, fuzzy threads.  

After  weaving it, I carefully pulled the threads along one side to create the ruffle.  The openness of the weave kept it from being too bulky, but the ruffle still provides the dimensionality that I like.  I hope she does too!

I know I'm a sap, but I love the Beatles' song When I'm 64 and am so pleased that this love scarf happened to be my 64th!  

Scarf 61: Another Adventure in Ruffling

Well, that didn't take long, did it? I suppose once I say I'm going to do something, it's easier to get around to doing it. Having a beautiful sunny day to take photographs didn't hurt either.

So now, at long last, I'd like to introduce you to Scarf 61. Do you remember when I mentioned buying a little bit of red yarn at Dallas' White Rock Weaving Center back in January? Well, here it is, all woven in! It was specially picked from among the hundreds of yarns by the friend who commissioned this scarf. The red yarn is a shiny cotton; the black is a soft and strong wool/alpaca/nylon blend , which was used in Scarf 59 and Scarf 23. Together they make a lightweight scarf with a subtle ruffle.

Scarf 61 is a custom order, so it's on reserve in my Etsy shop.

The Mystical Energies of Scarf 34

Remember Scarf 34? It was a custom design for a yoga student of mine who wanted an extra-wide, extra-long scarf with jewel tones against a dark background. He is very tall and has had difficulty in the past finding scarves that fit his frame. I found this yarn and took it from there, even buying a new accessory for my loom (a 5 dent heddle, for those of you who know what that means) to accommodate the extra chunky yarn.

I was so pleased with how it came out and was excited to introduce it to its new owner, but then he got sick and wasn't able to come to yoga class for several weeks. We emailed back and forth - him sending notice that he wouldn't be in class, me sending back photos of the finished scarf - until he was finally able to return to class this week.

This scarf had had quite the build-up and many weeks of anticipation to live up to, so I was thrilled when I took it out of the bag and saw its new owner's eyes go wide in delight. Success! He jauntily wrapped it around his neck and immediately two women standing nearby lunged towards him to feel it, saying "Wow!" He responded, "It works! I'm never taking it off!" And we all laughed and laughed.

Amidst the laughter and spin-off jokes, he continued to admire it and tell me how much he loved it. My heart grew three sizes! Making something that makes someone so happy is just not a gift we get every day. He even called it an "heirloom" as he walked out the door.

This morning he sent me the following message, with the subject "My Scarf Now Probably Wants to Be Named":

My scarf seems to be able to be glow in the dark; I suspect the presence of mystical energies.

Thank you again for creating it. I look forward to wearing it across the next several decades.

Does it make sense to you if I tell you I feel like I should be thanking him rather than the other way around?

Funnily enough, another very tall former-yoga-student of mine recently purchased a scarf and inquired whether or not it had magic powers. Perhaps I should just tell him yes.

Scarf 33: Experimenting with Infinity

I'd seen a lot of infinity scarves popping up on Etsy, so I thought I'd give it a go. Having never knitted or worn an infinity scarf I wasn't really sure what to expect. Scarf 33 was my brave trailblazer and I'm so pleased with the territory it has opened up for me.

Right after making it, I took it for a test drive out to coffee with a math teacher friend. I showed her how it worked and she exclaimed, "It's a Math Scarf!" This made me laugh, and I can't help think of this as my Math Scarf. It's true - it's a lovely example of a mobius strip - but that's not why I love it. It's just so cozy and soft and every time I put it on it looks different.