Our first meeting of 2024 was an exciting demonstration by Diana Sullivan: “Garter Bar Basics and New Tricks.” Not only did we learn some great new tricks, but we got a sneak peek at her new “Dragon Scarf” pattern! It’s such a fun project and an opportunity to practice new things on your knitting machine! While the pattern has not yet been officially released, check out dianaknits to keep an eye out!
The Dragon Scarf has a lot of interesting techniques in it, and the result is very unusual and striking. It is completely reversible. It takes less than one package of “Shawl-In-A-Cake” and is very pretty in many other yarns. The unusual texture of the shawl is provided by doing a triangular version of Quaker Stitch – knitting several rows before using the garter bar to flip the fabric. The techniques in this scarf are:
- Making an I-Cord;
- Using I-Cord for casting on and increasing along the length of the scarf;
- Finishing with I-Cord;
- Automatic wrap short-rowed triangles;
- A row with two different tensions;
- Decreasing multiple stitches at the beginning of a row (easily and beautifully!); and
- Flipping with the garter bar.
Diana’s sample was made on a Brother 9mm bulky machine. You will get best results if you have a Japanese style garter bar with the brass stopper and grooves for turning the work. The scarf can be made on a standard gauge machine or LK150, however, some changes will need to be made.