Speckled Scarf
In the world of mosaic knitting, the stitch pattern we chose for our Speckled Scarf is typically used as a calming background to offset more elaborate motifs. But we think, all by itself, this pattern has its own grace and beauty.
And it’s easy, too! Without ever having to handle more than one strand of yarn at a time, a simple combination of slip stitches emerges as a striking and textured fabric. In our beautiful Linen Quill, it is as warm, light, and gorgeous as a speckled feather!
If you’re new to color work or if you’d just like to take a fresh look at slip stitch patterns, start with our Speckled Scarf. It’s a super fun, and seriously beautiful, knit! –Kristy
Materials
- Color A: 2 skeins of Purl Soho’s Linen Quill, 50% fine highland wool, 35% alpaca, and 15% linen. Each skein is 439 yards; approximately 593 yards required. We used Kettle Black.
- Color B: 1 skein of Purl Soho’s Linen Quill. Each skein is 439 yards; approximately 305 yards required. We used Pale Oats.
- US 3 knitting needles, straight or circular
We think this color combination looks nice, too!
- Color A: Heirloom White
- Color B: Stillwater Blue
Gauge
30 stitches = 4 inches in stitch pattern
Size
Finished Measurements: 8 inches wide x 70 inches long
Notes
On all right side rows, slip all of the slipped stitches with yarn in back.
On all wrong side rows, slip all of the slipped stitches with yarn in front.
Pattern
With Color A, cast on 59 stitches.
Row 1 (wrong side): With Color A, knit.
Row 2 (right side): With Color B, k1, *slip 1, k1, repeat from * to end of row. [See Notes, above, for slipping instructions.]
Row 3 (wrong side): With Color B, k1, *slip 1, knit 1, repeat from * to end of row.
Row 4 (right side): With Color A, knit.
Repeat Rows 1-4 until your scarf measures 70 inches from cast-on edge, ending with Row 4.
With Color A, bind off all stitches knitwise.
Weave in the ends, block as desired, and you’re done!
PRINT
Just to clarify the slipping part: Always (both rows 2 and 3) slip purlwise. The yarn is in back on Row 2 and the yarn is in front on Row 3. Am I understanding this correctly? Thanks! So appreciate your patterns, yarn, and help!
Hi Carol,
Thanks for writing in! For this pattern, all stitches are slipped purlwise. On all right side rows, slip all of the slipped stitches with yarn in back and on all wrong side rows, slip all of the slipped stitches with yarn in front. No matter where your yarn is, you will be slipping purlwise!
I hope that this helps!
Cassy
I recently made this for my son in the Heirloom and Stillwater as suggested, and he loves it. He’d like a ribbed hat. Would this yarn work with your ribbed hat patterns, and would I need to change the needle size and gauge?
Thanks.
Hi Marcia,
Thanks for writing in! While we do not have a ribbed hat pattern written specifically for this yarn, it is interchangeable with our Line Weight. I think Linen Quill would be fantastic in either our Boyfriend Hat or Color Dipped Hat! You should always check your gauge just in case, but you shouldn’t have any problems getting the correct gauge for either of these patterns.
Good luck and happy knitting!
Julianna
Hello,
I made this scarf last year and I love it! Now I want to make one for my Dad, and I can’t find the link to the tutorial that explained the slipstitching with yarns in the back and front. I’m hoping you can direct me to the link, because I’m a little confused and would love to see someone demonstrating to clarify it for me.
Kind regards,
Ursula.
Hi Ursula,
Thanks for writing in and for the kind words! Unfortunately we don’t have a video tutorial for slipping stitches; however, just remember that in this pattern, all stitches are slipped purlwise. On all right side rows, slip all of the slipped stitches with yarn in back and on all wrong side rows, slip all of the slipped stitches with yarn in front. No matter where your yarn is, you will be slipping purlwise!
I hope that helps!
Julianna
This pattern is gorgeous! I would like to make it for my son (aged 30) who lives in Boston and I’m thinking of using a really soft yarn as he is super sensitive to itching. As beautiful as Linen Quill is, I’m thinking of an alternative. Could you suggest another yarn that comes in colouways similar to the dark version in your illustration i.e. something like charcoal and oats? I would love to call in to choose for myself in but I live in Sydney Australia.
Hi Deb,
Thanks for writing, and what a wonderful present! Our Line Weight is a good substitute for Linen Quill and is unbelievably soft. It does not come in the exact same shades as Linen Quill, but I think Heirloom White and either Fieldstone Gray or Tabby Gray would be lovely together.
I hope that helps!
Julianna
Thank you so much, Julianna. Line Weight looks absolutely gorgeous! Deb
Hello!
I am planning on making this scarf, and substituting the Line Weight yarn for Linen Quill. Do you recommend buying the same amount of skeins as the pattern calls for?
Thank you!
Nicole
Hi Nicole,
Great question! Line Weight has a just a bit more yardage than Linen Quill, so you will need the same number of skeins, but could make your scarf a few inches longer if you would like!
Best,
Julianna
I like the look of slipping the first stitch of every row to create a neater edge. How would that work with this pattern?
Hi Elizabeth,
Thanks for writing in! I think it would work well to cast on two extra stitches to slip at the beginning and knit at the end of each row and work the pattern as written between the extra stitches!
Best of luck and happy knitting!
Julianna
I am swatching this in black and offwhite in a fingering weight Yarn. Could this be made successfully using a heavier Yarn?…DK or Worsted? If so, what needle size would be appropriate?
Anita
Hi Anita,
Thanks for writing in! I think this stitch pattern would look great and the color contrast would really pop in a heavier weight yarn! I would suggest knitting a gauge swatch in pattern using a needle either the size recommended on the yarn label on one size larger – this will both allow you to evaluate the fabric to see if you are happy with the needle and give you an opportunity to measure your stitches per inch so you can adjust the cast on of the scarf to suit your gauge!
Best of luck and happy knitting!
Julianna
Hey,
I love the pattern – and think I will make it this Christmas as a gift.
I would like to make it using 6 ply Jade Sapphire – do you have a rough guestimate on how many skeins I would need using the gauge on a US6 needle?
Thank you for your help!
Kindly
Kim
Hi Kim,
What a lovely idea! To use 6 ply cashmere and a US 6 needle, you will need to gauge up the pattern. To do so, you will want to knit a gauge swatch in pattern to help determine your cast on! This pattern will work over an odd number of stitches! We used about 2 times the amount of color A as we did color B. With that in mind and a scarf of the same size, I think that you will need 3 skeins of A and 2 skeins of B. This should allow you to get a scarf of roughly the same size!
Best,
Cassy
Hi, I’m new to colorwork and am wondering how to attach color B. I’ve made multiple failed attempts – the color B strand keeps falling off. I’ve read that you can knit the last stitch of the Color A row with Color B, as a double stitch. Does that mean that stitch would remain a double stitch for the entire pattern?
Also – I knit a practice swatch and ended up with color B and the tail end of color A on the right, and it was a knit with color A row. What am I doing wrong?
Thanks!
Hi Sarah,
Thanks for reaching out! When it is time to join Color B, you don’t need to do anything special – just start knitting the first stitch with Color B! After the first stitch, although it may feel a bit loose, it should be fairly secure and you can tighten up the loose stitch at the edge when you are weaving in your ends. Working one stitch with both yarns held together is a great way to join a new ball of the same color – for instance, when you run out of you first skein of Color A and need to join the second one – but I do not recommend it for joining a new color, since that stitch will not match the rest of the color pattern. If you decide to use that method for joining your second skein of Color A, you will treat the double stranded stitch as a single stitch on the following row, so you will only have one stitch with doubled yarn.
When you are working the stitch pattern, it is a four row repeat and you will be working two rows of each color, so your yarn should always be in the correct spot to change colors. Is it possible that you stopped after row 4 or skipped a row? I would suggest trying again and keeping a close eye on which row and color you are using!
I hope that helps!
Julianna
I’d like to make this scarf to wear with the Dappled Hat and Mittens Purl Soho pieces I’m also planning to make. Can I use Posy for this project instead of Linen Quill? If so, how many skeins should I buy and what adjustments are needed?
Thank you!!
Jewel
Hi Jewel,
Thanks for writing in! Yes, Posy would be a wonderful yarn to substitute for this pattern – since it is the same weight as Linen Quill, you can knit the pattern exactly as written! Even though it doesn’t have quite as much yardage as Linen Quill, you will still only need two skeins of Color A and one of Color B.
Happy knitting!
Julianna
HI, I love the look of this scarf and would like to make it for my son who requested a scarf in US Navy colors…navy blue and yellow gold, as he served in the Navy for 8 years. He would like a washable wool. Would you recommend this pattern and if so, what yarn would you suggest? Thank you, I appreciate your help.
Marian
Hi Marian,
Thanks for writing in! I think Tosh Merino Light in Candlewick and Thunderstorm would be lovely for this scarf and quite close to the colors you are looking for!
Best,
Julianna
I have two skeins of linen quill dark denim left over after making the end to end pullover. Thought that this scarf could be made with my left overs, but what color would you recommend to go with it? I love the yarn and the pullover worked out just great.
Hello Sue,
Thank you for reaching out. This is a great Idea! I think that Stonewall Gray or Gray Denim would both be lovely options.
Happy knitting!
-Marilla
Hi! I have two skeins of Stonewall Gray left, what would be nice colors to pair with it?
Hi Lotte,
Great question! Stonewall Gray is a very neutral gray, so you could choose almost any color to go with it! To stick with an overall neutral effect, you could use either Stillwater Blue or Heirloom White for Color B, depending on whether you want a dark or light colored scarf. You could also choose something brighter, like Dark Iris or Rhubarb Pink, for a pop of color!
Happy knitting!
Julianna
I’m so glad I found this pattern! I’m using it with ombre and gradient yarns plus a solid in a complementary shade and knitting the stitch pattern lengthwise so the effect creates a lengthwise woven look when completed. I’ve also worked out how to use this stitch pattern in the round for a cowl. It’s a super effective look using a simple knitting technique. I’m on my fourth project! (galeu on Ravelry)
Hi! Knew to knitting. Is the the first row after I cast on the 57 stitches and do you have a tutorial on how to add yarn B?
Hi Michelle,
Thanks for writing in, and I do hope you are enjoying learning to knit! The cast on does not count as the first row, so after casting on 57 stitches with Color A, you will then follow Row 1, which has you knit all 57 stitches in Color A. We don’t have a tutorial for joining a new color, unfortunately, but it’s quite easy! At the beginning of Row 2, you will simply start knitting with Color B by looping it over the right hand needle. The first stitch will look quite loose and loopy, but once the scarf is done, you can pull on the tail of the yarn to tighten things up before you weave in your ends.
Happy knitting!
Julianna