Since before starting this blog diary, I’ve completed several crafting and cosplay projects. This is the first of several planned “Finished Make” posts to document my work up to this point. First up, the second of two Doctor Who scarfs I’ve made (so far). This particular knitting project got me back into crafting after a decades-long hiatus. (Suddenly having a steady income also jump started the crafting bug)

This version of the Fourth Doctor’s iconic neckwear is the super-long one actor Tom Baker wore in the classic TV series’ 16th and 17th seasons (S16/17). The plan is to re-create his costume from those seasons, which you can see here. I started the scarf in August 2019 and finished in late February 2020. The pattern I used is from doctorwhoscarf.com.

One thing about my cosplay projects: whenever possible, I like to create costumes that can do “double-duty.” The idea is to try to make costumes or parts of costumes that can also be used as street wear or as part of another look. That way, I don’t feel like I’m making a costume just to wear once or twice, and I can get more mileage out of a cosplay.

This scarf is one where I used the double-duty principle. In the TV show, the S16/17 scarf was actually knit together from two sections previously used in the show. The pattern I referred to shows you how to knit the two sections as one. But, I didn’t want to do that. Making the S16/17 version as is would mean I’d only be able to wear it as part of my planned S16/17 Fourth Doctor cosplay, and not any other way. So, I came up with the idea of knitting the sections separately and using buttons to put them together whenever I want to wear them as the full S16/S17 version. I knit buttonholes in one section and sewed buttons onto the other section. I found these perfect wooden buttons on Etsy featuring clock faces and a British flag, representing the Doctor as a time traveler and the Britishness of the TV show.

When I wear the two sections together, as I am in the photo above, I can wrap it around my neck in a way so as to hide the join. The second section of the scarf has the buttons on it and has the tassels only on one end. It is also slightly narrower than the first section. That is because it’s based on the part of the S16/17 original that was used in stunts. Here’s a picture of me below, only wearing the first section of the scarf, known as the “Hero.” This is the iconic version Baker wore in his first outing as the Doctor. I can wear the Hero section on its own or with another costume. Yay, double-duty!