The Water is Wide by Huan-Hua Chye

The Water is Wide

Knitting
April 2008
Noro Kureyon
Plymouth Boku
Worsted (9 wpi) ?
20 stitches and 24 rows = 4 inches
in stockinette
US 7 - 4.5 mm
300 - 440 yards (274 - 402 m)
English
This pattern is available for $6.95 USD
buy it now or visit pattern website

This scarf pattern includes several different variations, all completely reversible:
1) Cabled waves on one side, quilted gull stitch rib on the other. Shown in lavender-ish Malabrigo Silky Merino.
2) “Wings to Fly”: Quilted gull stitch rib on both sides. Shown in rainbow striped colors of Noro Kureyon and Plymouth Boku.
3) “Sailing the Sea”: Wave cables on both sides.
And 3a), shown in the photos in blue Malabrigo Merino Worsted, is the Sailing the Sea variation, but worked with a keyhole fastening instead of as a plain flat scarf--this uses less yardage than a full scarf would, and holds the scarf securely in place around your neck.

Inspired by a traditional folksong by the same name:
The water is wide, I can’t cross over
And neither do I have wings to fly
Give me a boat that can carry two
And both shall row, my love and I

You can (for the moment, at least) find a video of the version I know on YouTube.

The pattern is available for sale via Ravelry PDF download. You essentially get four scarf patterns for the price of one!

  • It includes both charts and written instructions for the three different pattern variations.

  • The Sailing the Sea variation includes instructions to make both a regular scarf and the keyhole scarf shown in the pattern photos.

  • The pattern includes a two-page photo tutorial for the special quilted stitch used in the main pattern and the Wings to Fly variation.

  • Includes an explanation of the scarf’s mechanics and architecture, allowing you to really understand the pattern rather than just mechanically following the charts.

  • The variations, specifications/photo pages, explanations, and tutorial are all printed on their own individual page(s), so you can easily separate out the pages you need for knitting on the go, and don’t have to carry around all 9 pages with you at all times.