I first picked up the Loops & Threads Dewdrops yarn on a whim. It has a pleasant mix of super bulky acrylic with some sequins throughout to give it a feminine touch. However, my first three attempts to take advantage of the yarn's texture ended up being way too dense, failing to balance the delicate sequins and making the beige seem really bland.
So I decided to walk away from it for a few weeks and found some renewed determination yesterday. I browsed through what other Ravelers have managed to do with the yarn and finally came across someone who just did the Tunisian knit stitch with it. I liked it, but wasn't yet certain it was what I wanted for my own project. Then I realized that I could ease the amount of density simply by using a basic Tunisian lace technique of "chaining" between stitches.I ran the initial swatches past my husband, pared down the width to a whole 9 stitches (reason #2 why I LOVE super bulky yarn), and started cranking. A couple of hours of TV later, the darn thing was practically finished. However, I still was feeling that the heaviness of the yarn could use a little better balance. So I reserved just enough yarn to incorporate some fringe at the end.
The end result gave a very strong vertical rib through the scarf. I could see this alternatively being done in traditional crochet by chaining sideways and using back loop stitches in each row. I'm one of those try-it-on-as-you-go types, though, so I prefer being able to work things lengthwise. Plus, Tunisian's just a blast.
In the end, the Dewdrops yarn... kind of sheds sequins. So you have to be gentle as you crochet and try not to rip out your work as often as I did. I also find that the sequins can feel a little scratchy when the scarf is worn, which is unfortunate. For all the soft bulkiness of the yarn, I wish that wouldn't happen. Other than that, this was a great winter project and a delightful use of chunky yarn.
My experiments have continued, with one venture into using utility cord that I picked up in a yarn exchange. The heavy cord actually makes for a great trivet, as seen to the right. This was worked in just Tunisian simple stitch.
