eye of the tiger

tiger eye scarf
Originally uploaded by bluepupae.

after 3-4 repeats, the knitting was quick and could be done while watching tv or chatting, but i had to be careful not to lose stitch count.

because i wanted the scarf to be symmetrical, i made the grafted version, with 13 repeats of the pattern on each side for a total of 26 repeats. in retrospect, it did not need to be as long, as it is ending up being 7' long post blocking, which is a long scarf for a 5' woman (my mom).

oh, and there was one mistake discovered while blocking... doh!...somehow i slightly shifted the pattern on one row, but didn't notice because it didn't affect the stitch count. hopefully, my mom won't or care.

the one thing that was annoying was the grafting. i did it twice, but the kitchener grafting did not appear invisible. i've used this technique on socks before, and it was great. i don't know if it was user error both times or the pattern that made it pucker up on the back side. i tried using a darning needle to loosen up, and it looks normal on sections of it. if i were to do it again, i might add a couple lines of stockinette at the ends where they join. finishing is becoming my least favorite part about knitting.

i really enjoyed this pattern and have decided i love lace knitting. probably has to do with my innate tendencies towards texture and pattern emerging from order.

rather than being a literal representation, the pattern requires some imagination to visualize the tiger eyes, which is nice. they also resemble peacock feathers. though i love fresh flowers, i'm not a flowery kind of person, so am reluctant about flower designs. i guess it all depends on the design. this one's for my mom, but i would wear one in grey or sky blue myself.