A shawl for my best friend’s wedding, to go with a floor-length dark blue velvet dress.

A mainly-stocking-stitch shawl. I used the increase numbers from Aeolian from the get-go to make it easy when I get to the border and knitted the YOs at the centre through the back loop to close them up). Added a band of lace at the transition chart (between Yucca and Agave charts) for a bit of variety for me, to add a bit of structure to the shawl, and because the stitch count changes inside the pattern repeat in that chart and it’s much easier to do that while knitting the lace than trying to keep it right in stocking stitch.

Friend is fairly tall and broad-shouldered (especially compared to me) so I’m aiming for 14 Yucca repeats and 3 Agave repeats. The resulting shawl will either be pleasingly generous or a complete monster. Or both.

Nota bene, future self: no need to cast off too loosely. p2tog method is fine knit naturally, and a bit of a nuisance if done consciously loosely.

Beads

44g (c. 1380 beads) of 8/0 white-ish cream pearly/lustred opaque-ish seed beads (possibly these or these, I’m not sure) bought from Beadworks, London.

Beading only the edging, and according to my own plan not the pattern: beads on the ‘stems’ of the leaves/buds, right up into the cast-off row. I’m leaving out the nupps in the edging, not because I mind knitting them, but because I think a flatter texture will work better with the stocking stitch body.

Yarn

Everything about knitting this yarn makes me think of whipping up egg whites into meringue. Not as smooth or un-fuzzy as you might expect from superwash, but I’ve no complaints. It knitted up beautifully.

Progress tally

21/3/2013: 8 repeats of Yucca chart (stocking stitch only)

23/3/2013: 13.5 repeats of Yucca chart (stocking stitch only) = c. 25% of yarn (50g) used.

28/3/2013: 14 repeats of Yucca chart (stocking stitch), Transition chart (in lace pattern).

2/4/2013: 1st repeat of Agave chart (stocking stitch).

3/4/2013: 2nd repeat of Agave chart (stocking stitch). Rows are 500+ stitches now.

4/4/2013: 3rd repeat of Agave chart (stocking stitch).

6/4/2013: final Agave chart (stocking stitch) (started second skein here, so as to have plenty from first skein at hand to use double strand for cast off).

8/4/2013: row 5 of edging (in pattern now, at long last).

9/4/13: row 10 of edging.

10/4/13: row 14 of edging.

11/4/13: row 15 of edging, and made a tiny main edging swatch to consider bead placements.

14/4/13: row 23 of edging.

15/4/13: row 25 of edging.

17/4/13: row 27 of edging.

18/4/13: row 31 of edging.

21/4/13: row 37 of edging.

22/4/13: half-way through row 39 of edging.

24/4/13: row 42 of edging.

25/4/13: half-way through row 43 of edging (so. many. beads.)

26/4/13: row 44 of edging.

27/4/13: just started cast off.

28/4/13: cast off and blocked (in half, because there’s not enough room (or pins) to do otherwise).