Simple Knitting Tip: Update a Scarf

If you're like me, you've knit a few scarves over the years. OK, a LOT of scarves over the years. Scarves are fun to knit and fun to wear and I never seem to have enough of them in all the right colors (meaning...to go with every outfit).

Styles change, or at least they shift. Yesterday's long scarf that you tied in endless braids around your neck has given way to today's chunky cowl. While I am not what anyone would call trendy, I have found that sometimes I prefer certain styles over others.  The cowl is a great example.

The cowl never needs to be re-tied. It doesn't come untied. It just is. Some cowls are long enough to wrap twice, giving you exactly two options: Wear it wrapped once or twice. For those of us who are occasionally faced with bouts of indecisiveness, this is a relief.

So what if your closet more closely resembles the scarf trends of 5 years ago than those of the last 5 months? It might be time for you to update!

I had several very long scarves that I turned into infinity scarves (the cousin of cowls). Here are two examples:

It was easy to sew up the short ends of my drop stitch ribbon scarf, creating a continuous circle of up-to-date awesomeness.

The free pattern for this (in dishcloth form) can be found in my Ravelry store HERE.

My sideways skinny scarf with extra fringe took a little longer. First I removed all the fringe. This galled me a bit, because it was actual WORK to put all that fringe on in the first place! Still, it was do-able, so I did it.

This one is so long it wraps 3 times. Pattern for this one: coming soon!

The result? Two scarves that I had stopped wearing because I didn't like the way they had to be tied, became two infinity scarves that I now enjoy wearing.

Take a look at your handknits--if you're not wearing them during seasonally appropriate times, they might benefit from an easy update. The point is to make the most of your knitting! Just because you've bound off a project doesn't mean you can't "tweak" it afterward. Consider it all part of your Knitting Superpowers.