Not infrequently, my son, husband and I leave our apartment, get out onto the sidewalk, take a look at each other and realize that we’re all wearing plaid. True, my son and husband bear the last name Ogilvie, but what’s my excuse?

Woven Plaid Scarf | Purl Soho

I just love plaid, always have, always will. Plaid does have lovely associations with outdoor ruggedness and indoor woodfires, but more compelling for me is the pure logic of its structure. I could endlessly travel the paths and intersections of plaid’s colored highways, taking pit stops to ponder the neighborhood where pink crosses gray and to follow the hair-thin lines that interrupt the landscape.

Woven Plaid Scarf | Purl Soho

And although knitting and crochet have their methods of creating plaid, nothing replaces a woven plaid for simplicity and sheer beauty. Plaid is, in fact, the very reason I ever became a student of Schacht Spindle Co’s Cricket Loom. It’s indeed a breathtaking endeavor to watch as stripes morph into plaid, like a smile breaking across a face!

Woven Plaid Scarf | Purl Soho

Purl Soho’s Line Weight yarn gives this plaid project a very special feeling. Line Weight glows with a smooth, downy softness, creating a fabric that is more gentle and elegant than you might expect from the same pattern that brings you hunting coats and horse blankets!

Woven Plaid Scarf | Purl Soho

Inspired to equip yourself with a mobile weaving studio? Pick up the seven skeins of Line Weight you’ll need, and pick up a 15-inch Cricket Loom and 12-dent Cricket Reed. I hope you have as much fun making your Woven Plaid Scarf as I did mine! -Whitney

Materials

Woven Plaid Scarf | Purl Soho

You will need:

  • 7 skeins of Purl Soho’s Line Weight, 100% merino wool. (This is enough yarn for exactly three scarves if you alter the plaid by using the contrast colors as the Main Color.) The colors are, from the top…
    • Color A: 1 skein of Storm Gray (NOTE: This color has been discontinued and replaced with Fieldstone Gray, shown in the photo above, top. It is very slightly darker than the Storm Gray and also a bit heathered. We think it’s a beautiful replacement!)
    • Color B: 1 skein of Oyster Gray
    • Color C: 1 skein of Yellow Yellow
    • Color D: 1 skein of Super Pink
    • Main Color: 3 skeins of Heirloom White

You’ll also need…

Structure

Balanced Plain Weave

Warp

Warp Length: 102 inches (includes 21 inches of loom waste)

Warp Ends: 158

Width in Reed: 12 inches

Ends Per Inch (E.P.I.): 13

Pick Per Inch (P.P.I): 13

Size

Finished Dimensions: 11 inches wide x 81 inches long with a 1/2-inch fringe

Note

Cricket Looms come with a very user-friendly instructional booklet that walks you through every step of the weaving process, from assembling the loom to tying the fringe. For even more guidance, check out our Cricket Loom Tips here. And for the Woven Plaid Scarf pattern read on right here!

Pattern

Warp the Loom

Set up the warping peg 102 inches from the back of the loom. Note that, at this point, the back of the loom is clamped to the far edge of the table and so is the side farther away from the warping peg.

To begin threading the heddle, start with the Main Color (MC) and pull the first loop of yarn through the 6th slat from the right end of the reed.

Pull MC through the next 5 slats so that there are 12 threads total.

Cut MC at the back apron rod and tie MC to Color B (Oyster Gray) so that the knot is on or fairly close to the apron rod. Pull Color B through the next slat (above the rod).

Cut Color B and tie on MC. Pull MC through next 5 slats (always alternating below and above the apron rod).

Cut MC at the warping peg and tie on Color C (Yellow Yellow) so that the knot is on or close to the peg. Remove the MC end from the last slat and pull Color C through the same slat from front to back. (There should be one MC thread and one Color C thread in the same slat.)

Cut Color C and tie on MC at the back apron rod. Pull MC through next 14 slats.

Cut MC and tie on Color A (Storm Gray). Pull Color A through next slat.

Cut Color A and tie on MC. Pull MC through next 11 slats.

Cut MC and tie on Color B. Pull Color B through next slat.

Cut Color B and tie on MC. Pull MC through next 9 slats.

Cut MC at the warping peg and tie on Color C. Remove the MC end from the last slat and pull Color C through the same slat from front to back.

Cut Color C and tie on MC at the back apron rod. Pull MC through next 12 slats.

Cut MC and tie on Color A. Pull Color A through next slat.

Cut Color A and tie on MC. Pull MC through next 10 slats.

Cut MC and tie on Color B. Pull Color B through next slat.

Cut Color B and tie on MC. Pull MC through next 5 slats.

Cut MC at the warping peg and tie on Color D (Super Pink). Remove the MC end from the last slat and pull Color D through the same slat from front to back.

Cut Color D and tie on MC at the back apron rod. Pull MC through next 2 slats, finishing with the 6th slat from the left end of the reed.

Tie MC to the back apron rod.

You should have 158 warp threads. Finish the warp according to the Cricket Loom instructions.

Woven Plaid Scarf | Purl Soho

Weave

Wind one shuttle full with the MC and the other with 20-25 yards of Color B.

Weave several inches using paper towels or rags until the warp threads are evenly spread out.

Leaving a 36-inch tail (which you will use at the end for finishing), weave with the MC for 1/2 inch. Lightly beat each row twice.

With Color D, weave 1 row. (See One Row Stripe instructions, below.)

With MC, weave for 5 inches.

With Color B, weave 2 rows. (See Two Row Stripe instructions, below.)

With MC, weave for 5 inches.

The weft pattern is a series of colored stripes, each separated by 5 inches of MC. Here, then, is the color sequence for the rest of the scarf:

With Color A, weave 1 row.

With MC, weave for 5 inches.

With Color B, weave 2 rows.

With MC, weave for 5 inches.

With Color A, weave 1 row.

With MC, weave for 5 inches.

With Color B, weave 2 rows.

With MC, weave for 5 inches.

With Color C, weave 1 row.

With MC, weave for 5 inches.

With Color B, weave 2 rows.

With MC, weave for 5 inches.

With Color A, weave 1 row.

With MC, weave for 5 inches.

With Color B, weave 2 rows.

With MC, weave for 5 inches.

With Color D, weave 1 row.

With MC, weave for 5 inches.

With Color B, weave 2 rows.

With MC, weave for 5 inches.

With Color A, weave 1 row.

With MC, weave for 5 inches.

With Color B, weave 2 rows.

With MC, weave for 5 inches.

With Color A, weave 1 row.

With MC, weave for 5 inches.

With Color B, weave 2 rows.

With MC, weave for 5 inches.

With Color C, weave 1 row.

With MC, weave for 1/2 inch.

One Row Stripe

Note: Do not cut the MC. Instead, carry it up the selvedge.

To make a one row stripe lay the yarn in the shed with 2-3 -inch tails on each end.

Woven Plaid Scarf | Purl Soho

Beat the row into place, switch the heddle, and tuck each tail into the shed.

Woven Plaid Scarf | Purl Soho

Beat the tails lightly, returning the heddle to the same place. Continue with MC.

Woven Plaid Scarf | Purl Soho

Two Row Stripe

Note: Do not cut the MC.

Bring the Color B shuttle through the shed, leaving a 2-3 -inch tail.

Beat this row and switch the heddle.

Tuck the tail into the shed and beat it lightly.

Return the heddle to the same position and bring the shuttle through again. Beat.

Cut Color B, leaving a 2-3 inch tail.

Switch the heddle, tuck the tail and beat. Return the heddle to the same position and continue with MC.

Woven Plaid Scarf | Purl Soho

Every two row stripe alternate the selvedge where you tuck the tails.

Finish

For a complete how-to on this step, visit our Finishing with Hemstitch Tutorial.

Finish each end of the scarf with a hemstitch. Make the first hemstitch around a group of 5 warp ends, then make the stitches around groups of 4 warp ends, until you get to the last 5 ends. Finish with a group of 5 ends.

Woven Plaid Scarf | Purl Soho

Cut the fringe 1/2 inch from the end of the scarf. Weave in the hemstitch tails and gently hand wash your finished scarf, laying it flat to dry.

That’s it! You’ve woven a beautiful scarf!

Woven Plaid Scarf | Purl Soho