In my daydreams, I get to travel all over the world and visit the times and places where beautiful knitting patterns were originally created. One of those places is a small town in Estonia known as Haapsalu. This seaside resort on the west coast has been known for centuries for its warm seawater and salt mud spas. Also known as the Venice of the Baltics, it is rumored to have been a favorite holiday location for the Russian Romanov family and home to the Haapsalu Shawl.

A Haapsalu shawl, traditionally, would be a square shawl, knit from lambs wool yarn in three parts and sewn together. Sold by weight the master artisans of the region developed a special stitch, a nupp (or button) which not only proved the shawl to be hand crafted but increased the amount of yarn used in each piece.

Square shawls knit in pieces, while beautiful, can be difficult to finish and wear. This ¾ square shawl solves both those problems! Knit from the top down, from a garter tab, using a repeating motif based on a traditional Estonian stitch, Nuppudega rombikiri (or Rhombus with Buttons) and finished with an edge that flows from the motif, this shawl is sure to have you daydreaming of sitting in the resort town of Haapsalu, too!

Size: 22 inchs (56 cm) deep and 44 inches (112 cm) wide
Bottom circumference 63 inches (160 cm)
Materials:
Unplanned Peacock Peacock Whisper Lace, 70% alpaca, 20% silk, 10% cashmere; 850 yds (777 meters)/100 grams (3.5 ounces)

US 3 (3.25mm) circular needles, 60 inches (152 cm)

Gauge: 16.5 sts and 18 rows = 4 inches (10cm) in lace pattern.

Notions: Stitch marker(s) if desired for marking pattern repeats, large eyed tapestry needle for weaving in ends, optional small crochet hook for making nupps.

Includes charts and fully written line by line instructions.