Projects
The Joy of Finishing, Yet Again
Dear Kay,
It is a longstanding tradition at MDK to mark the completion of a knitting project by a) taking pictures of it as if it were a newborn baby; b) mulling the intricacies of the project, aka Prouds and Sorries; and c) staring at it as if you had just discovered a new element.
Taking Pictures of It
Jeanette Sloan’s Dionne Shawl has been such a palate cleanser for me. After months of socks (delicious socks, don’t get me wrong!), it felt really good to work with bigger needles, on a pattern that had clever bits in it, with a yarn I’d never used before.
This is Winterburn Aran by Baa Ram Ewe, in Viking with the edge in Coal.
I have so many pictures of handknits I have finished. I feel sorry for my descendants. You know—the day when they dust off my Cloud-based scrapbook, it’s going to be a lot of: “Wow, did Great-Grandma even know any humans?”
Prouds and Sorries
My only Sorry is that I didn’t do a swatch before embarking. The teardrop lace thing has just enough asymmetry that I should have taken time to understand what the deal was before starting. Granted, the shawl begins with only a few stitches, essentially making the first repeat a swatch of sorts. But I know I would have found my groove sooner if I’d done a bit of homework.
Prouds? I’m happy about the yarn I chose. We have only recently begun to carry Winterburn Aran, from the good folks at Baa Ram Ewe, so I couldn’t wait to take it out for a spin.
I’m proud of the edge, I suppose. It wasn’t anything I’d planned to do from the outset. I went rogue on the final rows because (I know this sounds unlikely) I ran out of yarn. We have a little warehouse of yarn, including more orange Viking. But I ran out after skein number 5 early one night, so I grabbed the nearest Winberburn Aran I happened to have at home. The Coal picks up the natural dark gray of the masham wool that appears in the blend for Winterburn Aran. I simply did the final repeat of lace pattern B in Coal, and it all seemed to work out.
To be clear, I wouldn’t have done the edge in, say, Wesley Bob or Muck. But the Coal seemed like a good idea. And I was dying to finish this.
The gray edge cues me as to which side of this almost perfect triangle is the top edge. This helps with draping my Dionne about my person.
The long columns of yarnover, slip 1, knit 2 together, pass the slipped stitch over, yarnover became such a welcome marker. As long as I hit those correctly, I knew I was on track.
Staring at It
I am staring at this as I am wearing it. Sometimes we forget how cool knitting is, how many ways these simple knots can turn into such dazzling designs.
It’s big enough to serve as a throw, six feet wide across the top.
I heartily recommend you try Jeanette Sloan’s design. It’s a beauty.
Love,
Ann
The addition of the coal is brilliant!
Really stunning!
This is so wonderful. I have never paid tribute to my finished work! I certainly will from now on. I really needed this this morning as I diligently knitted on long, wool sweater that I won’t get to wear if I don’t finish soon as it will be too warm for a Florida winter. I will keep at it -stitch by stitch-and when it’s finished I will celebrate! Thank you for the inspiration!
It’s beautiful, Ann. I wish you had included a photo of you wearing it. The coal edge is terrific!
Would love to see it on you or a friend!
Me too! (wish you took a picture of you wearing it). It’s gorgeous and I love the coal contrast edge.
I agree with Karla the addition of the coal was brilliant. Infact I love the combination of the colors, and the pattern. It’s absolutely beautiful…
I would not have guessed that the coal trim was accidental- it’s perfect!
Finishing a project…for many reasons….the baby hats are completed..with those cute little white deattachable pom poms….deb
A beauty indeed! And the dipped in coal edge looks like it was meant to be.
Wow! You used aran for a pattern that calls for fingering and I adore the result. I mostly knit with fingering weight and also think of using larger needles and yarn as a “palate cleanser !” Off to check out Masham.
I’m in awe! So beautiful.
I just LOVE LOVE LOVE it!
Absolutely stunning. The color change sets it apart in a very classy way.
Love the stitch definition, the colors are welcoming Fall.
Stunning project and the seasonal colours add to a warm, comfy and cosy knit. Enjoy !
Bask in the glory! Beautiful save.
Was “knots” a typo?
I love this!! Beautiful colors, stitch pattern, just the entire result 😉 Need to see it on someone, pls!!
Stunning. What simple things, such as your color, change can do!
…color change, can…
Interesting how many times “stunning” comes up.
It looks fantastic, even with the Coal “design feature”! Now for the all-important question: Does Kermit find it warm, comfortable, and suitable for napping upon?
Love it. Love the two colors together. Enjoy it!
Love your writing And your knitting
Help a girl out here, will ‘ya? I just bought the pattern and it calls for a two-needle cast on. I assumed that was the same as a regular knitted cast on but a quick google search gave me that AND a knitted cast on where you knit the new stitch in between the two stitches on the left needle. Thoughts, comments, ideas? Please feel free to tell me that I may be over thinking this as well.
Beautiful! That gray edge caught my eye, first thing. It certainly *looks* planned. Also, you captured that just-post-knit feeling so well, and so humorously!
Beautiful!!
So beautiful! And a great way to deal with the game of yarn chicken. You win, no matter what!
Ann, I have admired your distinctive color sense ever since, gosh I don’t know how many years ago, but I remember the item. You made a mitred square for one of the collective afghan projects, and the square was solid except for one little corner. Grey and yellow, as I remember it. As soon as I saw this shawl I flashed back to that little square 🙂
GORGEOUS
The spot of gray is what makes this wrap a star. It looks really nice on you.
That Coal really kicks it up several notches. Not that Dionne isn’t perfect as is!
This is so lovely, I might copy it exactly rather than stress over a color combo from Winterburn! I love the coal edge as an indicator for “this end up.”
Question
What size needles did you use for the aran yarn?
I normally wouldn’t pick these colours but whow! Stunning
I suddenly cannot wait to race to my storage unit and grab some of my treasures to begin this fabulous project!!!! What a magnificent job! Thanks such for inspiring me!!!!!❤