A KNITTED TEXTURED BOW TIE

So, before you start thinking I’m one of those girlfriends who makes weird stuff for their boyfriend and then forces him to wear it against their will—Graeme actually requested this bow tie. Well, more specifically he wanted a crocheted one. And my plan for the longest time, was to make him one and then send it to him in the post (being able to send each other post is potentially the only fun part of being in a long distance relationship). But, due to my poor organizing skills, this actually ended up being one of his presents. Small presents are important too!

Instead of crocheting the bow tie though, I decided to knit it in a lovely moss knitting stitch for texture (random fact: this stitch is called a pearl knitting stitch in Norwegian. Pearl knitting stitch sounds much nicer than moss, no?). This is a super simple knitting project, and it’s really quick to make too. All you need is some yarn, 3.5 mm knitting needles, an elastic and a stitching needle to assemble everything. I chose an inexpensive wool yarn in charcoal grey. 

ONE: Start by knitting the bigger piece. Using 3.5 knitting needles, make 15 stitches (measuring approx. 5 cm). For each row, knit one, purl one til the end of the row. Turn the piece around and repeat. Aas you have an odd number of stitches this will result in the moss knitting stitch without you having to think about starting one row on a purl and one on a knit, etc. Repeat until the piece measures about 8 cm.

TWO: For the smaller piece, using the same needles, knit 5 stitches (measuring approx. 1 cm). Using the same stitch,  knit until the piece measures about 5 cm.

Step 3: Assemble by pinching the bigger piece, and wrapping the small piece around the middle. Stitch it in place, and add the elastic. I cut the elastic to measure approximately 15 cm, so that it would fit nicely around Graeme's neck but also loose enough that he can easily get it over his head. And voila! Attach to your favorite man.

Though let’s be honest, I’m totally one of those girlfriends who makes weird stuff for their boyfriend and then makes him wear it. Hopefully not against his will, though!