Who doesn’t love the look of a shawl? It’s a great way to dress up a plain outfit. It’s a nice way to add a pop of color. It’s also a light cover when there is a chill in the air. Admittedly, that hasn’t happened yet in Austin this year, even though it’s now officially fall. But a girl can dream!
In anticipation of that chill, I’ve been digging through all the pattern sites on the web. I found a beautiful shawl pattern from Lion Brand Yarns called the Tranquil Wrap. Sorry, Lion, but I wanted a nice washable cotton yarn in a bright color. So I headed out to Gauge in north Austin to find the perfect yarn.
I gave my requirements to the nice lady at the store—must be washable, preferably cotton, worsted or light-worsted weight. In my head, I had “electric blue.” The one yarn in just the right color didn’t have enough skeins to meet the yardage requirement for my project. I kept looking. Finally, I found what I like to call “electric purple.” It’s a deep, rich, purple in a light worsted that reminds me a little of the look of homespun-style yarns. It is absolutely beautiful.
The Start of the Tranquil Wrap Project
The lacy look of the piece is accomplished by using a really large hook. In this case, it’s an N size hook, or 10.00 mm. To my small hands, it feels fairly clumsy using such a big hook. It takes some getting used to. I have to say, however, that over the last few months of projects, I’ve learned to transition yarn (from the end of one skein to the beginning of another) flawlessly and invisibly. I’m really proud of that. Even using this big hook and having all the lacy open work, I still managed it.
I’m estimating another week’s work to finish the project. I only work on it a couple hours every other night or so plus a good afternoon each weekend day. I’ll post a picture of the completed project at a later time. Soon, all I’ll need is some cold weather in which to wear it!
Pretty!