Whit's Knits: Mohair Lace Scarf

I love mohair. I love its natural luster, fuzzy texture and richly absorbed color. Mohair has a warm sense of humor and an easy elegance, like a great date!

Until Wagtail Yarns arrived at Purl I had never seen, let alone knit with, one hundred percent mohair. As far as I knew mohair was always combined with merino or silk or nylon. I had assumed the fiber was too fragile to stand alone. Wrong!

Wagtail's 4 Ply Kid Mohair is not only pure mohair, it is as strong as wool and more beautiful than any adulterated mohair I have ever seen. And no wonder, it was truly made with love by Wagtail's three person operation in Queensland, Australia. Since 1979 they have been perfecting the art of creating luxury mohair yarn. With over a thousand selectively bred Angora Goats, they shear, spin and dye the yarn all themselves. (FYI: Angora Goats make mohair and Angora Rabbits make angora. Confusing!)

With such special yarn, I was a little intimidated to begin my scarf. I tried lots of different stitch patterns before realizing that a very simple lace pattern would best allow the yarn to speak for itself. I love that in mohair there's nothing fussy about lace. Instead, the stitch pattern evokes nature's own creations: undulating fields of autumn grasses, ripples on the surface of a rocky creek, combs of golden honey...

The Materials

• 1 skein of Wagtail Yarn's 4 Ply Kid Mohair, 100% fine kid mohair. This color is "Copper".

• A set of US size #7 needles. (I used and highly recommend Skacel's Addi Lace Needles in the 24 inch length. The sharp tips and not so slippery metal make these a great choice for lace projects and for fine yarn.)

The Pattern

Gauge

4 1/2 stitches = 1 inch in the lace pattern

Finished Size

7 inches wide x 64 inches long. (There is enough yarn in one skein to cast on an extra 4 stitches or to knit the scarf even longer.)

Pattern

Cast on 32 stitches. (Or if you want the scarf to be skinnier or wider, cast on any multiple of 4.)

Row 1: K4, *yo twice, k4, repeat from * to end of row.

Row 2: P2, *p2tog, (p1, k1) into the yo's from previous row, p2tog, repeat from * to last 2 stitches, p2.

Row 3: K2, yo, *k4, yo twice, repeat from * to last 6 stitches, k4, yo, k2.

Row 4: P3, *p2tog twice, (p1, k1) into yo's from previous row, repeat from * to last 7 stitches, p2tog twice, p3.

Repeat Rows 1-4 until scarf measures 64 inches (or as long as you like).

On an odd side row, bind off very loosely. (I used a size 11 needle to help e keep my bind off loose.)

Weave in the ends and gently block your scarf.

Pattern How To's

How to "yo twice"

To "yo twice", first bring the yarn forward into the purl position, then wrap it up and over the right needle, bringing the yarn back around into the purl position.

When you knit the next stitch your yarn overs will form two stitches.

How to "(p1, k1) into yo's from previous row"

Bring the yarn forward and purl into the first yarn over. The stitch will feel very stretched out and loose. That's okay!

Next, bring the yarn back into the knit position...

...and knit into the remaining yarn over.