Introductory offer: On the first weekend of publishing (2nd/3rd of July 2022) you can purchase Hydrilla at a discount of 20% - no coupon code required.

Hydrilla is an intricate looking yet relatively easy to knit shawl made with two yarns. It is fully reversible. One side will highight Yarn A and the other will highlight Yarn B. You need two contrasting yarns: two solids, one solid or semi solid combined with a color gradient, or two color gradients that go well together as a pair but that are distinctive enough to make out the individual modules – all these ensembles will do. Your yarns don’t even have to be of the same weight. You can easily combine different fibers as well. I would recommend to use the thicker yarn as Yarn B, which is used for the “ribs” and the “spine”. The amount of yarn you need will of course depend on the tightness of your knitting and the weight of your yarn.

The size will depend on the amount of modules you want to knit. Hydrilla is comprised of two halves and each half consists of two parts - a Waxing Part and a Waning Part. Simply knit the Waxing Part until you have reached two thirds of the desired width and length and/or until you have used up to 30% of your Yarn A and/or 27% of your Yarn B. Then continue with the Waning Part. Therefore, you can use any yarn weight and needles you like and knit either a large shawl or a small shawlette.

You will need more of Yarn A than of Yarn B. The ratio for the general pattern is 2:1. So you need twice as much yarn of Yarn A than of Yarn B. I am talking yardage here and not weight, in case you are using different yarn weights. If you have more of Yarn B, which you would not like to go to waste you can also knit an Alternative Version with a ratio between Yarn A and Yarn B of 4:3. So for 1000y of Yarn A you will need 750y of Yarn B. This version is also incuded in the pattern pdf.

I prefer to knit a bit tighter with thinner needles and I used 1540y/1400m of the lovely Kid Silk based Flufftikuss Kapriole No.85 by Dibadu as Yarn A combined with 770y/700m Twisted Fifites “Zuckerwatte” by Dibadu as Yarn B for a shawl with the length of 84”/210cm and a width of 35”/89cm.
I knitted another shawl with 1100y/1000m of Bilum Loli B49 as Yarn A and 550y/500m of Schoppel Whool Finest “Meeresblick” as Yarn B for a shawl of 70”/178cm length and 23.5”/60cm width.
The Alternative Version was knitted with 1070y/975m of Poema Color 9 by Laines du Nord as Yarn A combined with 790y/720m of Wollmeise Pure “Wolke” as Yarn B for a shawl of 75.5”/192cm length and 22”/64cm width.

Hydrilla is a modular knit but there is no seaming involved as you will join all the modules as you go. All instructions are given in written and charted form. You will find photo tutorials on all the necessary techniques for joining the modules. Some of the rows are rather short, which can be tiresome. Therefore, you will also find a photo tutorial on knitting backwards so you won’t have to turn your work constantly.

The general principle of Hydrilla is fairly easy and you won’t have to look at the instructions once you have knitted the first few modules. This makes Hydrilla perfect for travelling or knitting in front of the tv. If you use the original Flufftikuss yarn by Dibadu, you will find that it is wonderfully light and thus ideal for a summer knit.

Happy Knitting

Ursa Marjor