Liz is a light-as-a-feather lace stole that is a re-imagining of my Elizabeth triangular shawl pattern. The design combines the same classic Shetland motifs with a minimalist construction method, resulting in a contemporary stole that is fun to knit and versatile to wear as either a wrap or a wide scarf.

Liz may look complicated, but it uses only six simple stitches and is quite easy to knit. (Don’t tell non-knitters that, of course!) And the sampler nature of the design ensures that you will not be bored, as the motifs change rather frequently.

This is an excellent pattern for those of you new to working provisional cast ons (see the Construction Notes below). I have included detailed instructions to show you how, including helpful hints and a video link.

The pattern includes both full written instructions and large, easy-to-read charts. Since the design is very easily adaptable to your preferred size and width, there are also detailed instructions to adjust the size, including yardage estimates.

Lace weight yarn is highly recommended for this pattern in order to capture the ethereal quality of the design.

Liz will beautifully showcase your favorite subtly-variegated hand-dyed, tonal or solid colored yarn. Highly variegated yarns are not recommended as they will obscure the pretty Shetland lace patterns.

Construction Notes: Liz is worked seamlessly in two mirrored halves starting from the center using a provisional cast on and worked down to both ends. There is no grafting. All wrong side rows are purled between the garter borders.

Yardage: I used about 860 yards (786 m) of lace weight yarn for the sample pictured, which was worked at the pattern size referenced above. Test knitters using lace weight at the pattern size used up to 1,000 yards (914 m). Yardage may vary depending on your gauge, needle size and the weight of the lace yarn you choose.