How to Make a Classic Doctor Who Scarf

If you’re a Doctor Who fan — or knows someone who is — and you like to crochet, then you’re going to love this post!

Why?

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Because I’m about to tell you how super easy it is to come up with an absolute original, one-of-a-kind, no-one-else-on-Earth-will-have-another-one-like-it-EVER Classic Doctor Who Scarf. And how to do it without spending even a penny.

How’s that?

Erm… because it’s made out of scraps of yarn. You know, those odds and ends balls of yarn that you have hanging around in your attic or under the bed? The ones where there isn’t enough to make something new, but way too much to throw out?

Yup. Those.

We’re going to use those babies up, and create an awesome conversation starter, gift, or Halloween costume in the process!

Recently the Boy discovered Doctor Who. And became a huge fan — classic, modern, it doesn’t matter to the Boy. He spends hours pouring over his Doctor Who Character Encyclopedia (actually, I’m pretty sure the book technically belongs to my husband; nerds run in families, you know) and begs to stay up late to watch episodes online. (You can get them here, too.)

It’s adorable. In a nerdy sort of way. Or would that be geeky? Or possibly dorky? I guess I’m not sure. And I’m certainly not casting any aspersions, by the way; I might be just a little bit in love with David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor. 😉

So I wasn’t really all that surprised that the Boy wanted to be Doctor Who (Tom Baker as Fourth Doctor, specifically — probably because of the distinctive scarf) for Halloween.

And it turned out to be just about the Easiest Costume Ever: just a quick trip to the thrift store for the hat and the World’s Ugliest Coat and to the attic for scraps of yarn to make the scarf.

There are patterns out there for the “official” scarf — in all it’s variations — but almost all of them are knitting patterns and I (still!) don’t know how to knit. However, a Doctor Who scarf is basically three things:

1. It is striped.

2. It is long.

3. It is ugly.

All I did was pick out scrap balls of yarn that more-or-less matched the Doctor’s color scheme… and started crocheting!

My method was to use a “K” hook and chain 25, turn and start single crocheting. I changed colors when I ran out of yarn, or when the mood struck me, and continued on until it was long enough! The scarf turned out to be about 6 1/2 inches wide and 108 inches long, which, with the fringe, turned out to be just about the right length for a 5 foot tall Boy. It is long enough for the proper effect, but not actually dragging on the ground.

Yes, the Doctor’s scarf drags sometimes, and no, this does not seem like a good idea in a Halloween costume for an eleven-year-old.

Obviously you can use whatever size crochet hook you have handy, just remember that the smaller the hook the longer it will take to make, and you will probably need to adjust the number of stitches necessary to make the width right.

I’m not going to give you a step-by-step guide to crocheting. There are people who are far more clever than I who have already done it. Here is a basic tutorial video for single crochet, and if you’re more of a picture person, check out this site. And this blog shows the method I use to make stripes without having to cut my yarn every time!

Do you have any Doctor Who fans on your Christmas/Holiday list this year? A scarf like this would make a great gift!

Looking for more Doctor Who gift ideas? Check these out: