KIKA Scarf – turns out I can knit afterall!

Happy 2015, I’ve taught myself how to knit! Before Christmas I picked up one of the amazing KIKA Yarn Kits by Scheepjeswol and I decided that I loved the stripe and texture of the knit version so much that I would bite the bullet and finally learn to knit. Well, I could knit.  I knew how to knit and how to purl, but I had zero idea how to cast on or how to increase, or how to change colours for that matter!  So there was quite the learning curve. I went to my local craft store and picked up a set of circular needles and got to it.  The first thing I needed to learn was how to cast on.  My good friend Tammy insisted I visit the Very Pink website which is run by a friend of hers, and the woman is basically a knitting oracle. I learned the Long Tail Slingshot cast on method and I can’t believe that I was so daunted by casting on for so many years! The next step was learning how to increase.  I managed the first dozen or so rows before I had to start, but was absolutely clueless as to what needed to be done, so back to Very Pink I went to learn the Knit Front Back (KFB) method and I was off again! http://instagram.com/p/xB7VJtHWtn/?modal=true Before I knew it I was making excellent progress!  The scarf was growing and growing and growing, until now where I think I’m perhaps about half way. But, it hasn’t been a completely charmed process, let me tell you!  At first I was cutting the yarn at every colour change, and wondering what on earth I was going to do with all the ends, and then I realised that I was doing the stitches all wrong!  Instead of understanding that knit one purl one meant one ROW, I was doing that with the stitches!  And THEN, I was reading the pattern completely wrong, increasing every three rows instead of every six!  So I have ripped this scarf out about 5 times! See what I mean?  Dogs Breakfast right there! I also spent some time trying to teach myself the Continental style, which worked OK for the knit rows, but I find it just too difficult to get my tension right with the purl. And Continental makes my tension much too tight, so I’ve gone back to the style I learned years ago. I have to say, this is a GREAT beginner project.  Much more interesting than the simple rectangle scarves that I made as a kid and the colour change really keeps me interested.  Right now I’m desperate for the yellow to come back.  It’s also a great pick up and put down project.  I’m working on it in between about four crochet projects, and it’s perfect for long commutes.  And I’m almost good enough to be able to watch tv while I work! Tell me, have you started knitting one of these amazing scarves yet?  I’d love to see it!  Link me your Ravelry project, or your Instagram or your FB or even add a photo to the comments!