shawl • The Knitting Vortex • Page 5

Lunatic Fringe

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Mar 072013

I’m beyond pleased to announce that I have a pattern in Knitty Spring + Summer 2013. Eccentric and non-conforming, Lunatic Fringe is an off-kilter shawl that grows asymmetrically from the bottom up, and sprouts digit-like fringes on one side. The fringes are knit in as you go along by repeatedly binding off and casting on, while the body features alternating textural stripes. Cast on with a few stitches, Lunatic Fringe grows by increasing unequally along both sides to the long top edge, which is finished simply with a stretchy bind off. Like a devastated remnant found in the irradiated ruins of former civilization, Lunatic Fringe represents a ravaged relic of the cyber past, featuring a slubby yarn blend which is weirdly iridescent in duo-tonal colors. Construction: This shawl is cast on at the bottom tip, and worked to the top edge in alternating garter stitch and stockinette stitch stripes, with a 2 st garter edging on each side. Techniques & Skills Used: longtail CO, backwards loop CO, knit, increasing; this pattern is fully written. Size: 58” length . . .

Picabeau

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Feb 182013

Picabeau is a crescent shaped small shawl, with asymmetrical construction that first increases and then decreases in a gentle curve. The reversible bias shape is highlighted by regular rows of YOs that swoop across the shawl, creating visual movement. One luscious skein is all that is required for this versatile and wearable accessory; instructions are given to make the shawl using any amount of yardage. Techniques & Skills Used: cable CO, knit, increasing/decreasing, picots. Size: 60” along bottom curve and 8” center depth, customizable. Yarn: String Theory Hand Dyed Yarn Caper Sock (80% superwash merino wool, 10% cashmere, 10% nylon; 400 yards/365m/113g); 1 skein shown in Light Teal. Sample used 348 yards; instructions are given to make the shawl using any amount of yardage. Other Materials: US 6 24” circular needle; Yarn needle. Gauge: 20 st and 40 rows/4” in garter stitch, after blocking. See it on Ravelry or on Payhip, to read more or purchase the pattern.

Five Short Row Shawls

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Jan 312013

Short rows are one of my all-time favorite knitting techniques. They easily allow you to shape your knitwear, for better fit and more intriguing angles. In the Five Short Row Shawls collection, I’ve used this technique to create five simple garter one-skein shawls, each with a different and unique construction. While I love crescents, topdown triangles and bias boomerangs, the five wraps in this book use short rows imaginatively to create some of these familiar shapes in totally new ways. By choosing a single skein of a beautiful variegated or semi-solid yarn worked in garter stitch, the focus is entirely on the rhythmic and magical process of knitting short rows. The results are both simple, and singularly stunning. Each pattern may be purchased individually, or all together as an ebook with a special price that equals getting one pattern for free. The collection includes Triangulate, Piewhacket, Rondelay, Aerophile, and Rufflebye; see them all together as Five Short Row Shawls on Ravelry or on Payhip.

Rufflebye

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Jan 312013

A new take on the ruffle shawl, Rufflebye is a one-skein, reversible wrap worked sideways in three garter stitch wedges which cleverly intersect to change the knitting direction. Increases and decreases create the shape from tip to tip, while two sets of short rows throughout form the crescent shape and the gently ruffled edging. Construction: Rufflebye is cast on at one tip with a few stitches, increased to the halfway point then decreased again to the other tip, and shaped with short rows throughout. Techniques & Skills Used: longtail CO, knit, increasing/decreasing, short rows. Size: one size; 45” length and 10” depth. Rufflebye forms a natural semi-circle and measures 40” along inner semi-circumference, and 72” along outer semi-circumference, measured without stretching. The 12-stitch ruffle is approximately 2.6” and begins as soon as there are enough stitches. Yarn: Indigodragonfly MerGoat Sock (80% merino, 10% cashmere, 10% nylon, 400 yards/366m/115g); 1 skein, shown in My Boyfriend Had A Bicentennial (Buffy). See Designer’s Notes for instructions to adjust for differing yardage. Other Materials: US 6 (4mm) 40″circular needle, or size to match . . .

Aerophile

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Jan 172013

Aerophile is a one-skein, reversible garter shawl with narrow wings that stretch wide like a soaring bird which loves to fly. Each wing is knit using short rows from a provisionally cast on central spine, while the scalloped top edge is created by casting on additional stitches every six rows. After both wings are complete, a loopy super-picot edging binds off the live stitches along the bottom edge. Choose a beautiful yarn as the focus of the shawl, and let the uncomplicated fabric and simple textural edgings highlight the fiber. Construction: Aerophile is provisionally cast on at the center vertical, and each wing is worked separately in short rows to the side. Techniques & Skills Used: provisional CO, backwards loop CO, Cable CO, knit, increasing, short rows. Size: one size; 52” length and 18” depth. Yarn: Dream In Color Smooshy (100% merino, 450 yards/411m/100g); 1 skein, shown in Deep Seaflower. The sample used approximately 425 yards of light fingering weight yarn. Other Materials: US 6 (4mm) 40” circular needle, or size to match gauge; Scrap yarn for provisional CO . . .

Piewhacket

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Dec 052012

Piewhacket is a one-skein garter shawl constructed from three sequential short row triangles which build on each other, with a final uneven edging knit from live stitches using additional short rows. The resulting asymmetrical shape drapes perfectly around the neck and shoulders, and is completely reversible for ultimate wearability. The short row shaping means never having to work a huge number of stitches, and also shows off the unique beauty of variegated or semi-solid yarn. Construction: Piewhacket is cast on and worked entirely in short rows as a series of three connected triangles. The short row border is worked from live stitches and accentuates the points of the long and narrow edging. Techniques & Skills Used: cable CO, knit, increasing, short rows. Size: one size; 52” length along top edge and 8” depth (12” depth at points). Yarn: Malabrigo Yarn Sock (100% superwash merino wool, 440 yards/ 402m/100g); 1 skein, shown in Abril. The sample used approximately 375 yards of light fingering weight yarn. Other Materials: US 6 (4mm) 40” circular needle, or size to match gauge; Stitch markers . . .

Rondelay

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Nov 132012

Rondelay is a one-skein, reversible garter shawl constructed from three sequential half rounds or rondels, which grow from cast on stitches using both short rows and strategically placed radial yarnover increases. Each rondel builds upon the previous one, creating a finished semi-circular shape that drapes beautifully as it wraps around the shoulders. Designed to show off the colors of a variegated or hand dyed skein, Rondelay looks equally fantastic in a solid color. Construction: Each rondel is knit using short rows, incorporating additional stitches from the cast on into each row, and at the same time increasing stitches by making yarn overs on a few strategic rows. Techniques & Skills Used: cable CO, knit, short rows. Size: one size; 50” length along top edge and 9” depth at widest part of rondel. Yarn: Malabrigo Yarn Sock (100% superwash merino, 440 yards/402m/ 100g); 1 skein, shown in Indiecita. The sample used approximately 410 yards of light fingering weight yarn. Other Materials: US 6 (4mm) 40” circular needle, or size to match gauge; Yarn needle. Gauge: 18 st and 36 rows/4” in . . .

Triangulate

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Nov 072012

Triangulate is a one-skein, reversible garter shawl composed of two triangles with a chevron border, and is designed to show off the colors of a variegated skein, using simple stitches and beautiful yarn. The shawl begins with a provisional cast on at the center, and is knit outwards in two triangular halves using short rows. The wide edging is knit continuously from the live stitches with no picking up stitches necessary, and may be made narrower or wider to accommodate varying yardages. The unusual construction results in a deceptively simple shape that is uncomplicated yet interesting to knit, and versatile to wear. Construction: this shawl is provisionally cast on at the center vertical, and each half of the central triangle is worked in short rows to the side. The chevron edging may be customized to be wider or narrower, depending on your preference and available yardage. Techniques & Skills Used: provisional CO, knit, increasing, short rows. Size: one size; 58” length and 19” depth. Yarn: Malabrigo Yarn Sock (100% superwash merino wool, 440 yards/ 402m/100g); 1 skein, shown . . .

Sneak Peek at Folderol

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Aug 202012

Tucks and folds have been a little bit of an obsession of mine since last winter, and three weeks ago I got a lightning bolt idea for a soft, scrummy tucked shawl for the autumn season ahead. When something like this comes out of the blue, I like to go with it; thinking it might be a good fit, I sent off a pitch to Shannon at Cooperative Press, who is launching the new Knit Edge magazine. And so it comes about that Folderol is in issue 1, due to come out in the beginning of september. This piece takes those textural tucks like the ones used in the Crimp hat and Ruckle Mitts, and exaggerates them into long, deep folds along the curve of a thick crescent shawl. The top edge is finished with applied I-cord, making the entire wrap reversible, and lovely when wrapped around the neck. I’ve had these three skeins of Malabrigo Worsted in Tuareg hanging around in stash forever, and 2.5 of them are now this cozy schlarf (with enough . . .

Sundry

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May 042012

An elongated, asymmetrical wrap that combines the warmth and style of a shawl with the wearability of a scarf, Sundry means various or diverse, and this wrap features two colors, two stitch patterns and endless styling options. Cast on at the long, pointed end, Sundry has shaping at each end of rows that grow ever wider. Two colors contrast yet harmonize in solid garter stitch and houndstooth slipstitch sections; the slipstitch is easily worked using just one color per row. A simple picot bind off finishes the long straight end. Techniques & Skills Used: cable CO, knit, increasing/decreasing, slipstitch colorwork, picot BO; the slipstitch pattern is both written and charted, with a link to my video tutorial included for the picot BO. Size: 112” length and 24” depth, customizable. Yarn: String Theory Hand Dyed Yarn Selku (50% Silk, 50% Merino; 375 yards/113g); 1 skein MC & 1 skein CC, shown in Pewter (MC) & Alexandrite (CC). Any amount of yarn in two colors may be used. As written, the sample required almost every bit of yarn; see Designer’s . . .

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