This pattern is available for FREE using the code “mutual aid”. Donate the money you save to someone who has loss of income due to Covid-19. The pattern is also available for-pay for folks who are finding they’d like to support me during this time <3 Not required - but endlessly appreciated.

Peach Tree. The shawl is named after the huge orchard of Peach Trees I have in Animal Crossing New Horizons.

I have put over 100 hours into Animal Crossing since I crawled into quarantine a month ago. It felt most apt to name this shawl after one of my favourite parts of it (growing fruit!)

And why yes, I am also completely ridiculous and designed a dress with the “shawl” being worn in game. So your character can wear a matching shawl to you once you knit yourself a Peach Tree!

My “designer” code in Animal Crossing is MA-0770-2651-7566

So, let’s talk a bit about the pandemic too. Covid has been chaos. We’re all doing our best and for a lot of folks keeping their head above water means deep-diving into things like Animal Crossing. I know a lot of folks have been finding moments of calm, baking, crafting and knitting. I can’t help with the first two, but I got you for the third one!

I have approximately two braincells left these days and so garter shawls with gorgeous yarn is where it’s AT for me. And man I am grateful as all hell for garter and all the blissful lovely stitching this shawl brought with it, amidst this global crisis.

SO - If you can, donate to folks who are out of work. There are many crowdfunding projects right now to help folks who have had loss of income due to Covid-19. Take the money you would have spent on this shawl and donate it to someone who is strugglin’ to pay rent. Someone who has disabilities and who is at major risk. Etc. Just throw your money around at people right now. They all need it.

And of course, if you can, stay home.

I do love that the new punk rock-iest thing you can do right now is takin’ care of the worlds most vulnerable folks right now by just kicking around at home.

There are so many overlapping things happening right now globally. If you can, if you have the mental resources, let this time radicalize you. Read about prison abolition, read about ableism and institutionalized racism and fatphobia in medicine. If you can be curious and listen to folks who have been sharing their stories of oppression.

We’re all doing our best right now in this strange time.

Sending love to all of y’all <3

Yarn:

For MC: 2 skeins of Earl Grey Fibers Oolong DK base in colourway “Heirloom” or approximately 462 yards (422 metres) of DK weight yarn.

For CC: 2 skeins of Earl Grey Fibers Oolong DK base in colourway “When Doves Cry” or approximately 462 yards (422 metres) of DK weight yarn.

A note on the yarn: I used two colours with a lot of each other in them. The grey has specs of purple and the purple has specs of grey. This is partly why I loved knitting this pattern so much. The yarns were absolutely made to be held next to each other.

Needles:

4.5mm (US 7) circular needles in at least a 24” (60cm) cord. Or whatever size needles it takes you to get gauge.

Notions:

Whichever tools you prefer to weave in
ends, and whichever tools you prefer to
block your shawls.

Gauge:

21 stitches and 24 rows = 4” (10cm) square knit flat in garter and blocked.

Size:

96” (244cm) measured along the wingspan.
28” (71cm) measured down the deepest part of the triangle.

Glossary:

K - Knit (K2 = Knit 2 stitches)
KFB - Knit into the Front and Back of a stitch
K2TOG - Knit 2 Stitches Together
MC - Main Colour
CC - Contrast Colour
M1L - Make 1 stitch Left-leaning
WS - Wrong Side
RS - Right Side
sts - Stitches

Special thanks to Nicola Hodges for tech editing. And to Winnie, Bean and Ben for the extra modelling during quarentine.