The Kane Scarf
A step-by-step guide to knitting the Kane Scarf
THE KANE SCARF IS A BEGINNER’S BEST FRIEND. The outdoorsy type, Kane is super soft and cosy and has just enough detail that no one will believe you made it yourself.
Even if you've never knitted before, we'll take you from zero to hero in no time 🦸♀️
When it comes to knitting, practice makes perfect
Before we get started on the pattern we suggest you spend a bit of time learning the basic stitches you’ll need to complete your scarf.
The Kane Scarf uses just two stitches - the queen of the knitting world, the knit stitch. And her companion, the purl stitch. You'll want to be confident with both these stitches before you start 🧶 You'll also want to get a hang of tying a slip knot and casting on your stitches which is the first step in any knitting project.
You can use the yarn that came in your kit to practice with. Once you've got these mastered you'll find the pattern a cinch!
Total beginner? 👩🏫
For a more comprehensive lesson on the basics of knitting visit our LEARN TO KNIT Page.
💪 Remember learning a new skill can be a little challenging at first, and you’re bound to find yourself making some mistakes along the way. But as with learning anything, your brain and your hands slowly start to get the hang of it, muscle memory is created, and soon the thing you found tricky/daunting/scary is like second nature!
📏 Test your tension
While we're practising and before you start your project, you'll want to make sure your tension (how tightly or loosely your knitting is) is juuuust right 🥣 We do this by making a “tension swatch”. It's a bit like Goldilocks, if the tension is too tight, your piece will be too small, and if it's too loose it may not hold its shape and might be too big.
GAUGE: IF DONE CORRECTLY, YOUR 10X10CM KNITTED SWATCH SHOULD BE 7 STITCHES WIDE AND 11 ROWS HIGH WHEN KNITTED IN GARTER STITCH ON YOUR 15MM NEEDLES.
TO TEST THIS, JUMP ON YOUR NEEDLES - USE THE YARN AND NEEDLES THAT CAME IN YOUR KIT. CAST ON AROUND 12-15 STITCHES, THEN KNIT IN GARTER STITCH (KNIT ALL STITCHES IN EVERY ROW) FOR AROUND 12-16 ROWS. THEN MEASURE A 10X10CM SQUARE AND COUNT YOUR STITCHES AND ROWS WITHIN THAT SPACE TO MAKE SURE YOU'RE KNITTING AT THE CORRECT TENSION.
IF YOU'VE GOT MORE STITCHES OR ROWS THAN THE INSTRUCTIONS SAY YOU SHOULD HAVE, YOUR KNITTING IS A LITTLE TOO TIGHT, AND IF YOU'VE GOT LESS YOUR KNITTING IS TOO LOOSE. ADJUST YOUR TENSION BY HOLDING THE YARN A LITTLE MORE TIGHTLY/LOOSELY AS YOU KNIT.
TIME TO SWITCH OFF. STITCH ON. AND WHIP UP YOUR COSY SCARF.
⚡️What you'll need
Your kit comes with everything you'll need to make your masterpiece. In your kit you'll find;
- 15mm needles
- 3 balls of Cardigang Chunky Wool Yarn
- A darning needle
- Made by me tag
You also want to have a pair of scissors handy.
STEP 1: Cast on
First thing first, cast on your stitches. With colour 1 (the colour you've got 2 balls of) make a slip knot to get started. Then you'll cast on stitches until you've got 20 stitches on your left needle.
💭 Casting on, like many things in knitting, can be done in a number of ways so if you don't like the technique we suggested, you can pick any that’s right for you.
STEP 2: RIB STITCH
ONCE YOU'VE CAST ON THE RIGHT NUMBER OF STITCHES YOU MOVE ON TO THE RIB. TO CREATE A RIB stitch pattern WE KNIT 1 STITCH, THEN PURL THE NEXT, THEN KNIT THE NEXT, THEN PURL THE NEXT AND REPEAT.
💭 MAKE SURE YOU’RE MOVING YOUR YARN TAIL FROM THE BACK TO THE FRONT OF YOUR WORK BETWEEN EACH STITCH (BRING THE YARN IN THROUGH THE MIDDLE OF THE NEEDLES) TO ENSURE THE RIB IS EXECUTED CORRECTLY.
STEP 3: GARTER STITCH
Great! THat's the hard part done! Next, you're going to knit in garter stitch until we've used up both balls of colour 1.
Garter stitch is the simplest stitch! It's created by knitting every stitch in every row - super simple hey?! 😎
💡 Slip your first stitch on your left need onto your right needle without knitting it. If you do this on every row it will stop your scarf from curling up at the sides.
When you've got around 20cm left of your second ball of colour 1 we're going to change to colour 2.
🎬 Watch How To Change Colours
Just keep knitting… DID SOMEBODY SAY WINE TIME?! 🍷
STEP 4: RIB STITCH
We finish the scarf with another 6 rows of rib stitch.
STEP 5: CAST OFF
✔️ Time to cast all your stitches off your needle.
When you cast off the second last stitch you'll be left with one stitch on your right needle. Cut your yarn from the ball (give yourself about a 25cm tail) and thread the tail back through the last stitch to secure it.
D.O.N.E! You've finished your scarf, well done! Epic work 🤩 If this was your first-ever knitting project or one of many, we hope you had a blast click-clacking and making your masterpiece💥❤️
In a bind and need a little more help?
Email us at stitchup@cardigang.com.au and we'll be able to help! Whether you're just starting out, or you've got a specific question or problem (dropped a stitch, no stress!), we're here to get you out of a bind.
