It's so cold here in Toronto, -20 Celsius (-4 Fahrenheit) day after day! To keep my hubby warm, I made him a KISS Scarf. KISS = Keep it simple and stupid. It's a scarf in garter stitch, simple but very practical for someone living in Canada. He loved the scarf and proudly told his friends that it's handmade by his wife =)
I think it's a great last minute present project, so here is the pattern for you:
Yarn
4 to 5 skeins of Rowan Purelife British Sheep Breeds Fine Boucle (91% Wool 9% Nylon) in Shade 00319 - Masham Stripe
I love the yarn so much! It's high quality made in the UK yarn, lightweight, wooly, and the boucle finish camouflaged all the unevenness of my knitting. The brown/greyish shade is great for men's garment, and the stripes add visual interest to the garter stitch body. I was able to get them at $6 CAD/skein plus a 25% discount (because they were bought on Dec. 27 last year at Romni Wools in downtown Toronto, their annual 25% discount everything day). So, for less than $25, I made a really nice gift for my hubby = ).
For the length that my hubby wanted, I used about 4.2 skeins.
Needles
5mm and 5.5mm needles
Pattern
With smaller needle, cast on 40 stitches. Work in garter stitch (i.e. knit every row) for about 2 inches with smaller needle. To achieve a neat selvedge, slip 1st stitch purlwise, bring yarn to the back, and knit the rest of the stitches.
Change to larger needle and continue working in garter stitch with slip stitch selvedge until scarf is 2 inches shorter than desired.
Switch back to smaller needle and knit the last 2 inches.
Bind off.
Note: working the first and last 2 inches with a smaller needle helps to prevent flaring and loose edges.