WIP ~ Harry Potter style scarf (1st project!)

#1

Hi everyone! This is my very first knitting project! I’m making one of those two-color chunky-striped scarves from the first couple Harry Potter movies, based off this pattern: http://www.the-leaky-cauldron.org/features/crafts/knitting/sspsstylehogwartsscarf. It’s knit in the round, which is weird because when I move on to my second project once this is done, standard non-circular needles will feel strange to me.

I’m using the same color combo as the photo in that link (blue/bronze), but my blue is darker (Lion’s Brand Wool-Ease worsted weight in 114 - Denim) and the closest thing I could find to bronze was gold (same brand in 171 - gold). I have three of each color stripe so far, though not fully done with the third gold stripe yet. Here’s how it’s coming along:

Doing my best, but as I said, I’m brand new at this! Also interesting thing to note, I didn’t read the Harry Potter books or see any of the movies until this summer. I’m a bit behind the times.

#2

You may be a beginner, but your work is beautiful! Looks just like a pro!

Keep it up and you’ll be in the experienced category before you know it!

Great job! :cheering:

#3

As a huge Harry Potter old lady, you are forgiven for not reading the books, etc! :wink: I have read or listened to them over 20 times each and for some reason never get tired of them. lol I also have all the movies on DVD.
The scarf really looks terrific!! Have you thought about using your circs as straight needles? I never, ever knit with straight needles anymore. For one thing, the circs hold the weight of whatever I am knitting so much better than a straight needle does. It is pretty easy, you just cast on, knit the row and turn and come back starting with the last stitch on the first row instead of coming to the end and then knitting into the first stitch again so that it is a circle.

Looking forward to seeing the finished product! Is is for you or someone else???

#4

Thanks! :slight_smile: Antares, if you could see a close-up of that first blue stripe you would not think it was beautiful. haha. Especially the first couple rows that are curled up right now. I started to get the hang of it about halfway through that first stripe, and the mistakes started to be less frequent. I still have to make sure I don’t pull too tightly though. Especially on the gold rows… that yarn feels so much tighter for some reason. Maybe it’s all in my head.

Nonny, I finished book 7 a few months ago and have now gotten caught up on all the movies except the last one. I watched Deathly Hallows Part 1 this week and have Part 2 on dvd to watch when I get a nice block of time to devote to it. The series started to get really popular when I was in college (2000-2004, I’ll be 30 next month) with no time to read anything just for fun. The scarf is for me… I was afraid of having my first project be a gift in case it was full of mistakes. I want to make my mother something next I think. I haven’t decided what yet though. I went with the scarves from the older movies because they looked easier and I also like them a little better. And I went with the book colors for Ravenclaw because I like the books better than the movies.

#5

I still have gift giving anxiety that someone may hate what I make them or whatever. I am sort of perfectionist and had to come to terms with sometimes you make booboos and it is all part of the project. Sometimes you can fix them and sometimes it is so small as no one will notice so you don’t rip it all out to fix it. The more you knit the better you get at it and you will find you want to branch out more and more. It was actually quite brave of you to start with a scarf in the round and striped so big kudos to you. Wear it proudly and we can’t wait to see it on you!!! :0)

#6

It’s a beautiful scarf and very well knit, very even. What a successful beginning to a first project. And you know, you don’t have to give up the circular needles. They work very well for projects that are knit flat.

#7

Knitting in the round for the first project is actually working out well for me, because I tend to be a perfectionist too, and I tell myself that places where there’s a random hole won’t be as noticeable because there will be same-color yarn on the other side :slight_smile: Also nice to know that I could potentially keep using circular needles for other projects that don’t necessarily call for it.

#8

That’s looking awesome!!! :yay: I actually just bought some yarn today to make this exact scarf! I’m a fellow Ravenclaw. :slight_smile: I’m making one for my boyfriend in Gryffindor colors too.

Please tell me you didn’t just read book 7 without reading the first 6… you did read all of them right? Otherwise, I might faint. :rofl:

#9

haha, I just commented on your Ravenclaw Kindle cozy. Love it! Might attempt an iphone-sized one when the scarf is done.

Don’t worry, I DEFINITELY read all seven books. :slight_smile: Skipping ahead or going out of order would’ve driven me crazy. And I had a rule that I couldn’t see a movie until I’d read its corresponding book. I read my boyfriend’s copies of all seven books and then went and ordered my own set from the UK so they would say “Philosopher’s Stone.” Because I’m a nerd.

#10

:roflhard: I think you and I could be BFFs! That’s awesome!

#11

Hope this doesn’t double-post because my first attempt seems to have disappeared.

I meant to add that I’m also thinking of making the boyfriend a Gryffindor scarf at some point too.

#12

The scarf is beautiful, impressve first project! Indeed, looks very evenly knit. Make sure you post a picture when it’s done. Great job!

#13

Thanks! I’ll definitely post pictures when it’s done. It’s going to take awhile though–the pattern calls for 10 blue and 9 bronze stripes. I’m a few rows into the fourth blue stripe. My goal is to finish it while there’s still some scarf-wearing weather left in the season. It would be nice to be done by the end of January so that I have a couple months left where I could wear it.

#14

Your scarf is coming along nicely, well done! I have two sets of Harry Potter books-the US versions and the UK versions. I love the UK versions more!

#15

Very professional knitting…You will have a beautiful scarf in the colors you have chosen. I love the Harry Potter books and made a scarf and hat for the giffendors!!

#16

I got the UK books with the “adult” cover art so they look all fancy. Although I do kind of miss the interior illustrations.

One thing from the movies I love is in Order of the Phoenix when Luna says “I hope there’s pudding.” From what I understand, in the UK “pudding” can be used way more generally than how Americans use it, the same way we’d say “dessert,” so hearing the line “I hope there’s pudding” as an American makes it sound that much more random and bizarre. And Order of the Phoenix was my favorite of the books and the movie just didn’t measure up for me, so I had to enjoy the small things like that.

#17

My goodness, you have perfect stitches! Wonderful work!