Turns out I am like that

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I like to think I’m largely immune to knitting fads. That when everybody is making something, that I make it or not, based on my own whims… not because I’m falling victim to some version of knitting peer pressure. I don’t like to think of myself as a sheep, someone who’s falling for a yarn because everybody else is, or liking a pattern because everyone else does. That means that sometimes I know I resist something just because everyone else likes it, which is really, really stupid, because when you think of it, not liking something because other people do is just as lame as liking something because other people do and isn’t really any more of a statement of my individuality. (Yes. I’m 40. Yes, I’m just getting that now. Yes – I’m sometimes as sharp as jello. Got it.)

That means that last year when the Noro striped scarf made the rounds, even though I really, really liked it – I didn’t knit it. Kate did. Norma did. Mary Tess did. Monika did. Trish did. Cheryl did. Teresa did. Brooklyn Tweed did, and that one was really hard to resist, because he could photograph a pile of dog doo and make it look like it was elegant and interesting. Alarming Female did. Mollie did. Maryse did. Carole did. Miriam did. Nelson did. Andi did. Sandy did. Kate did. Kay did. Kmkat did. Jackie did. Jessie did. Anny did. Courtney did. Cassie did. Everybody did… or at least it seemed that way to me. (Also – doesn’t the word “did” look funny to you now?)

I didn’t. I resisted. All I did was look at the Silk Garden Noro every time that I went into a yarn shop. Not for any reason though, because I’m not like that. Then I put it in my Ravelry queue. Not for any reason though. Just so I could sometimes look at it and think about it – and I did think about it. I would think about it, notice that there were 1841 knitters who had already knit it (that’s a real number- taken right from this scarf’s Ravelry link at 12:50 today) and then I wouldn’t want to anymore. I’d be over it, because I’m not like that. I’m not the type. No way. I’m an individual, and I knit to make unique things that nobody else has because that’s one of the points of knitting for me. It’s a way to get things that are unique and just mine and don’t exist anywhere else and seriously if I wanted something that was being mass produced I would just wander off to the store and buy a scarf – for less money even.

Then I noticed that every single one of those scarves – go click on those names – or flip through this Flikr group… I’ll wait here.

They are all different. All of them. There aren’t two the same. Even if two knitters used the same colourways they ended up different because the yarn came together another way. It’s a beautiful thing – and all those scarves are a beautiful thing. There isn’t an ugly one in the bunch, and I had another epiphany.

Sometimes something isn’t a fad because it’s neutral enough to have broad appeal to the masses. Sometimes – it’s because it’s really, really good.

Then someone mentioned they would like a scarf for Christmas.

Then they said they loved stripes.

Then – it was just a matter of choosing from among the bizillion combinations possible. (That took three hours and a half bottle of wine) and bingo.

Noroscarfstart121108

Silk Garden #267, and #245. Which I already think might not be the best ones and I may or may not buy several more other colours before the day is over so that I can make another one.

Baa.

202 thoughts on “Turns out I am like that”

  1. That scarf IS gorgeous and Noro DOES have fabulous colorways…but why does it have to be so darn rough? It is so beautiful I want to knit one but I don’t want to actually touch the stuff. Has anyone found a yarn to match Noro’s color brilliance that is more strokeable?

  5. baa-a-a-a right back at you. I have resisted, yet I’m failing. I have 4 colourways sitting out, and I keep rearranging them to see what combo I like best. Now I think I need to buy more to try them out. But if I go to the shop, I’m going to come out with some underpriced, and overly soft alpaca as well. That I don’t need. But I WANT it…

  6. Norophobiacs, repent – Silk Garden softens amazingly when subjected to blocking, as do their other yarns. Try using their sock yarns for knits with a finer gauge – once washed it’s like buttah…jdu

  7. I feel the same way sometimes. But usually I think the patterns are hits because they’re flattering and well designed, not necessarily because their trendy – which is great!

  9. Sometimes I pick projects just because nobody else has made it yet. But I do end up with some questionable results that I can not pull off. I’ve been resisting that scarf as well, but I do have yarn for it already…

  10. Norophobiacs, repent – Silk Garden softens amazingly when subjected to blocking, as do their other yarns. Try using their sock yarns for knits with a finer gauge – once washed it’s like buttah…jdu

  12. I’ve so far resisted joining the throngs of Noro Whoros — excuse me, devotees — among my acquaintance. Browsing that flickr group may have weakened my resolve just a tad…

  13. yeah, I’m glad to know that I am not the only one that has actively resisted the lure of this particular scarf……and yet I manage to find myself looking at Silk Garden colour combos every time I go into a shop that has it stocked……baa indeed!!

  14. I apparently missed this fad, er, scarfstorm the last time around, but will probably fall victim this time. I love working with Silk Garden (made a beautiful entrelac shawl with it, if I do say so myself). I like making scarves and have gifted all my friends and relatives with same, but I still have a bag full of them to donate somewhere. I was going to send them to the Native American goatherders in the West, but many are too feminine for that use. Most charties will take hats and mittens, but not scarves. Does anyone have an idea where I might donate my scarf stash?

  15. I just hate knitting scarves. I get so bored. But I love sheep. What knitter doesn’t? Well, I mean, besides the ones who are allergic to wool… oh, I’ll just stop typing now.

  17. Ha ha ha! I’m like that with “should.” If you tell me I should, I definitely won’t. People told me for years that I should read The Lord of the Rings, so I didn’t. Then when I did? Big lightbulb hanging out over my head, lemme tell ya. And yes, the Noro scarf and it’s infinite color combinations is sorely tempting. Just don’t tell me I “should” knit it…

  18. I didn’t make it for theh very same reason. I love thinking of things from a new perspective–I have several choices for the yarn in my stash (although I somewhat dislike knitting with the Noro yarns). Happy knitting!

  20. I wonder how many more people are going to knit the noro scarf now that you’ve posted about it!
    For the record, I haven’t knit it yet, but I do think it’s lovely and it may be a future knit. But that will depend solely on whether or not I want to!

  21. I ended up doing the striped scarf with some Alchemy yarn. Not quite the same on the colors, though it does change, but it is much softer! I know what you mean about resisting doing what everyone is doing! Especially when so many are following you!

  22. I have no idea how I managed to miss this Noro Scarf phenomenon. I also have no idea how I came to own (and not yet use) two different – yet, as luck would have it, complimentary – colorways of Noro yarn.
    I believe they were hiding until this Sunday, deep in the stash, knowing that this would be the week you would let me know what they were supposed to be.
    Baa, also.

  23. I love a lot of popular projects…but I don’t knit them because I rarely use patterns; and sometimes that hurts more than makes me feel proud that I am a no-pattern knitter. I love your color choices. I’ve used the colorway on the right for some elbow length fingerless mitts and absoutely loved the colors! I cannot wait to see the colorways you ultimately choose and your progress on such a gorgeous pattern.

  24. I’ll confess that the only thing that has kept me from knitting one of those scarves until now is that I haven’t had the time due to other pressing projects like a dissertation and knitted objects promised to others. Oh and there’s the complication of being slowed down by *(&%^&* carpal tunnel. It’s on my list of to-dos though, so I’m bleating right along with you!

  25. At least I’m not the only one who trys to resist the herd instinct to run off the nearest cliff. Still doesn’t change a good project though.

  26. “Sometimes something isn’t a fad because it’s neutral enough to have broad appeal to the masses. Sometimes – it’s because it’s really, really good.”
    So true. Sounds just like our President-elect…
    (Sorry – I’m still giddy. I’m going to stop thinking about our election now.)
    (Sort of)
    (I so want to knit him something, though. Any suggestions? Make it simple.)

  27. I was one of the sheep last year. As boring as a ribbed scarf might seem, I was in a trance knitting this scarf–the fastest (only) 6+ ft scarf I’ve ever knit. Amazing how color alone (and maybe the fact that this can be knit while reading a book–if you can tear your eyes away from the colors) can keep one interested for 6+ft of ribbing.

  28. Think of it more as joining the activities of like-minded people. You can rationalize anything…or so I tell myself. ~ksp

  29. I’m very much still a beginner knitter, and I love Noro Silk Garden because one of the first things I knitted for myself was a simple scarf in a now defunct colourway, that looks like a muted rainbow. I wear it all the time and love it to death (even though I didn’t know about stocking stitch rolling and the garter borders I did weren’t wide enough and it’s rather short). That scarf somehow slipped under my radar and now all I can think of is visiting my stash (tricky – it’s in the baby’s room and he’s about to go to bed) and seeing if I have a little something…
    I’ve never been that bothered about loving something that everyone else is doing* – there’s usually a reason for it, and I wouldn’t say I was one of nature’s trend-followers, either.
    *Dan Brown books aside, obviously. I don’t know why everyone reads them.

  30. I fell victim to Noro recently too! I’ve resisted the entire company partly because everyone else seemed to love it. I couldn’t figure it out – it feels like cardboard in the ball. But now I’m knitting with it and I think I might like a striped scarf out of it too. Baa! Plus with the way it changes gradually it might work in Kauni inspired colorwork…

  31. All we like sheep…
    I love this look too, so I decided to use it to make slipper socks for my dad for Christmas.
    The beautiful thing about knitting is, even though we’re all knitters, and we all share that in common, we’re all so incredibly different that nothing we make is the same.
    Vive la diversité!

  34. Can I just say that I knit my first Jaywalkers 2 YEARS after everyone else did, and my first Monkeys 1 year after everyone else did, because I’m not that way, either. Totally get it.

  35. I like them, but I do find Noro so scratchy and unpleasant to touch that I wouldn’t consider knitting one unless someone can make Noro colors in a nice, soft, even yarn.
    And I’m really disappointed there was no Katy in the did list.

  36. Isn’t it funny that popular patterns can seem to completely flood the knitting blog world and yet you may never spot a real live version in person? That is, of course, unless you are at a sheep and wool festival. Then all bets are off.
    This is how I rationalize it when I want to knit a pattern that I’d otherwise eschew based on popularity (which is admittedly a silly thing to do.) Sure, it may join a gaggle of similar photos on Ravelry, but in life? One of a kind.

  37. You say “baa” like it’s a BAD thing…don’t we all love things that go “baa”? Knit, girl. Knit like the wind!

  38. Awh…… I have a feeling this is going to be like those little baby sweaters you were making that came in kits. Remember? How many did you end up with? 🙂

  40. Oh these will be very pretty.
    May I suggest you also try their new yarn Yuzen. It’s similar to Silk Garden, but a little more rustic, and about the same price. It would make a great alternate when mixed with Silk Garden.

  41. Thanks for the blog love! It really is an adventure of a knit, to see how the colorways bring out different aspects of each other (what a metaphor). I had a friend just yesterday try to make off with mine…
    Looking forward to seeing your results, especially in those colors.

  42. I’m glad that you finally got to the point of realizing that sometimes things are popular because they are _good_. They are popular because everyone is _recognizing_ that the pattern is a GREAT idea!
    You are 40…you are still learning! Wouldn’t it be awful if we ever stopped learning? (didn’t I put that tactfully?)

  43. I don’t wear scarves, but I’ve already made myself three Silk Garden sweaters and am jonesing for another. I had to declare a moritorium on Silk Garden so that I don’t lose my touch with other types and weights of yarn. Yeah, Noro can be as addictive as laceweight mohair. Or alpaca. Or. . .

  45. I’ve got some Noro Silk Garden waiting to be made into this very scarf. I have to finish my Gathered Scarf first, though. Discipline. Discipline. I won’t even look at the Noro until I’m done. Not a peek. You’re making it hard, though!

  46. PPS: that stripe pattern (alternating two colorways of Silk Garden in two-row stripes of each) can make a killer men’s sweater. In case you hadn’t yet thought of it.

  47. I know how you feel in that last sentence. I think I have enough for 4 different colorways of the scarf at home, and whenever I go somewhere I see “new” and “better” colors and go, “That would go gret with #XXX.” Sigh. My credit card can’t take anymore damage though. Progress pics please though!

  48. Stephanie, I’m working on my second of four, and this scarf still hasn’t lost its charm. Given that it’s acres and acres of k1p1 ribbing, which I tend to despise, that’s really saying something.

  49. Brilliant! I’m not a fan of Noro at all, but I have to say those scarves are pretty awesome. The color repeats in the yarn are spectacular, that is for sure.

  50. sorry about posting in triplicate — it told me my message had been rejected! I’ll go be quiet now.

  51. I’d line up in the queue (how the hell do you spell that, anyway? I’ve tried 5 different ways that all look wrong and am now moving on, OK with looking not like a sheep, but a moron), but have… erm… a number of scarves. Of course, I don’t have a striped scarf. We could engage in a bartering process involving a Schedule?

  53. I have so far missed this scarf-mania…I’ve seen them, love the colors, but not a big scarf wearer. I love noro, plain, simple, uncomplicated statement of fact, but won’t be doing that scarf. I’m losing the battle not to do the clapotis though. I know someone it would compliment greatly. Besides I have yet to follow any pattern perfectly and exactly…always have to change something 🙂

  56. Noro colors are incredible.
    Resistance is futile.
    I thought up with a project that allows me to use twelve different colors. I almost hyperventilated when it came to me.
    Now I just need to get started…

  57. You see, this is one advantage of being the dirt slow knitter that I am. By the time I finished one of these I’d be Renewing a trend, not following one. Heh.

  58. Baa Baa Black Sheep…
    Did you know that has the same tune that Twinkle, Twinkle has, and the ABCs?
    Just a little random facts about some sheep song.
    Anyways… I know what you’re saying… I hear the song you’re singing… I smell what you’re steppin’ in.
    Sometimes it’s nice to conform and follow the masses, but it’s important to realize when following them is NOT a good idea.

  59. Yes, I agree, everyone is making it, then I don’t want to . I’m different! uh Right! But even tho I live in the PNW of the US and there are knitters here, Ravelry proof. I rarely see something handknit in the wild. So all of those 1000s of Noro striped shawl wearers are spread over the world. I did make one, it resides in Scotland around the neck of my DH. And now, I may just go make another.

  61. Do they have wine at your LYS??
    I’ve been on the fence about it for a while too. I made the Turn a Square hat because, well, it is sort of like the Noro scarf but it isn’t one. But my husband seems to like his hat so much, and he very quietly lost his scarf last year (or the year before, that’s how quiet he was about it) so it might be time to break down and make it. I can’t wait to see yours!

  62. I had the same struggle with Clapotis. I actually thought it was kind of ugly when I first saw it. One day I was at fiber festival of some sort when I saw the most lovely shawl-thing. As I touched it and admired it, I suddenly realized what I was handling and freaked out. Now I have a Clapotis in hibernation (I have more pressing projects, including one with a deadline in a few hours and I haven’t even started yet!) and I plan to make at least one more. Welcome to the herd.

  63. I understand not wanting to knit something just because it is trendy… but think of it this way.. without sheep, where would knitting be at all?

  64. What’s wrong with being a sheep? They are content, warm in winter and usually have a shepherd who gives a shit. Also they are useful and loved by many.
    Not so bad being a sheep.

  65. Are you TRYING to make 1,800 more people knit this scarf? After looking at those pictures…oh gosh, I think I may be hooked…
    Baa right back.

  66. Ha! You think you’re cool, but you’re one of us… you know, the ones that pierce our noses and color purple spikes into our hair and wear black makeup, then scream, “Stop staring at me!”
    I think I can resist…

  68. Oh, those are nice. I might have to make one or two, myself.
    I even happen to have a few balls of Silk Garden not otherwise promised.

  69. I’m using Noro Silk Garden for a Rainy Day scarf. And I agree, it’s very hard to decide on a color to use.

  70. I also fell in love with it on brooklyntweed and at toomuchwool…and also resisted for the above reasons…and damn it, I still want that scarf!
    Good for you for acting like a grown up! I can’t wait to see your scarf. As for me…umm….I’ve been trying to stay out of yarn stores lately.

  72. been there knit that, two gift scarfs, totally beautiful. it started my love hate relationship with noro… knots and vm but the colors

  73. There is absolutely nothing wrong with being part of the ignorant masses. Sometimes, though it’s not terribly often, the masses stumble upon something horribly awesome, and at first, it feels like a total betrayal of everything that you held dear to be interested in it. But accept it and revel in the fact that everyone is sharing in something amazing. ^_^

  74. I do tend to knit trendy things. Its nice to be able to look at Ravelry and see lots of examples and see if they “work”.
    It doesn’t help that Webs just had a big silk garden closeout. Beware the knots! I rewind all my balls of silk garden now because there are often the two wildest colors knotted together.
    I love the comment about “Brooklyn Tweed”! So true!

  75. Yep — like the people who wouldn’t/won’t read Harry Potter “because of the hype.” You can tell — they’re the ones without noses.*
    What about doing it in the One-Row Scarf stitch?
    *(…to spite their…)

  77. Interesting to hear that Silk Garden softens with washing. While I’ve liked the colors, I hate the way it feels, and I HAVE to like a yarn to work with it (falls in the life’s too short dept). So I am trying that scarf with Mountain Colors Twizzle in 2 different colorways and it feels wonderful to work with and comes in beautiful deep jewel colors. Nice bouncy wool and silk yarn.
    What would happen if you GENTLY washed the skeins of Noro before using? Does anyone know?

  78. LOL. I’ve been the same way about Monkey socks (which I call “Lemmings”) but I did give in to the Clapotis, and am on my second one now, with yarn for a couple more. I’ll have to go look at the Noro scarf more closely. Thanks. Not.

  79. Baa. My daughter is now going to be the recipient of this scarf; my resistance is now officially futile. Considering I’ve already knit her a Noro hat, followed by the Lady Eleanor shawl in several Noro colorways (baa), she’s the lucky recipient of all my Noro knitting these days. In between the cashmere. And the socks. Clearly, being my daughter is a Good Thing. 🙂

  80. Never fear the sheep! I figure that part of being independent (and I’m REALLY indpendent) is that I’ll make it if I like it – whether all or none other are making it. This looks like a fun project for a lucky person!

  86. Before I knit mine, I was in the same boat. I recalled other scarves being pretty, didn’t want to jump on the bandwagon, and had so far resisted. What pushed me over the edge was a trip to Denver (and Papertiger Knits Anne’s which I had seen the day before). I needed to buy souvenir yarn, and the only thing that was appealing to me was the gigantic wall of Noro Kureyon. I found that odd because I had never been that attracted to Kureyon before. So I thought “easy peasy! 4 skeins of souvenir yarn, and a gift scarf for Christmas!” And then when I was in between big projects I cast on and with every charmingly exciting change of color, I just got deeper and deeper into it. And I got deeply offended when C said “Hey! It’s all the colors of poop!” and I spent days defending it’s honor.
    I just couldn’t give it up after that.

  88. What about if you keep the basic idea–the colour striping, the Noro, the scarf format–but change some critical details, like brioche stitch instead of 1×1 rib? That would count as innovative, slightly daring, and NOT herd-following…you’d be like an outrider, a scout, rather than a dweller in the midst of the sheepy mob…(Or at least that’s what I like to tell MYself!!) =)

  91. I can totally relate. I went to Rhinebeck planning to buy yarn for the February Lady sweater. But then I saw that every other person there was wearing it, so I steadfastly refused to make that sweater. But…I really, really like it, and it hasn’t lost its spot in my queue yet.

  92. I made it too and honestly it was the easiest thing I’ve made the far and what is really cool is it looks so impressive. Simple yet interesting.

  93. That IS a beautiful scarf.
    It’s going to be hard to resist making one of those!
    Where was I when it was originally going around?

  94. I’ll see your baa and raise you another. Maybe two more. Because not only am I a sheep who knit that scarf, but I knit it twice. Once for the husband, and once for myself, because I had a hard time letting go of his and wanted it all for me. And now, I’m thinking of knitting a third.
    For anyone worried about Silk Garden’s roughness, by the way, be assured that a nice soak makes that yarn soften up like crazy. It’s one of my favorite yarns.

  95. On my dining room table is enough yarn to make 15 of these scarves, can’t decide on the colourway. to use..I have 5 to choose from. Thanks for the inspiration.

  96. Grin, I did two of them. They are lovely! Tip: Rewind the yarn before you start! My Silk Garden had a knot -and an abrupt color change- in the middle.

  97. Turned out last year that I am like that too. 🙂 I kept looking at the pattern and all the finished scarves and finally made one. I love it! I get comments on it, and it is Kureyon striped, and soft soft after soaking it. Welcome to the gang who succumbed, Stephanie!!! I might even have to make another one!

  98. p.s. I am definitely going to make another of your One Row Scarf scarves this year. Another so simple pattern, and so beautiful result! 🙂

  99. …and you’re right(no I didn’t doubt you-it just took me a few minutes to look at everyones pictures)they’re all the same and they’re all different at the same time.I hope Santa has enough money for some Noro this year…

  100. Oh I have been there with the striped scarf! I caved this summer and had so much fun. It is very entertaining to see how the stripes emerge. And even more fun if you do 3 or 4 colourways instead of two, because then it mixes it up. I want to make another one except *I* already have one and I don’t know if I want to let someone else have it either! Minemine.

  102. Make that 1842. I haven’t added it to Ravelry yet as I haven’t done the photoshoot. I thought I had lost it but instead had left it at the in laws. Phew!

  103. i am a silk garden lite addict.. i knit socks with it. socks after socks after socks after socks. and never once, until this very moment, did it occur to me that i could make the scarf. amy did.. it’s sitting right here in the scarf stack. damn.. perhaps i could wedge a straight under my armpit and knit it in 15 minute/day increments? (and you’re so right.. ‘did’ looks totally weird)

  105. Uh, you know, I had seen that on one of the blog’s you mentioned and resisted. But you just sent me over the edge.
    Hear that? That’s the sound of me adding that scarf to my Ravelry queue.

  106. I love mine. I feel oddly compelled to mention that I made it at least a year before Jared did, and I got the idea from Jennifer Miller. Except she made hers from Kureyon. And I would make it again, over and over.

  107. This particular sheep would like to tell you that this scarf not only looks great, it is also a lovely thing to knit because of the constantly changing colours. I found it great knitting therapy – simple but interesting. I was sorry to finish mine.
    I was lucky to get only one knot in the yarn I used, but I like the suggestions to rewind the yarn before starting. The purchased balls are so loosely wound they fall apart towards the end. I’ll definitely rewind them next time. And there will be a next time as mysteriously I seem to have bought more Noro…

  108. If you’re a sheep, just think of the possibilities for keeping yourself in yarn without have to break the bank during these difficult economic times?
    That is to say, following the herd may have upsides you haven’t even considered — besides getting a lovely scarf.

  109. OK, I’ll confess that I’ve sometimes dug in my heels about doing something just because others enjoyed it. On the other hand, having waited until “Goblet of Fire” was published until I finally got bored enough (when stuck at my parents for a week over Christmas when my car broke down) to read the first in the Harry Potter series meant that I could read the first four volumes in quick succession. 🙂

  110. I confess to making 4 of them. The last one was the two colorways that you are using and it was the only one that I did not like.
    I sent it to my mother.

  111. I resisted last year too, but it was more in the line of “it’s going to cost HOW MUCH for a scarf?”
    However, I usually ask for yarn for Christmas, so this might be an idea….
    Looking forward to seeing your finished project.

  112. LMAO I lurk and never comment, but I have to say that I caved and knit one. I used a slip stitch pattern just to be a little different and it does qualify as the most expensive scarf I ever knit.

  114. I have to agree with others. As with the other popular Ravely items, I have yet to see one in the wild. But you are in situations lousy with knitters 😉
    At my last job, there were a number of us who knit and I got to see FOs occasionally. But now, not so much.

  115. When I first discovered ravelry, I immediately decided that I wouldn’t like Noro. Everyone seemed to be raving about it. I still haven’t bought the yarn, even though my bother specifically requested a rainbow scarf. Oh well…

  116. You finally got sucked in like the rest of us!! Have fun with this one I loved knitting mine.

  117. I kind of did this before it was popular, in the slightly different version of the “Child’s Rainbow Scarf” from “Last Minute Knitted Gifts”, back in 2005 — does that make me a bellwether? (No-o-o-o-o-o-o-ot!)
    But the problem is that I made it right BEFORE or around the time Silk Garden came out, so it’s in scratchier Kureyon. And I like the Striped Scarf version (or the Chevron Scarf from the same book) better. So I’ll make it again, from the back of the flock this time. It was SO entertaining, to see which two colors were going to come together THIS time! Made the whole scarf go extremely fast. Though I made the mistake of picking two colorways that, unbeknownst to me at the start (you know how it’s hard to tell about Kureyon from the outside of the skein sometimes), shared one color, and that one color tried to keep coinciding, grrr. But it still was great fun.

  119. I have the same Resistant Tendencies toward knitting fads, but your reasoning here makes perfect sense! As knitters we all put our personal touch into the things we create, so even if it’s technically the same as someone else’s item, it really isn’t. It’s Mine!

  121. Yes, Brooklyntweeds photos have that certain ambiance…what is that Brooklyn lighting? lol…I will wait until you show me yours and maybe succumb then..

  122. I made it out of kureyon and was just thinking that, hey, I’ve got a couple skeins of silk garden left from my argosy wrap…just need a couple more…oh, gee. But I am thinking I might do the stripes in a bias fashion to make it a wee bit different…

  123. Turns out I really am like that too. I’ve been reading your blog for the last two years, and buying your books…..and even though I know how to knit (learned nearly 20 years ago), I kept saying “I don’t knit”.
    I crochet, I naalbind, I spin, I weave. I don’t knit.
    At least not until two weeks ago when something in your latest book made me “well shucks, I wonder if I even remember how…” and finally….picked it up again. I remembered casting on, and knitting and purling….and I didn’t like the first result and ripped it out…
    I’ve been casting my mind ahead, but I can’t remember how to cast off.

  124. Poetic justice. You make sheep of us all. Once The Harlot starts a project, just try to find the pattern or the yarn.

  125. Ya know, I used to feel the same way, until knitting. In my “other” life, I always prided myself on my individuality. I didn’t do something JUST to follow the herd. I have to say though, there is a certain value in conformity. I’ve always been weird. Always been different my entire life. As a teenager I didn’t listen to the music everyone else listened to, I was a sondheim geek. I didn’t recognize the names of movies or tv shows or singers kids my age would reference. I didn’t date and then in college realized I was gay, I didn’t like boys like 90% of the female population did. I have basically spent my entire life explaining myself to people who didn’t understand WHAT I was talking about. And you know what, it sucks. But then knitting and crochet came along. At first, it was hard having yet another strange interest that no one around me understood. But then I started going to yarn shops, and reading books like yours. I realized that packing more yarn projects than clothes for a trip wasn’t that unusual. That having a stash I couldn’t possibly use in my lifetime was something a LOT of knitters did. That guage made everyone ELSE crazy too, and that other people budgeted more money to yarn than to other things. And you know what happened? I was NORMAL and I LIKED IT. I DIDN’T HAVE TO EXPLAIN MYSELF TO PEOPLE ANYMORE!! DO you have any idea how thrilling that is? How that feels? To spend your entire life being the weirdo, the 10% girl, and then finding yourself surrounded by people EXACTLY like you who just get EVERYTHING without that shocked look on their faces? I confess, my knitting personality, as a result of this, has developed into almost the exact opposite of my “normal” personality. I’m OCD in real life (diagnosed and medicated). I have to make several tries to get down the stairs if I didn’t “count” them correctly. I have to spend 4 hours in the morning driving back to the house to ensure I turned the coffee pot off. But when I’m knitting or crocheting, I see a mistake and it’s NO BIG DEAL. I just let it go. It’s the ONLY place I can do that. And I conform JUST to conform sometimes. I didn’t really like the clapotis, but I knit it anyway b/c everyone else did. (in the end, i did like it too!) I DELIBERATELY search for projects everyone else is doing to feel that sense of belonging that is missing in my life. I delight when I discover that something I loved all on my own happened to be soemthing that was a viral project (like Shalom or Feb Lady). There is a value in conformity. Maybe you only see it if you have spent your entire life alone in your weirdness. The Gay girl amid the breeders. The sondheim geek with the metallica t-shirt friends. The depression/ocd chick amid all the sane, happy-all-on-their-own-without-meds crowd. Conformity, properly used, is WONDERFUL. =^)

  126. I loved this post…maybe because I’m the only knitter on the planet who didn’t know about the noro scarf. and I’m not sure if that’s good or bad – I am currently addicted to knitting sally melville’s knit round scarf in silk garden – one done, one half done and two in the wings (that sounds better than saying it’s in my stash, right).

  127. Don’t try to resist. It’s the nicest scarf I’ve ever made for myself. I thought I lost it once at a job interview, and I would rather have found it again than gotten the job!! Luckily I got both in the end.

  128. I love ya, Stephanie.
    I am 39, I am an adult, an individual, have not made that stripe scarf. Yet.

  130. Go for it and have fun with the colours. I too have looked at the Noro scarf and been tempted BUT I have so many UFO’s I have not succumed to it –not just yet.

  131. I made one. Last Winter. Never posted a pic of it on Ravelry or anywhere else because I thought, “Well, it’s pretty, but it’s JUST a scarf”. You’d be amazed at how many compliments I get on it.
    I love Noro. If I could only buy one yarn for the rest of my life, it would be Noro. I don’t know what everyone is complaining about regarding the “roughness”. Perhaps they’ve never handled raw wool, in the grease and full of VM.
    Anyway, if I want to make something “unique” I’ll spin or dye my own yarn for it. I’m not a pattern designer, so I have to rely on the talents of others to put a project together. Stephanie, you should know better seeing that you’re a spinner yourself. You’re not a sheep…you’re only one of the flock if that’s all you ever do.
    Cheers!

  133. SIGH….Thanks Stephanie….I have been trying to resist that scarf too! HAHAH we are even more un-individual like than we thought! Now after seeing all of those pictures I want to knit that too!
    Here is another obsession…..reversible two color hat from EZ….Hmmmm….so warm.

  134. If you use Noro Kuyreyon instead of Silk Garden (although I realize it’s scratchier)you can combine two skeins of Noro with one of Lamb’s Pride in black or tan or any color that complements the Noro. This might not be quite as interesting as combining two different self-striping colorways, but it comes out very nice indeed. I just thought I’d suggest this in case it happens to match what someone already has in their stash, as it did mine.

  135. Ah, I started making one a year ago but I scared myself by making it, ahem, *rather* lurid (me coose brights? never!)
    I found Kroy in a local Michael’s yesterday. It came home with me and landed in the dyepot today.

  136. Maybe you’re immune to all the knitting fads because you seem to start most of them? Just a thought.

  138. Is it too early in the Knit-Like-Mad-for-Christmas season to bear hope that your knitting scheduler has worked this project in the que?

  139. Unlike you, I have been positively *yearning* to make that scarf for the better part of a year now, but just got back to North America where they have yarn shops with Silk Garden in them this September. My mom and I went shopping together for my annual knitting-related Christmas present (she is learning), and OMG. I can’t WAIT to play with the Noro and cast on and see what happens.

  141. it just seems amazing this ‘growing up’ stuff doesn’t it..it just keep coming,no matter what the number (age)is..which is a good thing,if and when we accept it.

  143. You weren’t alone: I didn’t either. But now that you’re making one, I simply must follow you, just like Mary’s lamb.
    Only kidding: I have about eight other scarves dancing in my head right now, and they won’t let me alone until I knit them. No Noro Striped Scarf for me.
    Yet.

  144. I object to fads is a person just does them to be part of the fad. Rather like the frantic parents mobbing stores to get their kid the ‘latest’ present for Xmas.
    Deciding on something after thought and deliberation strikes me as something quite different. Maybe a thought for how we should vote when called upon to do so….
    Happy knitting.

  147. Forgot the scarf – which, yes, is lovely & I’m sure yours will be too.
    I want to know: where is the yarn store that serves you wine while you shop??? seriously, enquiring minds want to know!
    Jan

  148. I have been oggling Brooklyn Tweed’s striped Noro scarf for a while now. I keep going back to his blog post about it just to look at the scarf. I am resisting because 1)I have 20 balls of just one colourway, 2)it’s Kureyon which is scratchy as heck and 3) I live in the Middle East where you need to go indoors, turn the AC on full blast before you can wear any proper winter garment. That or you go to Ski Dubai.
    I love the colourways you chose. Looking forward to seeing the finished scarf.

  149. Brooklyn Tweed sucked me into this project, but it was really a much more interesting knit than I expected because of the color changes.
    I love to wear this scarf and I get compliments all the time. Mine is closer to 8 feet long so I can double it and be stylin’
    Thanks for the shout out, Stephanie

  150. to me, the sheep is a most glorious and noble animal. right up there with the lemming. so… here i go over the cliff! somebody hook me up with that yarn and pattern. yeehaw~!

  151. I’m glad you bought the yarn, I just actually casted mine on last night instead of studying… =)

  152. Shoot. I missed all those (somehow, I must have been hiding under a rock!) so I did not have the urge and did not root through my Noro to make this.
    Now you have ruined it. I must knit one for me, and for every family member.
    Curse you Harlot! Curse you when I’m up until 3am Christmas Eve wondering how I somehow got suckered into this.

  153. I must have missed the craze for this particular version which is quite beautiful: but for the last 3 years I’ve been using a pattern from the book Last Minute Gifts, which uses two Noro skeins, and is done in the mistake rib. It’s a smaller version for kids. I’m on my 8th one right now for this year’s Christmas gifts. Knit on.

  154. a) not only does the word “did” look funny to me, but it did so (see?) right before I read you saying that it did (again).
    b) Yep, my Clapotis is one of my favorite knitted objects. Maybe the thing about knitting is that it’s a lot like cooking something. No two people make the same dish the same way, even if they are trying to.

  155. Yes, “did” did look funny. Also, ya know that psychology thing where they ask you to count people in black shirt or white shirts, and a man in a gorilla suit (or even a real gorilla maybe!) walks through, and you don’t see him? Well, that flickr page kind of did that to me. I was staring at the last picture in the set, and I saw what looked like 2scarves with lettering on them, and I got transfixed, and I didn’t see the actual scarf lying in the middle–just blocked it right out.
    Anyhow, yeah, I’ve seen a couple of Noro scarves in person and they’re all gorgeous because the yarn colorways gorgeous. Go for it!

  156. I tend to avoid popular patterns too, but I have been LUSTING over that scarf for over a year now. Now I just need to figure out a way to justify making a $40 scarf…

  157. I’m that way with books…if everybody is reading “Eat,Pray,Love” I don’t want to read it. I never read “Jonathan Livingston Seagull” because everybody and their dog was reading it.
    Knitting is something else, I wanna knit what the cool kids are knitting. Gimme that Silk Garden.

  158. And that right there is why I was the last person on the planet to make the Monkey Sock. And why I’m still looking for the perfect yarn to make another pair!

  160. Oh my- I have that noro scarf on my list too. The wool has been bought, I just have to get time to make it for a Christmas present.
    You chose nice colours!

  161. I solomely swear I will not start another project until Iam done with this hat no matter how tempting the pattern is;)Hugs Darcy

  162. LOL! You must be related to a friend of mine because she does the same thing! She just gets contrary like that. I, for the most part, don’t care as long as I really like it. I somehow missed all the excitement about this awesome scarf the first time. I’m not sure how that happened. So now, guess what I want to knit LOL! Yes, I guess we really are all lambs being led to the slaughter, er………. yarn store!

  163. Hahah 😀 I know excatly how you feel! 😀 And I found myself feeling up a whole lot of noro just yesteday, thinking af Brooklyntweeds scarf 😀

  164. Love, love, love this scarf! Course Noro is my yarn crack so what can I say. Just finished one for Christmas and have started another one for the other partner of the couple I’m making those scarves for. Everyone including knitters always stop me and ask about whatever scarf I’m knitting when I’m doing the Noro stripping scarf.
    LOVE IT!

  165. Ooh!Ooh!Ooh!Ooh!Ooh! Just got my copy of “Free-Range Knitter” (on order for over a month). Loved it, especially”All Things Being Equal” and the toboggan story. I was sorry to finish it.
    That’s a nice scarf…

  166. Made the scarf. Would like to do socks. Am working on a Noro striped Christmas stocking. Will likely do another scarf (different colours of course!).
    Baa Baa!

  167. Oh I so get that fad thing. I’ve so resisted the FLS but I think I get it and it’s on my list for next year.

  168. I love those scarves, but just HATE the feel of the yarn when working with it. Gives me the he-be-je-bees.
    I bought some and have been trying to get a scarf completed, but it is only about an inch at a time before I creep out at the feel. The work completed feels okay, but getting there is a challange. Call me weird.

  169. First, I want to apologize in advance if someone mentioned this already (since first time in a very, very long while I haven’t read all the comments before posting my own).
    Clearly, you will be knitting this scarf in short order. Maybe two. (HEHEHHEH) Here’s the thing: did you know that Little Knits just happens to have Noro Silk Garden on SALE at 50% off? See, I just happened to know this because I was window shopping (and maybe that I received a little email advertising the HUGE SALE). Not that I will be buying any you understand, because I am on this damned yarn diet. And I haven’t rationalized a purchase enough, yet. But I figured I’d spread the knowledge. Knitters have to stick together. Our wallets will thank us.

  170. Turns out I’m like that, too.
    Just yesterday morning, I caved and decided to knit that very same scarf. I’ve never knit the ‘cool’ or ‘in’ thing before, either (no handwarmers, here!). But I finally saw what everyone else saw – that scarf is way beautiful.
    It’s so funny that you posted about it today.

  171. A comment on yesterday’s post: thanks to all who voted for Obama. I think he is the best hope we have to join with all of our fellow humans to find solutions that benefit all. I am so not happy with the narrow views of the former administration and his hawkish party. Any time, any day is a good moment to reflect on the enormity of the challenges ahead. Peace on earth. May I be the peace.

  172. I did. Make one. Just a week or so ago. Knits up wonderfully quickly (not TOO, as it’s fun to see the color combinations evolve).

  173. Hmm, anyone else thinking of combining the awesome dual stripey noro action with the Very Tall Socks pattern from Knitty?? The idea is making me drool…

  174. See, I don’t like Noro. For the price it costs, I don’t want to have to pick out bits of weird stuff. And, even without the weird stuff, it is rough. So I guess I won’t be knitting it. But you all have fun!

  175. I’ve been tempted by this pattern for quite some time, but I am not sure I want to use the Noro yarn. I keep thinking that a semi-solid sportweight and a self striping would work well, but it is hard to convince myself that they would work as well as the Noro combinations (and it really isn’t fair that Brooklyn Tweed could make dog poo look elegant! I wish I had half the photography skills!).

  177. Oh, now you’ve done it. How are my grandbabies going to get their Christmas mittens?? *off to rummage in my Noro oddballs*

  180. Does this mean you’ve started your CHRISTMAS knitting already? Now that’s NOT like you!!
    Welcome to the herd…

  182. One day I was in a yarn store and saw the Noro Silk Garden. The color was so gorgeous I couldn’t resist buying one skein. I began a sample swatch of stitches and fell in love with the skein’s color changes. I ended up using it for a piece of hyperbolic crochet coral reef and gave it to The IEFF coral reef project.
    As to its roughness: yes, I found it rough at first but after reusing it a couple of times in stitch samples it had softened quite a bit by the time I used for the coral reef piece.

  183. I love the one Noro scarf that I made last year and I plan to start a second one for a gift. I look forward to seeing your unique interpretation of the pattern.

  184. *snicker*
    I know what you mean. So far I’ve resisted Noro (though a non-knitting (!) friend gave me some of the sock yarn…haven’t used it yet).
    So far I’ve resisted the lure of Clapotis…but I’ve made three pairs of Fetching. =^..^=
    We all fall down!

  185. Don’t you just hate it when the masses turn out to be right? That’s exactly why, as a crocheter from the ripe age of like 7, I fought knitting tooth and nail. I was not going to knit. Everybody knit, or at least it seemed to me. Not too many crocheted. And then there was the people I knew. My mom knit. My Nana crocheted. Nana was so way cooler than my mom. She wore white gloves to church. She had probably 47 pairs of shoes, which all fit me since she had super small feet. She wore an apron in the kitchen and dressed up for dinner. Each night. My mom, on the other hand, was, well, my mom. No make-up, barely did her hair, went to the bathroom with the door open; how could anything she did be cool?
    Now, so very many years later, and in many respects, too late, I get it. Sorry, mom, you were right; Knitting is cool.
    Stripey scarves are cool too. Myself, I fell down at one of our chain yarn stores and bought enough Patons SWS for 3 stripey scarves. Not to mention all the single balls I bought just because I love the stripey-ness. I can’t wait to see your FO!

  186. Well for heaven sake, Steph. I’d managed to avoid looking at that before but couldn’t resist.
    Thanks so much, now I have to resist finding the Noro in the stash because I have a mitten, 2 pairs of socks and 3 sweaters to finish before Christmas.

  187. Hi all,
    Many thanks for the reassurances about Noro softening after washing, as that was my one concern with this scarf. I have almost finished mine, inspired by Jared Flood and many others. I LOVED that sometimes the 2 color blends almost merged before heading off in contrasts again, sort of like quiet passages followed by crescendos in a symphony. If anyone is holding back because of 1×1 rib, I also hesitated because I used to knit ‘English’, where changing from plain to purl involved one entire movement of my right hand. Then Annie Modesitt http://www.anniemodesitt.com/ taught me to knit ‘Continental’, and now the switch is a tiny, automatic twitch of my left fore-finger. Way easier. Have fun, they are all gorgeous, as for me, I get ALL my knitting inspiration from what other people are doing! Regards, Cheryl.

  189. You’re 37 years – and some insight – ahead of my father who went to his grave believing not doing what everyone else did just because they were doing it made him superior. I referred to him as a reverse snob.
    But, then, I avoid fads and have yet to knit this simple but beautiful scarf. Enjoy your stripe formation.

  191. I didn’t. Probably won’t either. It’s lovely and all, but … eh.
    I notice Katy didn’t either. Which makes no sense. I thought Katydid.

  192. I morphed this fad into socks, love them, love them love them, wearing them now.
    PS. Three hours and half a bottle of wine… all that made me think was how restrained you were.

  193. So bizarre that I just read this post this morning…after I was on Yarn Market for HOURS yesterday drooling over the Silk Garnen choices to make the exact same scarf!! Brooklyn Tweed’s pics totally pushed me over the edge as well. I’m pondering how many I can get done by Christmas so I’ll feel less guilty about the yarn I’ll be stashing to make some for myself in January!!

  194. I have made four of these scarves (so far), some with Noro and some with other yarns. I never understood Noro lust until I used Silk Garden (although I wish they didn’t stick those browns and/or yellows into every color option). Totally addicting–I had to force myself to stop and make other things, but your photos are luring me back….

  195. Okay, now, this page was really dangerous! Normally anytime I go to your site to read your daily entries, I run the risk of getting sucked into the fiber vortex, but this one was really bad! I ended up clicking on each and every link, reading them, and then getting sucked in and diverted to every page that they linked up to! It took me forever to finish your webpage. And, of course, now I am stash diving to see how many Noro Silk Garden singles and duples I can come up with that will coordinate well enough to make the scarf!

  196. Evil. Woman.
    I am already the 8246th Clapotis on Ravelry.
    Do I really need to be the 1881st Noro scarf??

  197. oh, dear, i’m in trouble now! that scarf is beautiful and so versatile – great for dress up or for dress down, havin’ a beer with my buds! once again, i am forced to say “thanks, steph!!”

  198. Hey, we like sheep around here! I don’t think jumping on a pattern bandwagon is bad, not unless the pattern itself is, of course. Although I don’t really like Noro yarn, I can see how this scarf would be addicting. It’s like colorwork – you just have to knit another couple of rows to see what will happen next!

  199. I have never made a Clapotis! Do you think I should? I never wanted to make one just because everyone else was making one…but maybe someday soon I’ll make one “just because I want to see how those stitches unravel.”

  200. huh, i never thought there would be anyone out there willing to admit this. it seriously gives me the courage to stand up and join you screaming, “I AM LIKE THAT TOO!!”
    whew, was that a load off! thank you, dear Harlot. i can now add more projects to my never-ending Ravelry queue that should have been there all along. i’ll be back in awhile to update you on my progress. this may take some time so, don’t wait up for me.
    ;D

  201. Great! I’ve been struggling with this project for–oh–about 2-plus months now. I just glared at the few rows I have on my needles this evening as I picked up my current WIP.
    Not that this pattern is difficult; it’s easy-peasy and I think I want it to be more. I love the Noro colours but I think I picked colourways that are too similar and so the striping is, erm, subtle, shall we say.
    Maybe it’s the pile of charity projects that demand my attention. (After all, shouldn’t they get precedence over a simple scarf for me.) Or the looming holiday projects.
    But really it’s the intimidation factor. As you said, brooklyntweed’s version was pretty rockin and now you, yours will only raise the bar for my poor scarf…who may (at this rate) see February.
    I’m not a big fan of the scratchiness so thank you all for telling me that it’ll soak into softness.
    All this being said, I can’t wait to see your finished scarf!

  202. I was EXACTLY like this with the Harry Potter books. And then someone gave me one as a gift. And I instantly had to read them all. Yup, some things are mysteriously popular though they’re drivel (the TV show Survivor springs instantly to mind), but some things are popular because they are JUST THAT GOOD.

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