When I was a teenager, I insisted my mother knit me a Doctor
Who scarf. Although the colors weren’t precisely right,
it was exactly what I wanted: an absurdly
long, multicolored scarf with a generous
fringe. I wore it for years. And years.
I was still wearing it when I finished
university and started my first proper job.
One cold winter day, a coworker made a comment in passing.
I am certain he meant it to be helpful
advice, but it stung more than he could
know. He said that the scarf was childish,
and if I wanted to be taken seriously in my career I needed
to dress the part. The scarf got put away, and I spent more
than 10 years dressing conservatively for
a career that I never quite fit into.
Fast forward to 2005, when Doctor Who was relaunched to much
acclaim, and I was busy reinventing myself and finding a career
I could fit comfortably into. I never forgot my beloved Doctor
Who scarf – I’d kept it all along – and I harbored
a fantasy of reinventing it for my new life.
And so: Bigger on the inside. A sophisticated, grown-up
take on the Doctor Who scarf. No matter
how conservative your office, you won’t
be out of place with this draped tastefully
around your shoulders.
Width: 52 inches Depth at center: 15 inches Measurements taken after blocking
MATERIALS
Yarn
Lorna’s
Laces Solemate [55% superwash Merino,
30% Outlast, 15% nylon; 425yd per 100g
skein]; color: Bigger on the inside;
2 skeins Editor's note: this brand-new colorway,
created just for this project by the
great women at Lorna's Laces, will
soon be available at Eat
Sleep Knit and Jimmy
Beans Wool. Or contact your favorite LYS and ask them to order
it for you!
Recommended needle size [always use a needle
size that gives you the gauge
listed below -- every knitter's
gauge is unique]
US
#3/3.25mm circular needles – a short one for the lace
section and a long one for working the TARDIS
section and edging
Notions
yarn needle
GAUGE
24 sts/36 rows = 4 inches in stockinette stitch, after blocking
20 sts/28 rows = 4 inches in Time Vortex Lace, after blocking
PATTERN NOTES [Knitty's list of standard abbreviations and techniques can be found here.]
M1: Make a backwards
loop and place it on the right needle.
C2R: On RS, skip first
st, and knit into front of second st,
leaving both sts on left needle. Knit
first st and slip both off needle. On
WS, skip first st, and purl into front
of second st, leaving both sts on left
needle. Purl first st and slip both off
needle.
C2L: On RS, skip first
st, and knit into the back of second
st, leaving both sts on left needle.
Knit first st and slip both off needle.
On WS, skip first st and purl into the
back of second st, leaving both sts on
left needle. Purl first st and slip both
off needle.
Make bobble: (K1, yo,
k1) into the next st, turn. P3, turn.
CDD.
CDD [Central Double
Decrease]: Slip 2 sts together
as if to k2tog, k1, pass the 2 slipped
sts over the stitch just knit.
Charts
The charts for this pattern are very large. Each fits on a letter-sized
page.
Click the links below and print each resulting page
Starting with a RS row, work rows 1 to
24 of the Time Vortex Lace Increase chart
7 times until there are 52 sts, incorporating
an additional horizontal repeat after each
vertical repeat.
Starting with a RS row, work rows 1 to
8 of the Time Vortex Lace Center chart 3
times, working the 6-st repeat 8 times across
row.
Work Rows 1 to 7 once more, ending
on a RS row (31 rows total).
Starting on a WS row, work rows 1 to 24
of the Time Vortex Lace Decrease chart 7
times until 9 sts remain, removing repeats
of the 6-st pattern across row as st count
decreases.
Final decrease section Row 1 [WS]: K2, p to last
3 sts, p2tog, p1. 9 sts. 1 st decreased. Row 2 [RS]: Knit. Rows 3 to 10: Repeat the last
2 rows until 4 sts rem. 4 sts decreased. Row 11 [WS]: K2, p2tog. 3
sts. 1 st decreased. Row 12 [RS]: K2tog, k1. 2
sts. 1 st decreased. Row 13 [WS]: K2tog. 1
st. 1 st decreased.
Cut yarn and pull through final st to secure.
TARDIS Section
With RS facing, rejoin yarn and pick
up and knit 311 sts evenly distributed
along the right (curved) edge of lace
section.
Starting on WS, work rows 1 to 41 of TARDIS
chart, repeating sts in red box
15 times in total across each row.
Lower Edging Ribbing row 1 [RS]: K3, [p1,
k3] to end. Ribbing row 2 [WS]: P3, [k1,
p3] to end.
Work ribbing as set until ribbing measures
2 inches, ending with a WS row.
Bind off as follows: K2, *insert tip of
left needle into the front of these two
sts (from left to right, as if to SSK),
and knit them together; k1, repeat from
* to end. Cut yarn and pull through final
st to secure.
FINISHING
Block and weave in ends.
ABOUT THE DESIGNER
Kate is Knitty’s Tech Editor, and her favorite Doctors are
Ten and Four.
And yes, that's the original scarf in her headshot.