First Frost

First Frost Lace Scarf by Rebecca Blair

What Is Being Made

First Frost is a delicate lace scarf designed by Rebecca Blair that draws inspiration from traditional Orenburg lace shawls. This downloadable knitting pattern creates an elegant, openwork scarf with a refined construction method that begins and ends with decorative edging strips. The scarf features mitered corners that ensure the finished piece lies beautifully flat, making it both a functional accessory and a showcase of advanced lace-knitting techniques.

Construction Techniques

The First Frost scarf employs a distinctive construction approach that sets it apart from typical scarf patterns. The scarf begins with a strip of edging, from which stitches are picked up to form the main body of the scarf. As the knitter works through the pattern, a second strip of edging is attached to the scarf simultaneously, creating a finished edge without the need for separate finishing steps. The corners are mitered—a technique that creates diagonal seams—ensuring they lie flat and maintain the scarf's elegant drape.

Stitches and Techniques Used

This pattern requires knitters to master several intermediate to advanced techniques:

• Provisional cast-on: A temporary cast-on method used to create live stitches that can be worked in the opposite direction later
• Knitting: The fundamental stitch that forms the base of the fabric
• Picking up and knitting stitches: A technique for drawing new yarn through existing stitches to create new working stitches, essential for attaching the edging strips
• Decreasing with k2tog and sk2p: Two different decrease methods used to shape the lace pattern and create the mitered corners
• Yarn overs: Creating deliberate holes in the fabric that form the openwork lace design
• M1 increase: A method for increasing stitches that creates minimal visibility in the finished fabric
• Wrapping and turning for short rows: A technique that allows the knitter to work back and forth on a subset of stitches, creating shaping without cutting the yarn
• Chart reading: The pattern is presented in chart form, requiring knitters to interpret symbols that represent different stitches and techniques

Materials and Yarn Specifications

First Frost is designed to be worked in lace weight yarn, specifically one skein of Fiddlesticks Knitting Exquisite. This luxury yarn combines 50% merino wool with 50% mulberry silk, creating a fabric with excellent drape and a subtle sheen. The single skein provides 546 yards (499 meters) of yarn per 50-gram weight, offering ample yardage for the complete scarf. The yarn is worked on US #3 (3mm) circular needles measuring 24 inches in length. Additional materials include a tapestry needle for weaving in ends, stitch markers for tracking pattern repeats, and an oddment of scrap yarn for the provisional cast-on technique.

Design Details

This pattern was designed by Rebecca Blair and copyrighted in 2010. The combination of merino wool and mulberry silk in the recommended yarn creates a lightweight, lustrous fabric ideal for lace knitting, while the natural elasticity of merino wool helps the scarf maintain its shape. The lace-weight yarn and fine needle size produce an intricate, delicate fabric that showcases the openwork design inspired by traditional Orenburg lace shawlmaking traditions.