Wednesday, February 07, 2007

forest canopy shawl




Forest Canopy Shoulder Shawl
Yarn:
from Black Bunny Fibers in "Mexican Sunflower", handpainted laceweight merino wool(100g skein, approx. 880 yds)
Needles: Crystal Palace Bamboo 26" circulars, size US#6 (4.25mm)
Pattern: by Susan Pierce Lawrence, available here
Modifications: I did 15 pattern repeats (Susan recommended 14 for laceweight yarn to accomplish the suggested shoulder shawl size). It's good as it is, but I wished I had trusted my gut and done 17.
My Finished Measurements: 50" span, 23" down the spine
Started: November 23, 2006
Finished/Blocked: January 21, 2007 / February 1, 2007
Notes:
* This pattern was everything this designer promised. Perfect first shawl pattern. Excellent for gearing up to something more complex. Had the pattern memorized after the first repeat (very easy fabric to "read"). And it was a quick knit (I know it took me a long time as the calendar goes, but if I were to add up the actual hours spent knitting, I don't believe it was very many...and if you do it in the suggested yarn, it's gotta be a snap!).

* This shawl is a gift for an April birthday, and will be given with an accompanying shawl pin (I think this one, in the one in the upper left corner)...but if I were to knit another shawl for me, I'm not sure about the small size. I think I prefer traingular shawls a bit larger (I know I like stoles to be big). But I also think that a large traingular shape may = bad with crutches and/or wheelchair. So I'm going to try this shoulder size out with the pin before I gift it.

* The yarn is what made this such a joyful knit for me. These aren't colors that I normally wear. Oranges tend to wash me out a bit (although now that I see it on me, I'm kinda liking it!). Anyhow, this is my first time knitting with rusts, browns, and oranges...although I have always wanted to have them in my hands, if you know what I mean. It was a very warm and comforting colorway to have in front of me. The yarn felt comforting running through my fingers, and it blocked easily. The finished shawl is soft, lofty, and cozy.

* Using my handy dandy food scale, I see that I used a little less than half the yarn, so I could actually make a twin! But I think I might use it to make a wimple from Arctic Lace.

* The bamboo needles themseleves were great. They had a suitable point for the yarn, the bamboo was smooth but gave just enough grab on the yarn. I do not have words to tell you how much I hated the join, though. It was miserable. Supposedly this is their "new design" with the "improved" join! (my next shawl will be on Addis or KnitPicks, I think...I'm willing to brave the slick metal needles)

* My first time with the blocking wires. I reallllllly did not enjoy the process of getting damp knitting threaded onto the wires. Too fiddly and unpleasant. But once it was on the wires?? Ooooh, man. SO easy to manipulate. Using 1/10 the amount of pins on the straight edges and no scalloping made it worth suffering through the few minutes I didn't care for.

....and I'm already missing the lace and ready to to cast-on for more :-)

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

Beautiful shawl!!

And I admire your willingness to block. I'm so lazy and impatient that I rarely do it. Of course, I don't do much lace either.

Karen the Dancing Lurker

Becky in Iowa :O) said...

How gorgeous! You did a great job.

I so need to get me some of those blocking wires. It drove me nuts when I blocked my last shawl. I have no clues how many pins I ended up using.

~Donna~ said...

It's beautiful!

If I made this one, it would have to be much larger. I like my shawls and stoles big too. Not like I've ever actually finished one...

Anonymous said...

Preeeety AmpuT! It looks wonderful, absolutely wonderful!

Carol said...

Gorgeous, gorgeous job.

InkyW said...

it's beautiful!! and you are so cute. I love the colorway, and if you haven't already seen Romi's shawl pins in person, they are really lovely. i have the Mountain Peaks one (even though I haven't made that shawl yet, lol)

Anonymous said...

Gorgeous!! Great job.

I hope you'll show the pin in action when you get it.

Warrior Knitter said...

It's beautiful. I like the way you have it draped around your neck in the second photo. I don't think of myself as a shaw person, but I can see myself wearing a shawl that way.

Maybe I'll knit a shaw someday, after all. Thanks for the inspiration.

Scoutj said...

It's beautiful!!

Diane said...

Lovely shawl, lovely you! I've heard of blocking wires, but haven't really heard how they compared to pinning. I'll have to think about getting a set.

jodi said...

Beautiful, my dear, just beautiful.

Mouse said...

Gorgeous! I have absolutely no patience with lace knitting but I love admiring other peoples work.
(ps. my word verification is "xxxtoybx" *giggle*)

mindy said...

It is simply beautiful. And trust me, lace knitting is VERY addictive...

Tracy Batchelder said...

Absolutely beautiful! A fabulous gift!

Gray said...

Wow how beautiful! And the shawl looks beautiful too.

Great job. I think that it looks great and beautifully made. The orange and black looks great to me.

-Gray

Sheepish Annie said...

Wow!!! That is just beautiful. Excellent job!

Kerry said...

It's absolutely gorgeous and it's going to make someone a very happy girl come April! Great job!!!

Anonymous said...

Just fabulous, Bonnie. Worth waiting for!

Jenn said...

It looks gorgeous! I love the color! I've started that same pattern as my first attempt at lace knitting and hope mine comes out just half way as good as yours. :)