656 Foreground Scarf - Knitting Pattern for Kids and Adults in Valley Yarns Berkshire

656 Foreground Scarf – Knitting Pattern for Kids and Adults by Kirsten Hipsky

The 656 Foreground Scarf is a beautifully textured knitted scarf pattern designed by Kirsten Hipsky and published by Valley Yarns. Suitable for both kids and adults, this beginner-friendly design produces a wide, luxurious scarf measuring 60 inches long and 10 inches wide. The pattern is available as a downloadable PDF and makes an excellent project for knitters who want to explore lace-like textures without the complexity typically associated with traditional lace knitting.

What Is Being Made

This pattern creates a single, generously sized rectangular scarf with a richly textured surface. The finished dimensions — 60 inches in length and 10 inches in width — make it a versatile accessory suitable for wrapping, draping, or wearing in a variety of styles. The scarf's substantial width gives it a cozy, statement-making presence that works equally well for children and adults.

Construction Method and Techniques

One of the most distinctive aspects of this pattern is its side-to-side construction. Rather than casting on a small number of stitches and working from end to end, knitters cast on 240 stitches along the full length of the scarf and work across the width. This means the scarf grows in width row by row, rather than in length. The pattern notes that the exact stitch count is not critical as long as it remains an even number, giving knitters a degree of flexibility.

The scarf is worked flat on circular needles, meaning it is knitted back and forth in rows rather than in the round, despite the use of a circular needle. A 40-inch circular needle in US size 9 (5.50mm) is recommended to accommodate the large number of cast-on stitches comfortably. The technique is bottom-up and entirely seamless — no seaming is required at any stage of construction.

The Featured Stitch Pattern

The heart of this design is a stitch that Kirsten Hipsky has spotlighted under the name Foreground Stitch, a playful nod to its original name, "Lace Background Stitch", as found in Barbara Walker's Treasury of Knitting Patterns. As the pattern notes, this stitch is unusual among lace-style patterns because its structure is not formed strictly by traditional increases and decreases. Instead, it relies on a distinctive bundling action involving yarn overs, slipped stitches, and the deliberate dropping of yarn overs from the preceding row — a technique accessible even to relatively inexperienced knitters.

The stitch repeat works over an 8-row sequence (Rows 4–11), interspersed with bands of garter stitch (rows of plain knitting). These garter bands serve a structural purpose, grounding the lace-like motif and creating a fabric with clear, rhythmic texture. The interplay between the open, airy lace rows and the solid garter bands gives the scarf its uniquely dimensional surface.

Stitches Used

• Garter stitch – formed by knitting every row, used at the beginning, end, and throughout the repeat to frame the lace pattern
• Yarn over (yo) – creates the openwork element of the lace motif
• Slip stitch (sl1) – slipping one stitch purlwise with yarn in back, integral to the bundling action of the lace pattern
• Pass slipped stitch over (psso-style action) – passing the slipped stitch over both the knit stitch and the following yarn over to create the characteristic bundled texture
• Dropped yarn over – intentionally dropping the yarn over of the preceding row to elongate and open the stitch, a key feature of the Foreground Stitch
• Purl stitch – used on wrong-side rows within the lace repeat

Materials

The pattern calls for 4 skeins of Valley Yarns Berkshire, a worsted-weight yarn with a warm, natural fiber composition of 85% wool and 15% alpaca. Each skein contains 100 grams and 141