Larkspur Scarf

A long, light lace scarf in mohair and wool held double, its colours running from soft sage at the ends through dusky purples in the middle. It began with a larkspur I planted in the garden the summer after my mum died. It came up tall and striking, flowering the whole way up the stem, and that one plant made me smile on the hard days. This scarf carries its colours.

About the pattern

Worked flat, end to end, in a simple four-row lace pattern that runs the whole length. The colour changes as you go and is mirrored, so both ends match, with a rib panel breaking up the lace in each half and a long stretch of one colour running through the middle. Written instructions (not charted), with the colour sequence set out section by section. The source painting is included.

Skill level: Confident beginner upward. If you can knit, purl, work a yarn over and a simple decrease, and follow a few short rows of lace, you can make this. Holding two strands together is the only slightly fiddly part, and it becomes second nature quickly.

Yarn

A mohair-silk laceweight held together with a fingering wool throughout:

Rowan Kidsilk Haze (25 g / 210 m, 70% mohair / 30% silk), shade 00642: 3 balls

Holst Titicaca (50 g / 400 m, 100% wool), one ball each of:

Eucalyptus (sage): approx 60 m (66 yds)

Serenity (dark purple): approx 120 m (131 yds)

Lupine (purple): approx 145 m (159 yds)

Blossom (bright purple): approx 300 m (328 yds)

One ball of each Titicaca shade is plenty. The two rib sections hold two strands of Titicaca together (Serenity and Lupine).

Needles: 4.5 mm (US 7), or the size needed to obtain gauge.

Gauge: 22 sts × 21 rows = 10 cm / 4 in over the lace pattern, blocked. Gauge is not critical for a scarf, but a different gauge will change the finished size and the amount of yarn used.

Notions: Tapestry needle, blocking pins or wires.

Finished measurements: Approximately 24 cm / 9½ in wide × 210 cm / 82½ in long after blocking.

Format: Written PDF (A4), 8 pages, including the full colour sequence and the source painting.