Does woolgathering sound like a place where we are gathering together with wool and knitting? Indeed, it is. The word woolgathering has also evolved over time with different meanings within our contemporary world. Going back to the 16th century, woolgathering meant the literal act of gathering the bits of wool from sheep stuck on fences or bushes. We can imagine woolgatherers wandering along on fences and bushes for many hours gathering the wool. Perhaps, as they wandered long physical distances, their minds also aimlessly wandered. The evolution of the word, woolgathering, is influenced by the idleness and wandering of these 16th century woolgatherers. Today, woolgathering is defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as the “indulgence in idle daydreaming.” I am 100% behind indulgence and idleness of daydreaming. I hope you indulge in a daydream. If I am fully honest, much of my personal daydreaming centers on my knitting. As I designed this shawl I thought about the joy of daydreaming and dreaming about knitting. #woolgatheringshawl

Woolgathering is a crescent-shaped shawl that uses two different types of fibers, wool and mohair, for a beautiful texture. You begin with an i-cord tab cast on, work down, and increase at the edges. Feel free to substitute the mohair with a different fiber or get creative with changing colors. This is your woolgathering. Enjoy the rhythmic changes in texture and wrap yourself up in your woolgathering.

|| Preparation for the Pattern ||
Yarn required: 100g of fingering weight yarn + 50 g of lace weight mohair

Yarn pictured: Purls & Postulates, colorway “I lobe you.”
Harris Sock (2 ply), 75% sw merino, 25% nylon (463 yds)
Wilson Mohair, 72% kid mohair, 28% silk (459 yd)

Needles: US size 6 (4.00 mm); any size needle that provides a nice drape for a shawl. I am a loose knitter and knit this in US size 4, but many of the testers used US size 6.

Gauge:
Chevron: fingering (24 sts x 28 rows for 4” x 4”); mohair (21 sts x 26
rows for 4” x 4”)

Size: one size

Accessories: Stitch markers for marking 11 st repeats, purl strings or knitting barber cord for spreading shawl out, scale for measuring repeats and ensuring enough yarn

Construction: Crescent shaped, knit top down, with increasing on the edges

Advice: This pattern will use most (if not all) of your yarn. If you are
nervous about running out of yarn at the end, you can weigh your yarn as you go. It’s possible to remove some garter rows in section 3 if you like.