All Knitted Lace

Hearts

2012-02-12T23:44:00.000-05:00

How about some hearts for St. Valentine day?

I just saw this post from Kathleen Cubley's blog at Knitting Daily.

She is talking about Felted Hearts Milagros pattern

The pattern comes from a cute book by Mags Kandis Gifted: Lovely Little things to Knit and Chrochet

I definitely will be making some this year!

Finished Size: About 2 inches (5 cm) high and 2 inches (5 sm) wide
Yarn: Sportweight (#2 Fine). Shown here: Brown Sheep Nature Spun Sportweight (100% wool, 184 yd/[168 m] 50 g). Each heart uses less than 10 yards (9.1 m).
Needles: Size U.S. 6, straight or circular
Notions: Tapestry needle, small amount of polyester or bamboo fiberfill
Gauge: About 21 stitches and 30 rows = 40 inches (10 cm) in stockinette stitch, before felting. Exact gauge is not crucial for this project.

FREE Pattern: HEART
Loosely cast on 12 sts. Work short-rows as follows:

Short-row 1: (RS) K8, wrap next st, turn.
Short-rows 2, 4, and 6: Purl to last st, p1f&b—1 st increased.
Short-row 3: (RS) K7, wrap next st, turn—13 stitches.
Short-row 5: (RS) K6, wrap next st, turn—14 stitches.
Short-row 7: (RS) K5, wrap next st, turn—15 stitches.
Short-rows 8 and 10: Purl.
Short-row 9: K4, wrap next st, turn.
Short-row 11: K3, wrap next st, turn.
Short-rows 12, 14, and 16: Purl to last 2 sts, p2tog.
Short-row 13: K5, working wraps together with wrapped sts when you come to them, wrap next st, turn—14 sts rem.
Short-row 15: K6, working wraps together with wrapped sts when you come to them, wrap next st, turn—13 sts rem.
Short-row 17: Knit to end, working wraps together with wrapped sts when you come to them—12 sts.
Short-row 18: Purl.

Repeat short-rows 1-18 three more times—piece measures about 9½ (24 cm) from, cast-on at widest point. Loosely bind off all stitches.

Finishing
With yarn threaded on a tapestry needle, sew the cast-on and bind-off edges together. Stitch top of heart closed, leaving 1 inch (2.5 cm) open for stuffing. Stuff with fiberfill until lightly firm but not bursting. Stitch closed. Felt and enjoy!

Happy Knitting everyone!

Estonian Lace on Display in Museum

2012-01-27T20:02:00.000-05:00

I can not get enough of knitted lace. The Estonian patterns are my current favorite (well, for last couple years at least...).
Currently, there is an exhibition going on in Lacis Museum of Lace and Textiles with a whole exhibit being devoted to Estonian (Haapsalu) shawls. Here is one of the examples on display:

I believe that the shawls came from a private collection of Nancy Bush. She is the one who wrote that great book on Haapsalu shawls: Knitted Lace of Estonia. I think it is her book that really introduced the Anglo-speaking knitters to the delicate beauty of lace from a tiny town on a Baltic sea.

Here is another example from the exhibit:

If you are happened to be in Berkley, California - please go and see this in person. The exhibition is open for another couple weeks.
For those of us who are far-far away from sunny California, the museum has a slide show available
Please take a moment from your busy day to enjoy the intricacy and beauty of these knitted pieces of art.

Happy Knitting Everyone!

New Pattern: Leafy Branches Wrap

2012-01-22T19:06:00.002-05:00

It is only a January, but already the winter seems to be very long. And cold.
And... I am thinking of warm, cozy things to knit and wear.
Wrap... how about a wrap? Or a wide scarf? Or a prayer shawl?
Made with a soft acrylic yarn for an additional warmth?
With a nice lacy pattern that reminds me and you of Spring?
Well, here is what came to my mind:

Leafy Branches Wrap

Leafy Branches is a wrap that is knitted for cold winter day when you need something really warm and heavy on your shoulders.

The simple rectangular shape, medium weight acrylic yarn and a 12-row pattern repeat makes this wrap a good first lace project for beginners.

The Leafy Branches is one of the traditional patterns in Estonian lace knitting.

Materials
Yarn: Caron Simply Soft , 2 skeins (6 oz/ 170 g · 315 yds / 288 m)
Colorway: Berry Blue
Tools: Needles, US 8 (5 mm)
Gauge: 16 st x 18 rows (4 x 4 inches in Lacy Rib Pattern)
Finished size: 20 x 62 inches (~50 x 160 cm)

I am offering this pattern as an instant PDF download through Raverly for $4.00 (US).

The pattern is has both CHARTED and WRITTEN instructions.

Thank you for your interest!

Happy Knitting everyone!

Shower stitch

2012-01-01T18:58:00.000-05:00

One of my presents for this Holiday Season was a full set of Barbara Walker's "A Treasury of Knitting Patterns".

I spent hours flipping through the pages and pages of pictures.

In the first book (the blue one, with a "Frosted Flower" pattern on the cover) I have found an interesting lace stitch that I have not seen anywhere else.

It is on page 236, Barbara called it a "Shower Stitch", and suggested that it has a French origin. I could not resist to use it for one of my shawls right away!

Here how it looks in my interpretation:

It it a true lace: yarn over happen on both sides of the knitted piece. If you want to try it yourself, here is the chart:

Chart: Shower Stitch

Here are the written instructions, if you prefer:

Shower Stitch: written instructions

Happy Knitting Everyone!

And Happy New Year!

I have been working on new patterns

2011-12-26T21:14:00.000-05:00

Here is one:

This shawl does not have an official name yet, even though I have knitted it 5 times already working out the design and quirks in the pattern.
This is somewhat less-usual design, because the shawl does not have a "spine" (central stitch that runs down the back). It has a lace back panel. The increases happen around the panel.

It also has a unique almost collar-like band that goes around your neck and down the sides of the shawl. Why is it unique? NO SEWING! NO GRAFTING! The shawl is knitted as one piece!

Stay tuned: the pattern will come out in early January 2012.

Happy knitting everyone!

Taygete

2011-12-21T21:16:00.000-05:00

It has been while since I posted the last time (my, my - it seems like I start every post with this phrase). We, people in academic world, measure our time by quarters or semesters. So, another semester is done, students are on vacation, and I am back to posting.
Even though I was absent from the Blogger, I have been knitting. A lot. Here I want to show you one of the custom projects I did for my Etsy store customer: Taygete shawl by Rosemary (Romi) Hill.
The yarn was a very nice Shetland tweed.
I absolutely love the pattern: well written, beautifully illustrated, clear and straight forward.
The shawl came out VERY nicely, slightly over-sized and drapes beautifully.

More projects are coming.

Happy Knitting Everyone!

Knitted Flounce Scarf

2011-10-19T07:35:00.000-04:00

It is autumn here in New Hampshire. Leaves are almost gone, the air nice and crisp in the mornings. Its is time for a new scarf!

Do you have one skein of a self-striping yarn?

Do you like knitting quick fun projects?

How about this ruffled scarf?

Knitted with a garter stitch and shaped with short rows, this scarf has soft-draping ruffles along its length.

It is not easy to find a pattern for a self-striping yarn. This one works well with solid colors as well as with stripes and marbled yarns.

Do you like the scarf? Do you want to knit it for you (and your mom, and your best friend ever and... - you got the picture!).

I am offering it for sale as an instant PDF download for US $4.00

Materials

Yarn: Patons® Lace yarn

(3 oz/498 yards; 85 g/455 m)

Color: Woodrose

Tools: Needles, US 7 (4.5 mm)

Finished size: 8 x 58 inch (20 x 150 cm)

Pattern is written in words.

Thank your for your interest!
Happy Knitting Everyone!

How to use Florence Knitting Silk. Part I

2011-08-07T10:00:00.003-04:00

A couple months ago Kate from Knitty blog talked about a great digital resource: The Winchester School of Art Library at University of Southampton in the UK is the home of the rather remarkable Knitting Reference Library. I am very interested in knitting traditions and ESPECIALLY (surprise!) lace traditions.
As I browsed the books ( they are in PDFs and free!) I was thinking that we, modern knitters, have a great advantage: pictures! Most knitting books from 1800-s had only written patterns, very few had drawings of the patterns.
I did find several with pictures. One of them is

This one had an illustration with every pattern. As I understand it was an advertisement for a company that made silk for knitting ( kind of like the modern yarn companies put out pattern catalogs for their yarns).
Along with socks, mittens and purses the book has several lace edgings that I wanted to try.
It took me while to figure out how to read the patterns (some abbreviations are the same, some a different, so it took some trial and error). Some patterns I have seen before, some are quite original.
Here is one of my first attempts.
This is the pattern from the book:

Look at the picture! not bad details for 1885 book!
Here is how it looked on my needles. Rather nice, I have to say, for a only 4-row pattern.

If you are interested, I have charted it here:

to be continued... Happy Knitting everyone!

Pattern Release: Ruffles Skirt

2011-07-25T08:00:00.003-04:00

Cute little skirt with fun colorful ruffles that your girl will love.

Knitted in round, it uses only knit and purl stitches.

The ruffles are joined with the rest of the skirt during the knitting. The pattern includes a photo-tutorial on just how to do that.

Pattern is written in words for sizes 3, 4 and 5 years.

Finished sizes:

3 years (3T), waist diameter 46 cm (18 inch)

4 years (4T), waist diameter 49 cm (19⅟₄ inch )

5 years (5T) , waist diameter 52 cm (20⅟₂ inch)

Materials (for all sizes)

White yarn: KnitPicks Bare (Fingering weight 462yards/100 g), 1 skein

Multicolor yarn: KnitPicks Felici, Rainbow (Fingering weight, 218 yards/50 g), 1 skein

Tools: 2 circular needles, 24 inches, 3.25 mm (US3)

I am offering the pattern as

an instant PDF download.

Your cost: $3.00 via Raverly /Paypal

Thank you!
Happy Knitting Everyone!

Four month of absence, well, not from knitting!

2011-07-20T10:35:00.000-04:00

As I am sitting here to write this post I realize that it has been more than 4 months from my last one.
What happened? Well, let me try to summarize it:
1. New responsibilities at work: my University is starting a new program and I am named as a director. So, I spent a lot of time this spring trying to make things happen ASAP.
2. A promotion at work (aside from the directorship). That also required a lot of preparation and thinking.
3. Couple conferences to attend and present.
4. A four-week trip out of the country.
5. A kid who finished daycare in May and does not start a preschool until September.

All these kept me away from blogging, but not from knitting!
So, here is a Part I of the "What have I been doing" report:

A few custom-made projects:

From: "Knitted Lace of Estonia" by Nancy Bush. Slightly modified "Lilac Leaf Shawl". Yarn: Gloss Lace by Knitpicks

From: "Knitted Lace of Estonia" by Nancy Bush. "Triinu Scarf". Yarn: Bare Lace by Knitpicks

From: "Knitted Lace of Estonia" by Nancy Bush. NO-NUPP version of "Mikell Shawl". Yarn: Shadow Tonal Lace by Knitpicks

A few Lace things for my Etsy Store:

StellaLuna in white by me. Yarn: Bare Lace by KnitPicks

Dunes and Waves in White, again by me. Yarn: merino/viscose by Colourmart

From: "The Haapsalu Shawl" by Siiri Reimann and Aime Edasi. The motif name is "CUBE Pattern" (page 154). Yarn: Super-Thin Sim (Mohair) by Oki.

Oooof, good for now! The "What have I been doing" report is to be continued...

Happy Knitting Everyone!

Pattern Release: Dunes and Waves

2011-03-08T21:36:00.001-05:00

This stunning stole is feminine, romantic and not difficult to make.

If you have never knitted lace, this is a good first project: no sew-on lacy edges, no provisional cast-ons, no kitchener stitches.
You start at the one end of the stole, and finish at the other. The pattern will do the rest. It will create the waves and pointy tips. Pattern uses one of the signature stitches of Estonian Lace: a twisted stitch also known as gathered 2x2 stitch.

The model is knitted from a light-weight lace yarn, but any weight lace yarn can be used instead.

Materials
Yarn: 75 g of lace weight yarn
(~ 1300 yards/100 g)
Tools: needles US size 4 (3.5 mm)
Finished size: 24 x 71 inch (60 x 180 cm)

I am offering the pattern for this shawl for sale as

an instant PDF download.

Please note: pattern is charted.

Your cost: $4.00 via Raverly / PayPal

Thank you!
Happy Knitting Everyone!

Free Lace Knitting Patterns from KnitPicks

2011-02-19T22:22:00.001-05:00

The life is crazy, absolutely no time for knitting, so I thought I will show you some more free lace patterns (Free Patterns!) from Knitpicks.com . KnitPicks is a yarn company that has a variety of yarns that I like to work with. Mainly merinos, but some cottons and silks too. On their website they have patterns developed for their yarns (see some of my work there: Diagonal Stripe Hat, Fun Twirls Hat and (soon!!) Buzzy Bee Baby Blanket ).
Some of the patterns are FREE, so enjoy the lacy ones!

Winter Flame Scarf

by Juliet Romeo Juliet

Haruni Shawl Pattern

by Emily Ross

Candleflame Shawl Pattern

by Debra Bright

Till I have a little more time:

Happy Knitting everyone!

Estonian 2x2 gathered stitch fascinates me

2011-02-01T22:53:00.001-05:00

Quick note on what I have been up to lately. I was playing with Estonian 2x2 gathered stitches:

The stitch I am referring to on this picture is one without yarn overs and creates sort of a "curly" fabric. I was introduced to this rather unusual stitch when I knitted Maikell Shawl from Nancy Bush's "Knitted Lace of Estonia". Absolutely loved the way it looked after the shawls were blocked. It has a 3-D feel to it. Here is a scheme and explanation:

The thinking led to designing, the designing led to writing down a scheme, the scheme - to needles, and here is a result. A stole! ( I know - big surprise :). Here are few more pictures of it.

The name for this shawl is still in works. While I was knitting it I was thinking: Dunes of Baltic Sea, but I am not yet sure. Suggestions are welcome!

PS: It is snowing where we are...

Happy Knitting Everyone!

Same but Different

2011-01-29T23:57:00.000-05:00

While ago I read a great paper by Elizabeth Lovick "The Same, but Different. Shetland Lace in a European Context".
The big surprise for me was a realization that traditional lace patterns, developed in areas separated by thousands of miles look very similar. In some cases they even have the same name. On the sampler below, there are 3 traditional patterns. Bottom one comes from Shetland (Scotland), middle - from Orenburgh (Russia), top one - from Haapsalu (Estonia).

In Shetland they call it "Cat Paws", so they did in Estonia; but Russian knitters saw a "strawberry" in this combination of yarn overs and decreases. Isn't it interesting?
At the first glace - all three are the same, but if you look closer ( or if you look at the chart below), you can notice slight variations in center. Another big difference is a base stitch: Shetland and Orenburgh knitters preferred the garter stitch, that made the fabric reversible, while Estonian ones used stockinette stitch.

Here is how the "Strawberry" Pattern is used in modern Orenburgh Shawl ( they are put together in a chain).

and here is an Estonian Paws in a scarf:

It is fascinating to me how humans (miles and miles away from each other) can think along the same lines...

Happy Knitting everyone!

Winter Wipeout Sale at Interweave

2011-01-20T21:07:00.001-05:00

Just saw it:

Interweave.com has a 40% off sale on many books!

Winter Wipeout Sale

Sale starts on January 20, 2011 and ends January 24, 2011.

Gossamer Webs Design Collection: Three Orenburg Shawls to Knit

~~Was: $14.95~~
Sale: $8.97

Knitted Lace of Estonia with DVD

~~Was: $19.99~~

Sale: $11.99

Lace and Eyelets

~~Was: $22.95~~
Sale: $13.77

Just thought you might want to know!

Happy Knitting Everyone!

Buzzy Bee Baby Blanket

2011-01-14T10:53:00.000-05:00

What comes to your mind when I say "Baby blanket"? Something soft, cuddly and cute, and ... pastel colored? Pink? Lavender? Powder blue?
(I was thinking about it the other day when one of my knitting colleagues send out a picture of a baby sweater in black and neon pink with skeleton buttons: baby's mom is into all-punk-rock-things).

So, who said that a proper baby blanket has to be knitted in pastel colored yarn?
Not in our day and age! Bright-yellow might be just a right color! How about this yellow?

The design came to me when I saw a knitting pattern with alternating diagonal lace stripes and cables, that sort of looked like insects. I changed it a little, and voila: bees!

All of this culminated in a "Buzzy Bee Baby Blanket" pattern.

The buzzy bees and characteristic stripes make this baby blanket adorable and fun at the same time! It is easy to knit and will make a great gift for any new mom and her baby (especially, if we do not know yet if it is a boy or a girl).

I offer this pattern for sale as an instant PDF download.

Materials
Yarn: Red Heart Super Saver Yarn (7 oz/364 yards; 198 g/ 333 m)
or any similar aran weight yarn
Bright yellow: 2 skeins
Black: 1 skein
Tools: needles US size 4 (3.5 mm)
Finished size: 31 x 39 inch (78 x 100 cm)
Gauge: 16 sts and 24 rows per 4 inches in stocknet

Pattern is both Charted and Written in words.

US $3.00

Thank you for your interest!

and as always:

Happy Knitting Everyone!

Wrapped in Lace by Margaret Stove

2011-01-01T20:55:00.000-05:00

The Holiday Season is a time to treat yourself to something really yummy, something that you have been looking at for sometime, but could not justify to spend money on, right? So, here is my splurge: I have bought three new knitting books ( Lace knitting of course!). They are: Wrapped in Lace, The Haapsalu Shawl: A Knitted Lace Tradition from Estonia, Traditional Knitted Lace Shawls.

Today I would like to show you some stunning lace projects from Wrapped in Lace by Margaret Stove.
Just to get you started - look at that:

Kowhai and Fern Shawl

Lace Medallion Shawl

Granny Cheynes Shetland

This last one has a very interesting story written by Margaret Stove herself. This is how the story starts:
"An unexpected phone call in 2005 from the owner of an antique Shetland shawl opened up an opportunity to use the skills I had acquired over the years.

The owner of a damaged but complex shawl asked me to fix a family heirloom by restoring it as closely as possible to to its original state. According to the family, the shawl was likely more than 100 years old and was knitted by Mrs. Cheyne.

Mrs. Cheyne's family records show that she arrived in New Zealand with other family members, landing at Port Chalmers, Dunedin, in 1874. The yarn used for the original shawl was handspun using a fine local New Zealand-grown fleece that closely resembled wool the spinner used when she lived in the Shetland Islands. Read more of the story"

What do I like about this book?

The book is not about "Shetland Lace", or "Orenburg Lace", or "Faerose Lace", or "Estonian Lace" - no. This book is about a journey of the designer who takes the tradition and preserves it by mixing the styles and by adding new construction elements to a traditional pattern that makes the item (shawl, scarf, stole) looking contemporary and stunning!

These are not your Grandma's shawls (even the Granny Cheynes Shetland one above), but yet they convey that heirloom quality that we associate with a lace-weight hand-knitted shawl. My problem now is to decide which one will be first in my knitting queue.

By the way, if you are curious to try a sample project from this book you can find a "New Zealand Tribute to Orenburg" pattern for free.

"New Zealand Tribute to Orenburg" pattern

Happy knitting everyone

and

Happy and Healthy New Year!

Let it snow: knitted snowflake

2010-12-12T20:55:00.000-05:00

If it is not snowing where you are - why not take the matters in your own hands and make some snowflakes?!?

Knitted snowflake

"Knit Simple" Magazine (winter2007/2008).
Cast on 21 sts.
Row 1(RS): knit.
Row 2 (WS): Bind off 1st,*[sl 1 st back to LH needle. Using cable cast-on method, cast on 3 sts. Bind off next 3 sts] 3 times, bind off next 4 sts* repeat from *to the end. thread tapestry needle with cast-on tail and run through cast-on stitches. Pull to form circle and secure.

Here are couple pictures that hopefully will help:

I used them as appliques for my daughters sweater:

Happy Knitting everyone!

Frost Flowers Lace Pattern

2010-11-30T21:20:00.000-05:00

Frost Flowers Lace pattern is in my opinion one of the most elegant and versatile patterns I came across. This how it looks like in Shadow Lace weight KnitPicks Yarn:

I believe it was originally published in Barbara Walker's "A Treasury of Knitting Patterns" (please correct me if I am wrong) and inspired many designers.
I used "Flowers and Snowflakes Shawl: Blue Danube" by Debbie O'Neill published in

Vogue Knitting on the Go: Shawls Two. Here it is in my interpretation:

As for versatility of the pattern:

Here it is used in summer top by lankakomero ( you can also find the pattern itself here):

Here it is used in square shawl by Eugen Beugler for A Gathering Of Lace, as knitted by Eunny

Here it is used to adorn the jacket by Lene Holme Samsoe in " Feminine Knits "

Hope you enjoyed the pattern as much as I do -
Happy Knitting everyone!

PS: Do you know any other items that are knitted with "FROST FLOWERS"?

Ribbed Lace and Cable Knots

2010-11-26T20:17:00.000-05:00

Oh, "A Gathering of Lace" by Meg Swansen!

Every lace-knitter's Must Have book. How many of us out there spent hours looking at the pictures of lovely shawls and pullovers? I am the latest victim! I got the book in July and since then every so often I open the pages and look at the pictures, saying : "One day I will make...". The item I will make usually changes from day to day.
One of those items is a Ribbed Lace Pullover which has the following pattern:

I like the idea of lace and cables and I like the cabled knots. I really wanted to play with this pattern!
However, me being me (i.e. - I very rarely follow any pattern without changing it) I made the pattern even lacy-er and knitted a stole (or a big scarf - what ever you want to call it):

Here is a detailed pattern:

Question is: should I write up the pattern for all of you guys out there? Anybody interested?

Happy knitting everyone!

Another month - another pattern release

2010-11-09T15:51:00.000-05:00

It has been more than a month since the last post, but life kept happening keeping me away from knitting and writing. Today is a rare slow day when I can show you something new.
It is my new knitting pattern that has been released on KnitPicks website.

NEW PATTERN:

Diagonal Stripe Hat

I have been making this type of hats for years, but finally decided to write a pattern down.

The hat is knitted from KnitPick's Felici Sport Self Striping Yarn. The color scheme on photo is SEASIDE. this yarn also available in several different variations:

I love the quality of KnitPIks yarns and the price is right too! Felici goes for $4.49 for a 50 g ball: it is VERY reasonable for a self-striping yarn!

Here are the specification of the pattern:

Size: 3-4 years

Finished Head Circumference: 19-20 inches

Gauge: 24 sts and 32 rows per 4 inches in stockinet

Yarn: KnitPicks Felici Sport Self Striping Sock Yarn, 1 skein: “Seaside” #24923

Tools: Size 3 (3.25 mm), stitch marker, tapestry needle

This cute little hat only looks difficult to knit. Once you make it and see how easy and quick it is to do - you will want to make one for every kid (and adult) in your life in every color of a self-striping yarn you can put your hands on.

Makes a great quick gift for any occasion!

Price for pattern download is $1.99

Please click here for more information on this pattern.

Thank you all for your interest
and

Happy Knitting!

Favorite Lace Freebies

2010-09-22T15:06:00.000-04:00

My knitting progress is rather slow lately. You know how it is: life always gets in way of knitting. Nothing new to show yet, but meanwhile I wanted to share my favorite FREE LACE PATTERS from Interweave (Knitting Daily)
1. Estonian Lace Shawl by Nancy Bush

Pretty shawl with a classic construction. Good first pattern if you have never knitted Estonian Lace.
Full pattern (charted only) if free for download here.

2. Lace Shawl by Alice Halbeisen

Simple but very pretty shawl based on one Stitch Pattern. Full pattern (Charted only) free for download here.

3. Little Something: Juliet Scarf by Louisa Harding

Very pretty little scarf.Simple and sweet. Good One-skein or "Oh my God I need a present" project.
Full Pattern (BOTH carted and written) is here.

Next week my life will be even crazier: I am off to a 5-day conference to work as an interpreter (English - Russian). It is a hard work, really. But the topic is very interesting: Forensic Science, so there are should be great presentations, but... not much time for knitting. Oh, well. There is always NEXT WEEK.

Happy Knitting Everyone!

Liliana Shawl - pattern release

2010-09-12T21:26:00.000-04:00

Couple posts ago I hinted at my new design - triangular shawl based on Estonian lace type stitches.
Here it is.

The shawl is named Liliana for a friend of mine with whom I reconnected recently after several years of silence. The term LOVELY describes both of them: my friend and this shawl. Here it is in white:

Liliana is just a very lovely shawl which is knitted from the top down increasing at the center and at the end of the rows. The pattern is a run of waves. They start small and simple becoming a little more elaborate towards the bottom of the shawl only to finish in nice arches of “white caps”.

The white version was knitted from a 1-ply cob-web merino-cashmere blend (needles: US1, 2.25 mm), the blue one was made out of KnitPicks 2-ply lace weight Shadow yarn (needles: US 7, 4.5 mm).

The white one is smaller and delicate, the blue is bigger and makes quite a statement:

I like them both!

I am offering the pattern for this shawl for sale as a PDF download.

Your cost: $3.50 via PayPal

The pattern is both charted and written in words.

To knit this shawl you will need about 600 yards (~550 m) of yarn.

By the way: if you don't have experience with PayPal - you should not be afraid. It is 100% safe and you don't need to have an account with them. You can use your Credit or Debit card.
After payment is made you will be re-directed to a web-page for PDF download.

Thank you for your interest and as always:
Happy Knitting!

Estonian Lace Pattern - Silvia

2010-09-02T21:55:00.000-04:00

In Estonian lace knitting each shawl (or scarf) is comprised of a lace pattern and an edging pattern. Most of the lace patterns are based on items from nature. One of the prettiest was designed in 1992 to commemorate the visit of Sweden's Queen Silvia. It's the Silvia Pattern, a variation of the classic Haapsalu Lily of the Valley design.

source: The Haapsalu Shawl: Rhapsody in Knitting .Click here to see more from the book!
Post by Kathleen Cubley, 07/09/10

Happy Knitting!

On Nupps and Yarn Color

2010-08-28T21:21:00.000-04:00

Nupps are tricky. No, not in knitting - once you've done 5-6 of them, they are fine. By the way if you are looking for a good NUPP tutorial look here.
Nupps are turned out to be tricky if you change a yarn color on them. :)
Ok, the story:
From the moment I bought a "Knitted Lace of Estonia" by Nancy Bush I fell in love with her Maikell Shawl. Here it is as knitted by me from KnitPicks Bare yarn in lace weight.

The combination of Nupps and twisted stitches create a very fine balance between weightlessness and a substance in that lace pattern. Here is a close up

So, I've done couple of white ones and was looking for some change, when I came across this yarn (again - from KnitPicks. For full disclosure - I am not getting paid from KnitPicks, I just really like their yarns and customer service!!!).
This particular yarn is called SHADOW TONAL LACE YARN in Queen Anne color scheme:

I immediately thought of the Mikell Shawl made out of this. WOW... I imagine that because of the color changes every nupp will be different color and it will add to the appeal of the shawl.

And here it is. The Mikell Shawl in Queen Anne color: absolutely stunning!

But the nupps did not do what I thought they will. They are there, you see them, but they did not really enhanced the look of the lace the way I thought they will. Close up:

Oh well, I guess I will need to knit more nupps to figure them out completely :)

And the shawl is still gorgeous!

Happy Knitting everyone!