Most knitters have admired knit lace at some point during their knitting ‘careers’. Lace just has that effect on people. With its combination of solid and open fabric, it can intrigue the eyes and provide a nice challenge to the knitter who feels like branching out their skills a bit.

Lace scarves are wonderful accessories. They can add a touch of class to an outfit, provide a bit of extra warmth on chilly days, and show off the skills of the knitter, since not all lace is simple to accomplish. Fortunately for those who are so inclined, there are many lace scarf patterns to choose from, be they free or for a small cost, online or in books.

But what do you do when you’ve been bitten by the lace bug and the inspiration bug? Let’s say you’ve knit your way through most of the popular lace patterns out there, and nothing else is really catching your fancy. Do you just put down your needles? Take a pattern that you’ve used before and make another one? Maybe it’s time to start designing your own patterns for lace scarves. 

Sometimes, your first design can be as simple as taking a well-known stitch pattern, such as feather-and-fan or eyelets, and using one specific yarn for it. Take the Misty Garden scarf by Jo Sharp. This pattern was published Scarf Style, but isn’t anything more than the feather and fan pattern done in one particular yarn, which can give it a signature appearance. Take a look through your stash and stitch dictionaries, and see what yarn you think would go best with a certain pattern. A lot of lace designers start out this way.

For something a little more challenging and original, you might have to browse through your stitch dictionaries a little bit further. Don’t do something that’s already been done a hundred times by a thousand people. Take a pattern that you don’t see all over the place, cast on for a few repeats, and knit away. Most scarves can be called ‘long enough’ when they’re as long as your armspan; that is, when you spread yours arms out to the side as wide as you can, you should be able to hold an end in each hand without the fabric stretching and warping.

If you want to create something truly original, try to design a scarf with a theme. The prairies of Midwestern America, old Japan, the goddess of the moon, whatever takes your fancy. Try to find 2 or 3 different stitch patterns that you think go well with that theme, and then incorporate them into the scarf. You could have a column of Pattern A in the centre with a border of Pattern B on either side, or perhaps a wide section of Pattern A, then B, then C, then back to B and then A again.

Don’t be afraid to try borders on your scarves. Not just one pattern that lines the sides of another pattern, but honest-to-goodness borders, usually that are knit on after the central part of the scarf is finished. The Wide-Bordered Scarves featured in Victorian Lace Today are excellent examples of how adding a simple border can change and enhance the overall look of a lace scarf.

With enough experience and comfort, you can try making up your own lace patterns, or working a twist on old ones. Take an established pattern and do something different with it. Add some yarn-overs in the centre of a diamond pattern, or add another border of eyelets around a leaf. Combine the top and bottom half of two pattern (provided the stitch counts match) and see what it looks like. Doing this will just about guarantee you a truly unique scarf!

There are a few tips and tricks that go along with successful designs. Aside from the pattern itself, a scarf ought to have a catchy name, something that comes easily to mind and fits with the theme or pattern of your scarf. “Scarf with an Oak Leaf Centre Panel and a Diamond Border” doesn’t really have the same oomph as “Nature’s Bounty.” Make the name short and sweet, and have it relate back to the patterns without sounding as though you’re trying to break down the pattern into its individual components.

Blocking the scarf is also essential. Blocking refers to wetting the fabric, then stretching it out to the desired shape and dimensions, then letting it dry. Stretching the fabric allows the lace patterns to show up more clearly, and adds some wonderful definition to the pattern that is missed when you don’t bother to block lace. It also will add a bit of length and width to the scarf, so keep that in mind when you’re knitting it. You may think that adding another repeat is a good idea, but that might make it wider than you first thought. It’s not so bad if this does happen, but if you have a specific image of your scarf in mind, remember what will happen when it gets blocked.

Speaking of blocking, lace is best knit in natural fibres like wool, cotton, silk, or others. Not synthetics like acrylic or nylon. The reason is that synthetics will not hold their shape when blocked, but will spring back to their natural tension. This means the lace pattern will not be able to be shown as well as if you knit with a natural fibre, which will keep its shape after blocking. 

And don’t forget to keep your needle size in mind before starting the project. Lace tends to require a larger needle size than the yarn usually calls for. If the yarn calls for US size 6 needles, try moving it up to US size 8 or 9. otherwise, with all the decreases and increases, the fabric will get too tight in places to knit comfortably, and even blocking will leave the fabric a little too solid. Experiment with needle sizes until the pattern looks right to you.

Which brings me to my final tip, one that many knitters (myself included) tend to forego. Don’t forget to swatch! Knitting a few pattern repeats before committing to the full scarf will tell you if you’re using the right needle size for what you want, if the yarn and the pattern go together as well as you first thought, and will give you a pretty good estimation of how fun or frustrating the scarf will be to knit.

If you like your pattern, trying publishing it. If you have a knitting blog or a Ravelry account, show it off there, and see how many people want to make that scarf for themselves. Don’t get discouraged, though, if your pattern isn’t an instant success, even if it is a wonderful design. Pattern popularity depends partially on marketing, and partially on name recognition. If no one knows who you are, no one will know you just designed anything. Take this time to post to a few knitting or lace communities, get the word out there, and if luck is on your side, soon you’ll have a few people knitting your pattern.

There are so many possibilities with lace that the number of patterns you can create are almost endless. They can be simple and repetitive, or complex and ever-changing, and they’re loved as a fun and attractive challenge for knitters of all skill levels. Take that step into the world of designing. I promise you, you won’t look back