The Purple Scarf Saga

I won't bore you with all the details, but sometime in January a lady asked me to make her a scarf. I thought she wanted one of my short crocheted snuggies. I can make one in about 3 hours, easily. But she wanted a particular color purple, to match her coat. I told her, "You choose and buy the yarn, and I'll make it. I'll knock a few dollars off the price, since you're buying the yarn." I told her to buy two skeins. And off she went.

She came back with this lovely and slightly expensive bamboo yarn. Worsted weight, but smooth and thin and soft.
Then she told me what she really wanted. She really wanted a  L  O  N  G  scarf. She likes to double her scarves, making a loop on one end and the two tails on the other end. Then she wraps the scarf around her neck, and sticks the two ends through the loop. It falls to her waist. She presented me with the measurements.

She wanted a scarf 87" long by 10" wide. In the confusion of the moment and the business of the market, I agreed. I even knocked a few dollars off the price of a snuggie (that I can make in 3 hours), because she'd paid for the yarn. Sheesh. I'm insane. Oh, did I mention she wanted it knitted? A knitted scarf over 7 feet long. Yeah, I'll be working on that the Rest of My Natural Life.

It wasn't her fault. The lady knows nothing of knit or crochet. She didn't suggest the knit; I offered it because I thought she wanted a flatter, finer look. I did it to myself.

After one false start, and hunting for more yarn (two skeins does NOT make a 7 foot scarf), not finding said yarn, buying other worse yarn, doing and undoing, and knitting endlessly for four weeks, I finished the scarf yesterday:

Here's the second yarn she chose, because the first purple yarn was discontinued:

 

Red Heart Super Scratchy gives me the heebie-jeebies. But she thought the color of it might work with the other purple.

The scarf is rather wide.

 I wet it thoroughly and blocked it gently overnight on my ironing board. It's curling along the edges, of course. 

I did a row of single crochet on each end, to help it lie flat there. But if I do that along each long edge, it will only make it wider.

Now I need my lady friend to come over and examine it. Does she want it as it is? I imagine she'll want at least 6" of fringe on each end, which will help. I could double the scarf over, making it narrow, but it will feel a bit thick. The Red Heart is much bulkier than the Bamboo.  The Bamboo would double beautifully. It's a shame there was no more of it.

Well, regardless, it's over at last. I'm so happy to move on to other more creative projects. I realized this time that a yarn project for which I don't pick the yarn and I don't design the look, is no fun. I don't like being a knitting machine. In my next post, I'll show you what I've finished since yesterday ... a purse, and a pair of smittens  for myself!