FO: Cap Shawl

Started: March 11, 2007
Finished: April 10, 2007
Yarn used: Knitpicks Shadow in Vineyard
Finished Dimensions: 46 in. diameter on US 5s
Pattern Dimensions: 76 in. diameter on US 7s
I really enjoyed knitting this shawl even though it is far from perfect. When I found a mistake I tried to fix it as best I could but I rarely ripped back if the mistake was only one or two stitches. A few times I misread the pattern and knit a whole row wrong, that I would fix. When I pinned the shawl for blocking it was already 2:30 am and I didn't care about getting the blocking perfect or trying to hide any mistakes because I know that I could always reblock and get the shape better if I wanted to. I really enjoyed the knitted on border, especially since I've been reading horror stories of picking up hundreds of stitches to graft a border on. EW!

I'm not sure if you can tell but the very center isn't quite the same as the one in the book. It's much more open... That's because when I was blocking I ripped the yarn attached to the center cast on and it wasn't even tied or stabilized! I'm worried about losing the whole shawl... that would be VERY unsettling. I took rash measures... I put clear nail polish on the center hole in an effort to save my lovely lace. I'll have to let you know how it holds up.

Well, I think that this is a little bit smaller than I would like. I knew that once I got it finished I wouldn't even wear it if it was as big as the book said it should be. I supposed it's good that it's smaller, but it's almost a little too small to wrap around me loosely. It's a little hard to describe without being able to show you. Right now I don't have anyone to take pictures of it on me, but I promise to post a few when I can get them.

So, I could see myself knitting this pattern again with a thicker yarn and bigger needles to make the whole shape a little bigger. While this was made out of merino wool it is not very warm. I think a thicker yarn would help make it warmer and that shawl would then be used in the early spring and late fall. As soon as I can get a photographer I will take pictures of me wearing the shawl to give you a better idea of the size.

Tune in tomorrow for an update on the cardigan and an explanation of the pictures posted on March 30th.