Arabella Shawl

Since spring is almost here, I decided it was a good time to show you the lovely shawl I made last summer that I wore through fall and winter. Makes sense, right? I knitted this while watching 'The Wire' on my Amazon subscription, so I've got this beautiful shawl whose making I associate with a pretty brutal show. But this is one my favorite things I've made--the colors are lovely, it's not overly warm and stifling (even though it's wool), and the size is just right. No photos of it on, sorry, but I'll give you a few links so you can see what it looks like if you're inclined to make one.

The colorway for my kit was called 'Wood,' and it reminded me of autumn--those vibrant yet deep colors of flowers and leaves that abound in October. I bought this as a kit from Skeino, and it was an absolute, one-hundred percent unnecessary indulgence, but one that gave me plenty of pleasurable knitting hours. The stitches were so simple--short rows that don't need wraps picked up, a few unworked stitches at each edge and some newly cast-on ones at each color change, and some simple yarn-over lacy bits. Very Pink Knits even provided a video tutorial for any parts that might seem a little tricky.

It was even fun to receive the yarn braid. Look at this--doesn't it look like pull-apart bread?

Each is a wee mini-skein (about 100 yards each), all looped into each other. As I pulled apart and wound each one into a ball, I placed it into a Ziploc bag and labelled it with its number so I could keep them all in order. I kept the scraps in there, too, and then knit those in reverse order when it came time to do the edging. There is so very little waste with this kit and pattern, so you get your full money's worth. Skeino now even includes a project bag with each kit that you buy (but not when I bought mine).

I washed this on the gentle cycle, and gently pin-blocked it. It has kept its shape well, and still has a beautiful drape and sturdiness, even though it's not a heavy or thick piece.

This is definitely a project I'd recommend--the skills are placed in a way to keep things interesting, and the colors change just when you're getting that "Oh, that's enough of this, then" feeling. The kit is kind of pricey, though, so you can put together your own colors (one? two? three? twelve? to make one of these out of more economical yarn options, as the pattern is free, and can be found here on Ravelry. Ta for now!