FO: Spring Meadow Clapotis

It seems like everyone has been knitting a Clapotis, and I didn't want to be left out! When Little Knits was having a sale on Arauncania Aysen ($3.50 a skein!), I decided that I had to give it a try. I picked out a lovely pink and green color that reminds me of a meadow in spring- the green of the grass, interspersed with pretty pink flowers.

This pattern looks really complicated, but is actually quite easy, once you get the hang of it. By the time I was half-way through, I didn't even need to refer to the pattern! It's also pretty cool to be able to drop stitches on purpose.

The only thing that I don't really like about the finished object is the variation between the skeins. I didn't realize that skeins from the same dye lot could look so different! The middle of the shawl has a much lighter area where one of the skeins had a lot more white than the others. It may not be all that noticeable to anyone but me when I'm wearing it, but it still bothers me a bit.

The yarn produced an incredibly soft shawl, but was a little annoying for this particular pattern- the yarn clings to itself so much that it was rather difficult to unravel the dropped the stitches. However, all things considered, I think it turned out nicely. I really enjoyed knitting it, and I'm already working on a new Clapotis, too.

Pattern: Clapotis
Yarn: Arauncania Aysen
Needles: US8
Yardage: 573 yards


This has been a part of Tami's Amis' Finished Object Friday. Go check out her links and see what everyone else is working on!

FO: Summer Mystery Shawlette

I decided to participate in WendyKnits' free mystery knit along this summer- the Summer Mystery Shawlette. Although I finished the project on June 2nd, I've just now gotten around to taking pictures.




Basically, Wendy posted a series of "clues," each one containing a chart with the next piece of the project. I suppose it was a little bit of a risk, knitting something when I didn't know what the finished product would look like- what if I didn't like it? However, I've knit Wendy's shawls before, and I love her work, so I figured it couldn't be too awful!

I picked a skein of Malabrigo Sock in Impressionist sky out of my stash. It has only a very subtle variation of blues, so I knew that it would make the lace pattern stand out really well. I also love working with Malabrigo so much- it's so soft! Here's what it looked like before blocking:



I got a little behind on the clues when I went on vacation, but caught up and finished the last clue the day it was released.



I love the finished object- it's gorgeous! The blue is just perfect to go with a lot of different outfits, and the lace pattern is really pretty. I knew Wendy wouldn't steer me wrong! The construction of the shawl is pretty neat, too- most triangle shawls are knit from the top down, but this one is bottom-up, meaning that you do all of those tortuously long rows first, making your progress seem to fly at the end. This is also my fourth shawl in 11 Shawls 2011.



This was my first knit-a-long, and I really enjoyed it. It was really cool to be working on the same project as so many other people, and to see their progress and compare it with my own. Additionally, it provided a LOT of pattern support- if anyone had a problem, so many other people had been working on the shawl that they had already figured out the solution! I definitely look forward to another knit-a-long in the future.




Pattern: Summer Mystery Shawlette
Yarn: Malabrigo Sock
Colorway: Impressionist Sky
Needles: US7 for the body, US9 for the cast-on.
Yardage: 300 yards
Dimensions: 49 inches across, 17.25 down the spine

This has been a part of Tami's Amis' Finished Object Friday. Go check out her links and see what everyone else is working on!

FO: A Girl's Best Friend Shawl

It is amazing what a difference blocking can make! My Girl’s Best Friend Shawl went from this:

To this:

I love the way it turned out. The lace is so pretty, and the simple stockinette of the body compliments it perfectly.

I also love the color. It’s a nice, pale pink, with gorgeous splashes of darker pinks and purples throughout. Although it has one spot with some slight pooling, pooling action was mostly minimal through the project.

Look how well it drapes:

Here’s a picture from the back:

As you can tell, I am completely in love with my finished object. I am also thrilled to have completed my first shawl for 11 Shawls 2011.

I was really happy with this yarn. It blocks so beautifully. I was a little concerned about the stockinette curling, but the blocking seems to have fixed that completely. The way the colors are distributed is also amazing. It’s not as soft as Malabrigo (but what is?), but definitely still comfortable against my bare skin. I still have two projects worth of the same yarn in different colorways, and I cannot wait to use them, too!

Project: A Girl’s Best Friend Shawl

Yarn: Aracania Itata Multy

Needles: US8, US10 (for the bind off only)

The Verdict: I am extremely pleased with the way this turned out!

11 Shawls in 2011

Remember how I lost my mind and committed to trying to knit 11 shawls in 2011? Well, upon further consideration, I’ve decided it may not be such an insane idea after all! I have so many shawls in my queue, and I have a bad habit of knitting them, then not weaving in the ends or blocking them. This will encourage me to actually finish the shawls!

I’ve looked through my queue, and I’ve decided on 8 shawls that I think I’ll probably do. That leaves three for me to decide on as the year progresses.

First up, of course, is Truly Tasha’s shawl, which I’ve already started. I’m using Baby Alpaca Brush by Plymouth yarns. A lot of times, I order yarn with a specific project in mind, and then it sits in my stash for awhile and gets used for something else. Not this time! I ordered the yarn with Truly Tasha in mind, and that’s what I’m using it for!

Daybreak has been calling to me for a long time. It’s so pretty! I keep seeing FOs of this popping up all over I ordered the yarn from Knitpicks when I ordered the materials for my mother’s birthday present, and I’m waiting on it now. I got the shipping notice yesterday! I’m going to be working on it in the new Chroma fingering weight yarn in the Midwinter colorway for Color A, with Palette in either a dark purple or dark gray as Color B (I ordered both, because I wasn’t sure which one would go better).

Summer Flies is also one of those shawls that’s been languishing in my queue* for awhile. I’m going to use Berroco Ultra Alpaca in Winter White for this. It’s a nice sampler type pattern, with several different lace patterns, and I think it will be a lot of fun to work on.

The Swallowtail shawl is one of those shawls that everyone seems to be making. All of the FOs look so pretty, and I just have to have one (I want to be one of the cool kids, too!) I’m going to be knitting it in Knitpicks Shadow in a gorgeous burgundy color.

Clapotis is another one of those shawls that everyone is making. I think they look pretty cool, and I really want one too. The idea of dropping stitches on purpose is just so much fun! I’m making it in Elann Adara in a pretty mix of different shades of brown called Pecan.

Saroyan is so gorgeous, and I think it would make a great scarf/shawl. I love the leaf edging! I’m not sure what color I want this to be (green seems most appropriate, but most greens are not really my color), but I do know that I’d like to knit it in Berocco Vintage. I used the yarn on the dog sweater and fell in love with it. Next time I make a trip to the LYS I will pick up a couple of skeins.

Revontuli is one of those patterns that just looks so incredibly cool in a self-striping yarn! Self-striping yarns are always fun, but especially so on a pattern that makes waves or zig-zags. I picked up some of the fairly new Patons Lace in a blue and white colorway (I think maybe it’s called Porcelain or something?) a few months ago, and I intend to use that for this shawl.

Last but not least is Garden Pond. I only queued this one a month or so ago, so I haven’t been drooling over it for long, but it’s so pretty! I’m going to make it with 2 skeins of Arauncania Itata Multi in a colorway that kind of reminds me of blue jeans.

The best part of this is that I have the yarn for five of these shawls in my stash already, and for two of them it is currently in transit. The only shawl I’ll have to buy yarn for is Saroyan. This should definitely help me cut down on my stash some.

I’m glad I’m leaving myself some extra flexibility, too- I really don’t want to lock myself into 11 shawls now, then find a gorgeous one later and not be able to knit it! This way, I can choose three more as the year progresses.

*Also, I finally managed to memorize how to spell queue. No more “quque,” “queque”, etc. I am so proud of myself! I’m not sure why I was convinced there were two “q”s, except for the fact that it seems really weird to have four vowels next to each other.