Rethinking Henry

"Henry" and the yarn I bought just for him are not a good match. Henry's designer, Mareike Sattler, intended, in this men's scarf,  to show off a herringbone pattern that calls to mind weaving rather than knitting. Look how nicely it came out in my practice swatch!...

(I know its teeny tiny but at least I did one and the pattern was so easy I thought why beat this to death?) The scarf is an ingenious use of the stitch but the fuzz factor with this alpaca yarn yields less than no stitch definition at all.

I'm not giving up on him entirely, he deserves another run with suitable yarn.

But for almost a year now I've been dreaming about this deep maroon red Drops Alpaca with its flecks of black setting off My Beloved's Dark Charcoal Dress Coat and I won't give up on that vision. I'm finishing knitting the scarf, side to side, on the 457 stitches I've already worked for half a dozen rows. I've treated those first six rows as a foundation for a side to side rib pattern - two rows of stockinette to one reverse stockinette. I'll finish the other edge in the "invisible" herringbone this yarn is so flawless at creating.

                              

That's my thought or "re thought" on Henry. (I think this is actually the third try - "re re thought"?)Maybe this way I can also get this yarn knit into a scarf before I'm at the anniversary of casting on for it the first time! My continental technique - especially for knit rows is now almost up to speed with my English style - I'm switching back and forth to avoid hand strain.