Tag: picot

Knitting

Variations on a theme

annbh3565 Comments
hand knit peach colored shawl with lace edges on a wooden hanger
hand knit fuchsia colored shawl with lace edges and crystal beads on a wooden hanger

At the pattern designer’s recommendation, I knit my first version of this shawl in a multicolored self-striping yarn. The lacy border took a back seat to the fabric’s vibrancy and I wondered what would result if I knit this same design with a solid or subtle tonal yarn. I quelled my curiosity first with the peachy project and then knit a second shawl in deep fuchsia. Both skeins had arrived in yarn club surprise packages and, utilizing good stash management practices, each just needed the right design.

The combination of fingering weight yarn and a slightly larger needle results in an airy body of garter stitches. An unusual double yarnover (yo2) at the beginning of the lace row creates an elongated fiber filigree. And, I added a little glitter by incorporating a pearlized pink Miyuki seed bead on each lacy tip. Now, wrapped in tissue paper, each shawl is safely tucked away awaiting a giving opportunity as a silent auction donation.

Happy knitting!

Knitting

Pathways to Peace KAL

annbh3567 Comments
A hand knit lace shawl in multi colored pinks and greens on a wooden hanger

A first of the year reporting on an end of the year project.

Earlier Project Peace knit-alongs (KAL) featured an original new pattern custom designed specifically to reflect that year’s theme but simplicity framed this 2.0 KAL.  In preparation, Healthy Knitter Christina Campbell suggested choosing from among one of her earlier designs or the Anica Shawl. I chose the latter and paired her recommendation with a wonderful single skein of merino blended fingering from South Africa that was hand dyed exclusively for the 2022 Strickmich yarn club. Yard by yard, the bold Happy Crowd colorway revealed a self-striping vibrancy well outside my normal, often monotone, palette.

The Anica Shawl pattern incorporated a well-tuned balance of restful repetition perfect for Project Peace reflections. Yet, the artful lacework held my attention and produced a comfortable wrap featuring airy eyelets along one side and a picot border on the opposite. The result was so charming that I claimed this shawlette as my own.

Happy knitting!

Knitting

Amsterdam

annbh356Leave a comment

Vintage travel posters inspire a new exclusive fiber series from frabjous fibers & Wonderland Yarns. Amsterdam was the June limited edition colorway and, while this vibrant multi-colored skein was definitely outside my normal color spectrum, Richard and I so loved our time in Amsterdam and the colors are so reminiscent of the city-scape that it became a must have. The Windmill Shawl features a simple lace design reminiscent of the country’s many windmills to which I added a picot edging.

My Egypt travel kit is already on order from Northfield Yarn. I have wonderful memories from my trip to exotic Cairo with time in Giza and a picnic along the Suez Canal. Although the lush green tones of that skein are not the colors of my memories, then again, I did visit in June.

PS – And just because I’ve always wondered (and you might too), here is the etymology of frabjous: An adjective coined by Lewis Carroll in Through the Looking-Glass meaning splendid or magnificent.