When the winter doldrums have you down in the dumps, what better way to brighten your day than to swath yourself with sunlight, honey, gold, and warmth? Esti uses knit and crochet motifs for texture; some hues gleam and glow while others recede like shadows. Esti is a perfect way to stave off Old Man Winter’s icy blasts and gray skies while keeping yourself cozy and stylish.

Pattern has knitted and crocheted motifs, both of which are given in charted and written formats

Notes:
• the size 6 needles and hook required by the pattern are both 4.25mm, not 4.0,mm or 4.5mm. The needles I used that had this size were bamboo, and the hook I used was a Boye.
• the pattern calls for a skein of each yarn, but none of them even used 1/2 of a skein—this would be a great project for tiny skeins of yarn left over from other projects.

Notions: a yarn needle for grafting and seaming.

Skill Level: Crochet—Intermediate, Knit—Experienced
Techniques: Crochet—forming chain, puff, & slip stitches; single, half double, & double crochet stitches; working in the round; starting with magic ring. Knit—provisional cast-on from crocheted chain, knitting, yarn overs, encroached short rows, grafting. See note at bottom-right about techniques.
Gauge: varies by motif, yarn, and needle/hook, but motifs should always feel firm. If a motif feels floppy, the overall structure of the finished piece will be negatively affected.
Finished Size: 18” tall x 54” outer circumference (46 cm x 137 cm) There is a schematic in the pattern with more detailed sizing information.

On construction: This pattern is excellent for stash-busting since you only need about 10-35 yards per motif. There is space given by the layout schematic on page 4 to write in yarn substitutions. A large skein of heavy lace weight yarn held single/double/triple/quadruple would make the motifs more homogenous. Another option is to use various stash yarns or handspuns then overdye the scarf after assembly. The choices are endless!

The knitting skill level is “experienced” because of the provisional cast-on and graft; simpler methods for casting on and finishing knitted motifs are also given. All techniques are explained in words in the pattern. Flickr photo tutorials for the provisional cast-on, short rows, grafting, and magic ring are linked on the last page.

Pattern PDF is 5 pages and roughly 1.5 megabytes. (For a full preview of the actual first page of the pattern, see the images to the left.)