Beginning Sept. 1, the Orphan Foundation of America will collect red scarves for its annual Red Scarf Project.

For those of you unfamiliar, the Orphan Foundation of America (www.orphan.org) helps foster children become successful adults. The scarf drive is just one of many aspects of the foundation, but it is the one most suitable for Crafty Living to tell you about.

The rules for the Red Scarf Project are simple: Any shade of red, combined with other colors if you wish, or any variegated yarn with red in it. These scarves are sent out in Valentine’s Day care packages to foster children now in a college or trade school. Beyond the color requirement, the foundation asks that the scarves be 6 inches to 8 inches wide by 60 inches to 70 inches long. In this week’s Math4Knitters podcast, you’ll hear an interview with a representative from the foundation discussing the scarf project. And Lara Neel will have a knit scarf pattern for you knitters out there; check it out at www.journalgazette.net/craftyliving. The Orphan Foundation of America also has a list of free pattern websites available on its site.

I am offering up my own scarf pattern so you can make a scarf for this project or for some other worthwhile organization. The pattern I’ve come up with fits the project’s specifications perfectly and can be done in any color combination you want.

A big thanks to Sandie Petit of Crochet Cabana for her ripple pattern tutorial, which helped me tremendously in coming up with this simple pattern. Sandie has other tutorials available at www.crochetcabana.com.

What you’ll need:

Worsted weight yarn (I used Red Heart Super Saver in Cherry Red and Soft White)

“I” crochet hook

Scissors

Yarn needle

Foundation row: Chain 33

Row 1: Double crochet (DC) in fourth chain from hook; DC in next two chains (four DC total); DC, chain 1, DC all in next chain; DC in next four chains; skip 2 chains; DC in next four chains; DC, chain 1, DC in next chain; DC in next four chains; skip 2 chains; DC in next four chains; DC, chain 1, DC in next chain; DC in next three chains; skip one and DC in last chain; Chain 2 and turn

Row 2: Skip first two stitches; DC in next three stitches; three DC in chain 1 space (shell made); DC in next four stitches; skip 2 stitches; DC in next four stitches; three DC in chain 1 space; DC in next four stitches; skip 2 stitches; DC in next four stitches; three DC in chain 1 space; DC in next three stitches; skip stitch; DC in turning chain from previous row; Chain 2 and turn;

Row 3: Skip first two stitches; DC in next three stitches; DC, chain 1, DC in next stitch (which should be the second DC of your 3 DC shell in the previous row); DC in next four stitches; skip 2 stitches; DC in next four stitches; DC, chain 1, DC in next stitch (again the second stitch of the previous row’s shell stitch); DC in next four stitches; skip 2 stitches; DC in next four stitches; DC, chain 1, DC in next stitch; DC in next three stitches; skip stitch; DC in turning chain on previous row.

Repeat rows 2 and 3 for the desired length of scarf.

For the scarf I made, I alternated the cherry red and soft white doing 10 rows of each color before switching. To get the desired length, I crocheted 6 sections in soft white and 7 sections in cherry red for a total of 130 rows.

Depending on how quickly you crochet, this project will take you no time, and you can get one or two scarves done by the beginning of the collection cycle on Sept. 1. I finished my scarf in under a weekend, and that included writing the pattern.